The Illinois Arts Council Agency (IACA) is pleased to announce the reinstatement of the Artists Fellowship Program. The program has been revised but its intent remains the same - to enrich and strengthen the state of Illinois by supporting accomplished Illinois artists who are the foundation of Illinois' creative environment. The Artist Fellowship Program recognizes exceptional artists who have created a substantial body of work throughout their career by providing awards to support continued artistic growth.

The IACA will provide a limited number of $15,000 awards across the following discipline categories:

• Ethnic and Folk Arts
• Literature (Poetry, Prose, Scriptworks)
• Media Arts (Audio Art, Digital Art, Film, Video)
• Music Composition
• Performance-Based Arts (Choreography, New Performance Forms)
• Visual-Based Arts (Crafts, Photography, Visual Arts)

To be considered, applicants must:

• Be current legal residents of the state of Illinois and have been for the twelve months prior to the application deadline
• Have created a substantial, independent body of work over at least a five year professional arts career
• Have made a recognized contribution to their discipline through public presentation of their work
• Demonstrate a high-aesthetic level of artistic ability with a strong consistency of expression throughout their professional arts career
• Provide evidence of continued commitment to serious and exceptional aesthetic investigation in his or her chosen medium

The FY2014 Artist Fellowship Program will have a very quick turnaround. The application deadline is May 19, 2014. 

Advisory juries of arts professionals will review eligible applications and convene in mid-June via telephone conference calls to discuss top-ranked applications and make final recommendations. The final recommendations are presented to the IACA Board for their consideration and approval. Awards must by claimed by June 30, 2014.

To access the Artist Fellowship Program Guidelines and application follow the link provided below:

Application workshop:  IACA Staff will conduct one web-based workshop on May 5th @ noon to provide an overview of the IACA Artist Fellowship Program and application process.

Online Webinar (pre-registration is required): 

To register for the May 5th webinar, follow this link: 

https://cc.readytalk.com/cc/s/registrations/new?cid=kyocclpwrtwl