Artist Funding in Ukraine

DutchCulture coordinates and publicizes funding and collaboration opportunities between Ukrainian and Dutch cultural actors, including visual arts institutions and artists. While often working as a hub rather than a direct grant-maker, it connects Ukrainian artists and organizations to Dutch and EU funds for residencies, co-productions, exhibitions, and mobility, with support levels varying by programme.

PEN America’s Artists at Risk Connection, highlighted on the Gottlieb Foundation’s resource page, aggregates international residencies and funding schemes specifically for artists from Ukraine. These programmes, run by various institutions worldwide, typically provide short- to medium-term residencies, covering travel, accommodation, per diem, and sometimes production costs for displaced or at-risk Ukrainian artists.

The Museum of Contemporary Art NGO (MOCA NGO) coordinates the Ukrainian Emergency Art Fund, which channels money from various donors to independent artists, curators, art managers, researchers and cultural organizations in Ukraine. Support typically takes the form of short-term emergency grants and modest project support to help maintain a basic standard of living, security, and ongoing artistic activity.

The National Academy of Arts of Ukraine collaborates with honorary patrons and donors to provide financial support for artistic and research projects, exhibitions, and educational initiatives within the Academy’s network. Funding is usually channeled through institutions, studios, or specific programmes, and may include production support, scholarships, or awards for visual artists connected to the Academy system.

Nordic Culture Point administers a special round of funding within the Nordic–Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture to support residencies for Ukrainian artists and cultural creators in Nordic and Baltic countries. Residency centres can apply for up to EUR 50,000 to cover travel, living costs, remuneration, and production expenses for invited Ukrainian artists and their accompanying family members.

Through its Artist at Risk Connection (ARC), PEN America coordinates an international network providing emergency support to artists facing threats to their safety, including many from Ukraine. The Emergency Fund for Visual Artists offers short-term financial assistance for basic living expenses, legal aid, medical and mental health costs, relocation, and equipment replacement for at-risk visual artists and their families.

The Public Diplomacy Section of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv periodically offers small grant competitions to support Ukrainian performing and visual arts in the context of Russian aggression. Funding is directed mainly to organizations and collectives for exhibitions, festivals, community arts projects, and capacity-building, with typical awards in the low- to mid-five-figure USD range that include artist fees and production costs.

State-owned institution that funds cultural and artistic projects across disciplines, including visual arts, curatorial projects, festivals, and research. They offer project grants to organizations and, in some calls, individual artists or cultural workers, with support ranging from small seed grants to large multi-partner projects. During the war they have also provided limited one-time financial aid or short stipends for cultural workers.

Regional and city-level departments of culture in Ukraine, such as the Kyiv City State Administration’s Department of Culture, provide partial funding for festivals, exhibitions, public art, and cultural centres. Visual artists usually access this support through institutions or project collectives, receiving production budgets, venue support, and sometimes small honoraria rather than direct individual grants.

UNESCO, in partnership with MOCA NGO and the Ukrainian Emergency Art Fund, runs a pilot programme to provide financial support to Ukrainian artists so they can continue their creative work and ensure public access to culture during wartime. The programme, initially endowed with around $100,000, offers small grants for artistic projects, with priority given to initiatives that build resilience among communities affected by war.