When a disaster strikes, it can take a while to put the pieces back together again. Since artists are largely self-employed and independent, it's important to have the financial backing and infrastructure to rebuild a studio and artistic practice back.
These funding opportunities are specifically for artists who have experienced some type of emergency, be it medical, financial, or weather related. Each description contains the grant amount, and the links lead to the website where applications can be sent.
Adolf and Ester Gottleib Foundation -- Emergency Grant program is intended to provide interim financial assistance to qualified painters, printmakers, and sculptors whose needs are the result of an unforeseen, catastrophic incident, and who lack the resources to meet that situation.
Each grant is given as a one time assistance after an emergency, such as a fire, flood, or emergency medical situation. There are no deadlines for this program.
The maximum amount of this grant is $15,000; the average grant is $5,000.
Foundation for Contemporary Arts provides grants for project related emergencies or surprise costs that may arise while executing a project, for example:
Grants range in amount from $500 to $3,000, and the average grant is now $1,900.
The New York Foundation for the Arts Rauschenberg Medical Emergency Grant is for visual artists, dental, mental health emergencies for visual artists, digital/film artists, and choreographers. This program provides one-time grants of up to $5,000 for recent unexpected medical, dental, and mental health emergencies to artists in financial need* who are creating in the visual arts, film/video/electronic/digital arts, and choreography. Only generative artists are eligible—artists creating their own, independent work, with recent and ongoing opportunities for the public to experience that work.
The emergency grants are up to $5,000.
CERF+ Emergency Assistance provides emergency assistance to artists working in craft or materials-based folk/traditional disciplines that are 18 years or older and have resided and worked in the U.S. or U.S. territories for the past 2 years. These artists must have experienced a recent, unforeseen, career threatening emergency.
The emergency assistance grants are $3,000.
Max's Kansas City Project provides oneitime emergency grants to assist working, self employed, artists overcome temporary financial setbacks. Artists must be residents of New York State. Payment of the grant does not go to the artist, but rather directly to a third party/creditor. MKCP only covers housing, legal, or medical aid.
Assistance grants are between $500 - $1,000.
Colorado based Artists' Charitable Fund assists visual artists, painters and sculptors living in the United States, who have been making a living from their art for at least five years - proven by providing copy of latest IRS filing by paying a portion of their medical / dental / eye-care bills.
There is no grant limit given on the website, but one testimonial references a grant of $5,000.
The Artists’ Fellowship provides emergency aid to professional visual fine artists and their families in times of sickness, natural disaster, bereavement or unexpected extreme hardship. The need must be current and documented, not anticipated.
There was not a listed limit of grant amount on the website.
The Artistic Freedom Initiative is an organization dedicated to providing legal assistance to artists. Their mission is to protect, promote, and foster freedom of artistic expression. They provide assistance for persecuted or censored artists with pro-bono legal help. They help artists resettling in the United States and work authorization for at-risk artists. They also assist with artist activists whose work furthers human rights and social change. More information can be found on their website.
Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts provides pro-bono legal services to low-income artists and all non-profit arts organizations in every artistic discipline. We consult with thousands of artists and representatives of nonprofit arts organizations each year. Their staff attorneys successfully resolve about 50% of matters in the initial consultation or clinic. If your matter requires further legal assistance and you meet VLA’s income guidelines, VLA will seek to place your case with a volunteer attorney. Most matters are placed within 4 to 12 weeks, but we cannot guarantee placement.
In addition to in-house consultations, clinics and pro bono placement, VLA also provides the following: MediateArt, services for Artists Over Sixty and our Patent Pro Bono Program.