The Artist Equity grant program provides funding to Black, Indigenous, and other artists of color at any career stage for activities that foster the development of their artistic skills and career, expand their audience, and increase their ability to live and work in the SW MN Region.
Donor Name: Southwest Minnesota Arts Council
State: Minnesota
County: Selected Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 09/17/2025
Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
Artist Equity applicants may request funding for costs including, but not limited to:
- Purchase of supplies or equipment
- Compensated time or childcare costs while working on a specific body of work
- Research
- One-on-one study with a mentor
- Attending workshops or conferences for professional or artistic development
- Rental of facilities for presenting work or for studio space
- Website or portfolio production
- Framing
- Recording
- Editing or other costs related to publishing.
Funding Information
- Artist Equity grants are available for up to $4,000.
- Grant funding counts toward your taxable income.
Grant Period
July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Artist Equity grant program is open to indigenous artists and artists of color, including those who are:
- Indigenous
- Black/African/African American
- Afro Latino
- Caribbean
- Chicano/Mexican
- Central American
- South American
- Middle Eastern/North African
- Southeast Asian/Asian/Pacific Islander
- In the SW MN region, this could include those who are Black, Dakota/Lakota, Hispanic/Latinx, Hmong, Karen, Micronesian, Somali, etc.
- Geographic Area and Residency
- The Artist Equity grant program is open to permanent residents within the SW MN Arts Council service region, consisting of eighteen counties (Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Lincoln, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Swift, and Yellow Medicine counties) and two tribal nations (Pezihutazizi/Upper Sioux Community, Cansayapi/Lower Sioux Community). They acknowledge that the Southwest Minnesota region occupies the traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of the Dakota people.
- Applicants must be a region resident for at least six months prior to submitting an application and remain a resident throughout the contract period. Applicants may be asked to provide proof of residency, which must be demonstrated by the following, each showing an eligible address: 1) A valid MN state ID/driver’s license or other federally recognized documentation and 2) Bills for utilities or mortgage/rent.
- Age Requirement
- Applicants must be at least 18 years old by the time of signing their grant contract.
- Other SMAC Grants for Individuals
- Artists may only have one pending SMAC grant request at a time, across all grant programs for individuals. Artists with a current SMAC grant project in progress may not apply for another individual grant until reporting on the first grant is completed. Applicants with overdue final reports are not eligible to apply.
For more information, visit SMAC.
