Financial support for visual artist-led initiatives in the Global South

Arts Collaboratory offers financial support to visual artist-run initiatives in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and for exchange between these and visual arts organisations in the Netherlands.

  • Small scale support up to € 10.000. Support concerns starting initiatives, the development of programmatic networks, profiling activities and capacity development.
  • Proposals of 1 to 3 years of more than € 10.000 a year. Support leads to professionalising the programme and organisation of the initiative and/or widening its outreach.
  • Support for artistic exchange, both South-South exchange and exchange between visual artist-run initiatives in the Global South with cultural organisations in the Netherlands. For the latter, read Dutch exchange.

Who can apply?

Independent visual artist-led initiatives in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Your organisation:

  • is led by artists.
  • organises visual arts activities on a local, regional or international scale, offering alternatives to commercialised and closed art circuits around the globe.
  • is independent and flexible.
  • works from artistic practice.
  • bases its programme on the local context you work in.
  • operates transparently: people in the organisation and the outer world have a clear view of how the organisation operates.
  • has sufficient financial and administrative capacity. For support over € 10.000, a legal representative of the organisation – someone with official standing to act on behalf of your organisation - is required.

Visual art organisations in the Kingdom of the Netherlands can apply for the Dutch Exchange programme.

Criteria

Your project proposal will be assessed on its relevance within the specific context in which the activities take place. Also, your project should fit into several of the following criteria:

  • it contributes to the infrastructure in the country/region in question: e.g. presentations, training, exchange, research and distribution with a national/regional outreach;
  • is accessible to a broad group of artists;
  • interacts with a diverse (new) audience;
  • is of high artistic quality;
  • responds to contemporary society;
  • international outreach; e.g. search for connection/interaction in or between the regions or in or between the continents Africa, Asia or Latin America and/or with the Dutch art world. Connections should not be an aim in itself, but should occur as an integral necessity of the programme content.

Guidelines proposals

Artist-led initiatives can send in a project proposal. In your project proposal, please address at least the following issues:

  • the relevance of your organisation or project in relation to the context your organisation works in;
  • general objectives of your organisation and the project;
  • description of the activity to be supported, expected results, output and outreach (both quantitative and qualitative);
  • the project budget per year, the budget of the entire organisation per year and a funding plan per year;
  • logical relation between objectives, activity and results. The chosen methods and means, actors, strategic partners and audience are logical;
  • a results based project formulation including indicators. How are you going to measure the results?

Send your proposal to

Hivos
Att. of Juulke Brosky
j.brosky@hivos.nl
P.O. Box 85565
2508 CG DEN HAAG
The Netherlands
T + 31 (0)70 276 55 00

Deadline

The proposal should be written in English and handed in at least 4 months before the activities start. The Steering group of Arts Collaboratory meets 4 times a year to decide on project proposals.

Procedure

In principle, a decision will be taken about whether or not to accept the application within four months. Decisions will be communicated by email.