Visual Arts Work Grant

The jury comprises: Maurin Dietrich, Michael Franz, Leonie Herweg, Inken Reinert, Michaela Richter and Tanja-Bianca Schmidt.

The application period will end on 2 September 2026 at 11 am.

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Target group / Purpose of funding

The grants are aimed for the artistic development of professionally working artists and groups of artists in the visual arts, based in Berlin. Funding is provided for artists who are striving to develop their artistic skills or for specific work projects, such as working on a particular theme, exploring new/other working techniques, etc.

Grants are awarded on the basis of the artistic quality of work, creativity and continuity of previous artistic work.

Eligibility and conditions

• Visual artists who have completed artistic training and/or can demonstrate several years of artistic activity in the field of visual arts are eligible for funding.
• Applicants live and work in Berlin. In the case of groups, the majority of group members should live and work in Berlin.
• Applicants must not be enrolled at a university at the time of application and during the funding period (not even with the aim of obtaining a PhD) or be employed as a (guest) professor at a university.

Funding volume

Subject to the availability of funds in the year 2027 the grants are endowed with €16,000 each for 8 months or €24,000 for 12 months and are being paid in monthly rates of €2,000. The grant will also enable a presentation – subject to available budget funds in 2028 – at a Berlin Kunstverein.

Call for applications

A call for applications to the work grant programme is usually issued in Summer of each year for the following year.

Application procedure

Applications are generally possible every two years. Artists who last applied for 2025 or earlier can apply again. People who last applied for the 2026 working grant cannot apply. An exception to this are people whose application for 2026 did not fulfil the formal requirements and was not submitted to the jury. The block does not apply to this group of people.

When submitting your application, be sure to follow the further instructions in the current information sheet. (The Information Sheet in German is binding. The Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion is not liable for mistranslations.)

• Information Sheet Visual Arts Work Grant 2027

  PDF-Document (110.1 kB) - As of: Status June 2026

Please submit your application – together with all relevant documentation – online.
Submit an application online

FAQ Visual Arts Work Grant 2027

1. Application requirements

• I have applied for the year 2026. Can I apply again now?

  No. It will not be possible to reapply until the 2028 fellowship year.

• I am a feature film producer. Can I apply?

  Designers (incl. stage/set designers), directors, screenwriters and cinematographers in the field of documentary film and feature film are not eligible to apply. Only the above-mentioned sub-sectors are eligible for funding. In the case of media artists and/or artistic film/video, there must be a clear connection to the visual arts (predominant presentation of the work in exhibition contexts). In the case of artists working across disciplines, the focus of their work must be in the field of visual arts.

  Only the sub-disciplines named in the information sheet are supported: works on paper/drawing, sculpture, artistic film/video, installation, interdisciplinary art, sound art, urban art/art in public spaces, artistic photography, painting, digital/media arts, performance

• I make experimental short film and/or 2-channel video installation. My work is mostly shown in exhibition contexts. Can I apply?

  Yes.

• Can I apply with the same work project as two years ago?

  Yes. You could then possibly revise the description again and formulate the work project more specifically.

• I am receiving project funding for a project in 2027, can I apply?

  Yes. Project funding can be combined with grants.

• I receive a travel grant from the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion for 2027. Can I still apply for the work grant as well?

  Possibly. The grants of the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion can be combined with each other up to a cumulative amount of €24,000/year. If you receive a work grant of €16,000, you could e.g. also have a travel grant of max. €8,000.

• We would like to apply as a group. We are 3 persons. Two of them have moved away from Berlin. Can we apply?

  No. Applications are possible for single artists and established artist groups. In the case of established groups, the majority of the group members must live and work in Berlin. This must be proven for all group members by sending in a confirmation of registration or the front and back of the identity card.

  In the case of a group of 2 persons, both must be registered in Berlin.

• I am currently doing my PhD. Can I apply?

  No. Students (including PhD-students) cannot apply. Violations may result in the cancellation of the grant.

• I am a professor at a university. Can I apply?

  If you hold a full professorship: No. If you only have a small teaching assignment or similar, you may apply.

• I am a student. Can I apply?

  No. Applicants who are enrolled at a university at the time of application and/or during the funding period cannot apply.

• I am in Berlin on a student visa. Can I apply?

  No.

• Can I also apply for the grant as a non-Berliner?

  No, the grants are only for artists who have their main residence and work center in Berlin.

• I am an artist from abroad and would like to come to Berlin. Can I apply for this grant and use it for my stay in Berlin?

  No. The grant is aimed at people whose primary residence is in Berlin at the time of application. This must be proven with the application.

  The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) regularly invites foreign artists from various disciplines to Berlin. More information can be found under Berliner Künstlerprogramm (BKP).

• What are (among other things) common formal errors that lead to the exclusion of the application?
  • Short description of the project in English in the application form
  • No certificate of registration submitted (e.g. only front side of ID card or only passport, registration address not evident)
  • CV/portfolio or detailed description of work project too long
  • For groups: GbR contract or declaration missing

  Please refer to the information sheet for all detailed questions!

• What are the chances of my application?

  This question is almost impossible to answer, as the decision on awarding a grant depends on various factors, which can also change from year to year. Central factors here are the number of applications received, as well as their quality. The quality of an application is judged by an independent jury.

• I need a detailed individual consultation as this is my first application and I am not sure what it should look like. Is there anything like this in Berlin?

  Kreativ Kultur Berlin – Kulturförderberatung is a free service for Berlin’s cultural scene and includes a website with a large funding database and tips on how to apply, free personal orientation advice and application checks, and regular information events on current funding topics. The team of Kreativ Kultur Berlin – Kulturförderberatung advises creative artists, associations and institutions of all disciplines on questions of public and private funding and helps in the search for possible third-party funding.

  https://www.kreativkultur.berlin/en/consultation/cultural_funding_consultation/

• What is the difference between a grant and project funding?

  In contrast to a project funding, a scholarship is a personal grant. At the end of the grand period, only a progress report must be submitted. Project funding, on the other hand, must be accounted for with original receipts.

• I receive another grant for the same year and/or period. Can I apply?
  In principle, you can apply. Whether you may accept the grant once it has been awarded to you by the jury depends on several factors:

  • Do you already receive a grant from the Kunstfonds Bonn for 2026? If so, you will not be eligible for funding through the work grant.
  • Do you receive another grant from the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion? A combination of the work grant with the research grant for visual arts from the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion is generally excluded. All other fellowships of the state of Berlin (work fellowships, research fellowships, and cultural exchange fellowships) can be combined up to an amount of €24,000 per year. Therefore, you should only accept a work grant of €16,000 if you have not yet received another grant of more than €8,000 from us.
  • Do you receive project funding? Project funding and the work grant for visual arts can be freely combined. Please make sure that the funding institution of your project funding allows combination from their side.

  The work grant can be freely combined with other grants from domestic and foreign sponsors not named here. In this case, please be sure to inform yourself whether the conditions of the other grant exclude simultaneous acceptance.

2. Application formalities

• When can I submit my application?

  The application period for the Visual Arts Work Grant 2027 is expected to begin on Monday, 6 July 2026 and end on Wednesday, 2 September 2026 at 11 am.

• I have prepared a 30-page portfolio. In the info sheet it says that the file with CV and portfolio can be only 10 pages long. Can I still submit it with 30 pages?

  No. CV/portfolios longer than 10 A4 pages (including all figures) will not be accepted. The corresponding application will be formally excluded in the interest of equal treatment of all applicants.

• Can I fill out the application in English?

  No. The application form must be completed in German (including a brief description of the proposed work). The attachments may be in English (CV with portfolio and detailed explanation of the work project).

• Is it sufficient if I only submit the front of my identity card?

  For German citizens it is mandatory to submit the front and the back side of the ID card, because the back side shows the current address of residence.

• My Internet connection is poor. I may not be able to meet the deadline if I have problems with the Internet on 2 September 2026. What do I do then?

  You have several weeks to submit the application and find an option with better internet for it. There is no goodwill. Applications that have not been submitted in full by 2 September 2026 at 11 am cannot be considered. There is no possibility to send in the application by e-mail.

• What is the difference between a "registration confirmation" and an "Anmeldung"?

  No difference. It is the confirmation from the Bürgeramt/Einwohnermeldeamt that you receive when you move in, register or re-register. If you have a (valid) identity card or residence permit showing your registration address, it is sufficient to send this in. You will then not need a separate registration confirmation.

• Does the registration confirmation have to be "actual"? Can it not be older than 1 year?

  The date is not relevant. It can also be older than 1 year.

• How about the group/GbR? I would like to implement my project with a performer/graphic designer. Does that make us a group?

  As a rough guideline, when you commission someone, you are not forming a group. You are a group if you work together artistically as equals – e.g. as a duo of artists. A group/GbR can only consist of visual artists, since the grant is aimed at visual artists. It is also important that it must be a “firmly established” group that has been working together for some time. If you form a new group with several people for a new project, this does not count as a “ group” for the work grant.

• What all do I have to submit?

  The info sheet explains in detail what you need to submit and in what format or what maximum file size.
  We recommend preparing everything in advance according to the information in the info sheet before tackling the online application.

• I cannot upload a document. What should I do?
  • Please check file format and maximum file size.
  • Change the browser.

  On the last day of the application deadline, uploads may take longer due to increased data traffic. We highly recommend that you do not start the application submission on the last day of the application deadline.

• What is a portfolio?

  In the portfolio (to be combined into one file with the CV on max. 10 A4 pages) you can introduce yourself as an artist and e.g. representative projects. The portfolio should concentrate on the last 3 years. However, if you want to include older information, you can of course do so.

• I have read that the file "CV with portfolio" can only be 10 pages long. Can I include more than one picture on each page? That is, more than one image per page?

  Yes.

• I have a non-German identity card. On the back it does not say my Berlin registration address. What do I do then?

  Non-European citizens: Please submit a copy of your passport or passport replacement, a copy of the registration confirmation from the Residents’ Registration Office plus a copy of your residence permit or certificate of right of residence (if not included in your passport). Sometimes, your residency permit is equal to a passport replacement and also holds your adress. Both sides of this will be sufficient.

  European citizens: Please submit a copy of your passport plus a current copy of the registration confirmation from the Residents’ Registration Office.

• I am a European citizen. Do I have to submit a residence permit?

  No. Please submit a copy of your identity card (front and back) or passport plus a copy of the registration confirmation from the Residents’ Registration Office.

• My residence permit is about to expire. I have not been given an appointment for renewal for a few weeks. What should I do?

  Please send the current title plus appointment confirmation.

3. After submitting the application

• Coming soon...

Missing a question? Please write to [e-mail] with “Add FAQ” in the subject line.