Arts Queensland Grants: Supporting Queensland's Creative Community

Arts Queensland is the Queensland Government's arts funding and development agency, supporting artists and arts organisations throughout Queensland through grants, residencies, and professional development programs. As Australia's second-largest state by area and one of its fastest-growing in population, Queensland has a diverse and vibrant arts community that spans the urban arts scenes of Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and Cairns through the distinctive cultural traditions of regional and remote communities across the vast state.

Arts Queensland's programs reflect a deep understanding of the specific challenges and opportunities of the Queensland arts ecosystem, from the tropical climate and geography that shape the specific character of Queensland art through the specific cultural traditions of the state's Indigenous communities. The agency's commitment to supporting artists throughout the full geographic range of Queensland, rather than concentrating its support in Brisbane, reflects its understanding that the arts are important to communities throughout the state.

The Individuals Program

The Individuals program is Arts Queensland's primary funding mechanism for individual artists, providing grants for a range of activities including the creation of new work, professional development, and the presentation and touring of existing work. The program is open to artists working in all disciplines, including visual arts, performing arts, literature, and other creative fields.

The project grants available through the Individuals program can support a wide range of activities, from the creation of ambitious new works through professional development activities that advance the artist's practice. The flexibility of the project grant mechanism means that it can support the full range of activities that individual artists need to develop and present their work.

The professional development grants are particularly important for Queensland artists who need to travel to access professional development opportunities that are not available locally, including workshops, courses, residencies, and other activities that advance the artist's practice. The professional development grants reflect Arts Queensland's understanding that geographic distance from major arts centres is one of the most significant challenges facing Queensland artists, and that supporting artists in accessing professional development opportunities is one of the most effective ways to strengthen the Queensland arts ecosystem.

The Organisations Program

The Organisations program supports arts organisations throughout Queensland in providing arts programming to their communities, with grants available for a range of activities including the presentation of professional arts performances and exhibitions, arts education programs, and community arts projects.

The program covers organisations of all sizes, from small community arts organisations through major arts institutions, with grant amounts scaled to the size and scope of the organisation and its proposed activities. The breadth of the program reflects Arts Queensland's understanding that arts organisations of all sizes play important roles in the Queensland arts ecosystem and that supporting organisations throughout the full range of the sector is essential to its health.

The First Nations Arts Support

First Nations arts are a central focus of Arts Queensland's programs, reflecting the extraordinary richness and diversity of Queensland's Indigenous cultural traditions and the agency's commitment to supporting Indigenous artists and arts organisations. Queensland is home to some of Australia's most vibrant and distinctive Indigenous arts communities, from the Torres Strait Islander arts of the far north through the Aboriginal arts communities of western Queensland and the urban Indigenous arts scene of Brisbane.

The First Nations arts support reflects Arts Queensland's understanding that Indigenous arts are not simply one component of the broader Queensland arts ecosystem but a distinct and vital cultural tradition that requires specific and dedicated support. The agency's First Nations arts programs are designed in consultation with Indigenous communities and reflect the specific priorities and needs of these communities.

The Regional Arts Support

Regional arts are another important focus of Arts Queensland's programs, reflecting the agency's commitment to ensuring that arts funding benefits communities throughout Queensland rather than being concentrated in Brisbane. Queensland's regional communities have their own distinctive cultural traditions and arts scenes, and supporting these communities in developing and presenting their arts is one of the most important aspects of Arts Queensland's mission.

The regional arts support includes specific programs for artists and organisations in regional and remote Queensland, with recognition that the specific challenges of working in these communities, including geographic isolation and limited access to professional development opportunities, require specific and dedicated support.

The Queensland Arts Showcase

Arts Queensland supports the Queensland Arts Showcase, an annual celebration of Queensland arts that provides a platform for Queensland artists and arts organisations to present their work to audiences throughout the state and nationally. The showcase reflects Arts Queensland's commitment to promoting Queensland arts and to ensuring that the extraordinary range and quality of work being produced in Queensland is visible to the broadest possible audience.

The showcase covers all art forms and disciplines, from visual arts and performing arts through literature and music, providing a comprehensive view of the current state of Queensland arts and culture. The showcase is an important opportunity for Queensland artists to have their work seen by a large audience and to connect with the broader Queensland arts community.

The Bottom Line

Arts Queensland is the most important public arts funding body for Queensland artists, providing grants, residencies, and professional development programs that support the creation, presentation, and preservation of art throughout the state. For artists resident in Queensland who want to access public arts funding and to connect with the broader Queensland arts community, Arts Queensland is one of the most important and accessible resources available.