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Grants and Opportunities (June 2023)

May 31, 2023

A list of federal, state, and other arts and culture grants/opportunities. Questions regarding a particular opportunity should be directed to the organization listed with the opportunity. Inclusion here should not be interpreted as an endorsement. 

Shorter versions of these monthly lists are published in the SFCA email newsletter. Read past issues and subscribe: SFCA email newsletter archive and signup form.

Calls for Artists

Call for Entry (CaFE)

The Call for Entry (CAFE) website can be searched by state, region, eligibility, etc. (choose the “sort by” menu on the left side of the screen). Search the Café website: Artist.CallForEntry.org.

  • “2023 Abstract Only! 13th Annual Multimedia National Juried Competition” Hawaiʻi Island Art Alliance. Open to all U.S. national and Hawaiʻi-based 2D and 3D abstract artists in all mediums. Works must be abstract art. Entries open through July 14, 2023. For more information, please visit the CaFE website: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=11166.
  • “2023 Hawaii Nei Art Exhibition” open to Hawaiʻi Island (Big Island) artists. Sponsored by the Three Mountain Alliance, the Hawai‘i Island Art Alliance, the Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife, and Wailoa Center State Park. Entries due October 6, 2023. For more information, please visit the CaFE website: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=11167.
  • Public Art Call: Municipality of Anchorage: Port of Alaska – Administration Building. Located at 1857 Anchorage Port Road, Anchorage, AK 99501, the Port of Alaska is a marine industrial zone with controlled access and accounts for 50% of all freight shipped into Alaska. The impact of weather and environmental conditions on materials should be given consideration in the development of proposals for art. Important factors to be considered include Alaska’s harsh winters and the port’s high salinity. Entries open through July 13, 2023. For more information, please visit the CaFE website: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=11963.
  • Public Art Call: Utah Valley University. Professional artist and artist teams are invited to submit letters of interest and qualifications for the creation of site-specific artwork(s) at the Utah Valley University Scott M. Smith Engineering and Technology Building. Utah artists and artists of historically underrepresented populations are strongly encouraged to apply. This project is a partnership of the Utah Public Art Program of the Division of Arts and Museums, in association with the Division of Facilities Construction and Management and Utah Valley University. Entries open through June 23, 2023. For more information, please visit the CaFE website: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=11657.

Hawaiʻi Calls for Artists

  • Downtown Art Center, “Artists of Hawaiʻi” call for artists opens on CaFE (CallForEntry.org) August 14, 2023. For more information, please visit the DAC website: DowntownArtHI.org/artistsofhawaii.
  • Hawaiʻi Arts Alliance invites Hawaiʻi artists who identify within the LGBTQ+ community to participate in a survey. “We want to shine the spotlight on Hawaii’s LGBTQ artists! We invite artists of Hawaiian ancestry, born and raised in Hawai’i, or based out of Hawai’i, who identify within the LGBTQ+ community, to fill out our survey (https://bit.ly/HiLGBTQartists).”
  • Hawaiʻi Craftsmen Annual Statewide Exhibition 2023 prospectus now available. Important dates: online registration August 1 – 31, exhibit open September 30 – October 28 at the Downtown Art Center (Honolulu), opening reception Saturday September 30, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. For more information, please visit the Hawaiʻi Craftsmen website: HawaiiCraftsmen.org.
  • Hawaiʻi Handweavers’ Hui and The Glass Fusion Collective “Surrounded by Water” juried art exhibition, Downtown Art Center (Honolulu), August 2-18, 2023. Online registration begins July 1, 2023. For more information, please contact the Hawaiʻi Handweavers Hui at [email protected] or visit their website at HawaiiHandweavers.org.
  • Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF) 2023 film submissions accepted until July 7, 2023. Learn more on the HIFF website: FilmFreeway.com/hiff.
  • Hawaiʻi Watercolor Society Open Show, “Reflections in Water”. Exhibition August 27-October 1, 2023 at the East-West Center (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa). Entries due by June 10, 2023, 5:00 p.m. For more information, please visit the Hawaiʻi Watercolor Society website: HawaiiWatercolorSociety.org/2023-open-show.
  • Honolulu Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts (MOCA) Call for 2024 Exhibition Proposals MOCA manages civic spaces inside Honolulu Hale such as the courtyard and Lane Gallery. These spaces are used to showcase the talents of visual artists and showcase the work of non-profit organizations and schools from our diverse community.  Partnerships with community organizations have enabled MOCA to grace the halls of City buildings with a wide range of artwork displayed on a monthly basis. All exhibits are free and open to the public. For more information and to apply, please visit the MOCA website: HonoluluMOCA.org/call-for-exhibitions.
  • Kauaʻi Society of Artists (Kukui Grove Center, Lihue)
    • Art Kauaʻi 2023 entry day Saturday, September 9, 2023. Exhibit September 16 – October 27, 2023.
    • Small Works Show entry day Saturday, November 11, 2023. Exhibit November 18-January 5, 2024.
    • For more information, please visit the Kauaʻi Society of Artists website: KauaiSocietyOfArtists.org.
  • Kumu Kahua Theatre “Go Try Playwrite” monthly playwriting contest in collaboration with Bamboo Ridge Press. Submission due dates are the last day of the month. Learn more on the Kumu Kahua website: KumuKahua.org/gotryplaywrite.
  • Loʻi Gallery at American Savings Bank (downtown Honolulu) is taking applications for exhibits. Learn more and apply on their website: asbhawaii.com/loigallery.
  • Mālama Wao Akua 2023, Hui Noʻeau Visual Arts Center and East Maui Watershed Partnership. Online exhibition info session July 13, 1:00 p.m. on Zoom. Online registration August 15-29, 2023. For more information, please visit the Mālama Wao Akua website: MalamaWaoAkua.org.

Job Opportunities

  • Bishop Museum job opportunities currently include Informatics Digital Humanities Specialist and Public Programs and Community Engagement Specialist (PPCE Specialist). For more information, please visit the Bishop Museum website: BishopMuseum.org/careers.
  • Honolulu Museum of Art job opportunities currently include Teaching Assistant, Metal Work Studio Programs Teacher, Director of Collections, and Audio-Visual Technician. Learn more on the Honolulu Museum of Art website: HonoluluMuseum.org/employment.
  • Iolani Palace job opportunites currently include Director of Finance, Membership Program Manager, Museum Store Associate, Guest Services Associate, and Palace Guard. Learn more on the Iolani Palace website: IolaniPalace.org/job-opportunities.
  • U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Design Patent Examiner telework eligible job. Basic qualification requirements include a degree or experience in applied arts, graphic design, fine/studio arts or art teacher education. Applications close June 7, 2023. For more information, please visit the USA Jobs website: usajobs.gov/job/686135400.   

Hawaiʻi State Art Museum: Contracts

  • Coordination and Implementation of Music Camps at the State Art Museum. Bids must be submitted via HIePro.hawaii.gov (solicitation #23002934) by June 15, 2023. You may need to be logged in to view the solicitation (it is free to create an account).
  • Public Programs Coordinator for the State Art Museum. Bids must be submitted via HIePro.hawaii.gov (solicitation #23002935) by June 15, 2023. You may need to be logged in to view the solicitation (it is free to create an account).

Request for Proposals: Outreach Initiative Program

Hawaiʻi-based arts or culture nonprofit organizations: the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA) is accepting proposals for the Outreach Initiative Program, which supports regionally touring programs throughout Hawaiʻi. The program must provide outreach activities that increase opportunities for people from all backgrounds to encounter different artists, art forms, and artistic and cultural traditions. A full description of the Outreach Initiative is available on the State of Hawaiʻi eProcurement (HIePro.ehawaii.gov) website, solicitation #23002101. You may need to be logged in to view the posting (it is free to create an account). Closing date June 30, 2023.

Volunteer Opportunities

  • Bishop Museum Volunteer Opportunities: current volunteer opportunities include exhibit greeters, press sales and marketing assistant, and wayfinders. For more information, please visit the Bishop Museum website: BishopMuseum.org/volunteer.
  • Honolulu Museum of Art (HoMA) Volunteer Program: HoMA offers a variety of volunteer roles, such as engagement with the public around current exhibitions, facilitating art activities with families and children at Family Sunday, guiding tours through museum galleries and more. For more information, please visit the HoMA website: HonoluluMuseum.org/volunteer-program.
  • Iolani Palace Volunteer positions currently include greeters, stewards, and palace shop kōkua. For more information, please visit the Iolani Palace website: IolaniPalace.org/contact/volunteer.
  • Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA) Seeks Grant Review Panelist Volunteers with a professional background in culture and the humanities to join our grant review panelist roster. Panelists must be Hawaiʻi residents with experience in Heritage & Preservation, Community Arts, Arts Education, and Presentation & Performing Arts. We encourage those with a background in Arts and Healing, Community Development related to arts and culture, cultural practitioners of all disciplines, and new and emerging members of the arts and culture community to apply. Contact the SFCA grants program at [email protected].

Grants and Resources

State of Hawaiʻi Grants and Programs

  • Office of Hawaiian Affairs currently open grant applications include:
    • Community Grants – ʻĀina, Economic Stability, Education, Health, Moʻomeheu, and ʻOhana
    • Kākoʻo Grant for Native Hawaiian Organizations – for operational administration (vs. capital, repair, maintenance) funding.
    • Phase 1 (eligibility) closes June 19, 2023. For more information and to apply, please visit the OHA website: oha.org/grants.

Federal Grants and Programs

  • Department of the Interior, Office of Native Hawaiian Relations (ONHR): HŌʻIHI Grant for Native Hawaiian Organizations. For fiscal year 2023, ONHR will fulfill the core principles of the HŌʻIHI Program by providing grant funding to successful NHO applicants who meet the criteria for one or more of the following priorities:
    • Uplift, perpetuate, and in some cases revive, traditional Native Hawaiian practices (e.g., ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, kapa making, lauhala and kaula weaving, hula, amongst many others including lesser known practices) by creating opportunities for demonstrations, visitor education on history, usage, and protocols, or hands-on visitor participation experiences in the cultural practice; 
    • Support the maintenance, enhancement, and protection of Hawaiʻi’s natural resources, wahi kūpuna, and wahi pana at areas impacted by tourism; 
    • Enhance the entrepreneurial capacity for the Native Hawaiian Community by helping create business opportunities in the visitor industry, offering business development training, or stimulating economic activity; OR
    • Undertake related activities with visitors that convey respect and reaffirm the principle of reciprocation to the place, resources, and traditional knowledge holders and practitioners.  
    • Grant awards will range from $50,000 to $200,000 and can be utilized for up to 3 years from the date of award. For more information, please visit the ONHR website: doi.gov/hawaiian/hoihi/apply.
  • Department of State, U.S. Embassy Apia, Samoa Public Diplomacy Grants Program: PDS Samoa invites Statements of Interest (SOI) for projects that seek to do at least one of the following: strengthen U.S.-Samoa cooperation and coordination on global issues of shared interest (e.g. combatting climate change); promote the mutual benefits of tech and innovation; and promote stronger connections between the people of the United States and Samoa. Eligible applicants include individuals and nonprofits. Closing date for applications: August 1, 2023. For more information and to apply, please visit the Grants.gov website: grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=344349.
  • Library of Congress: Be a Virtual Volunteer – help transcribe Library of Congress documents online. Volunteers create and review transcriptions to improve search, access, and discovery of these pages from history. https://crowd.loc.gov/
  • National Archives and Records Administration (NHPRC) NHPRC-Mellon Planning Grants for Collaborative Digital Editions The National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), with funding provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, seeks proposals for its planning grant program for Collaborative Digital Editions in African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American History and Ethnic Studies. Overarching goal to broaden participation in the production and publication of historical and scholarly digital editions. Application closing date June 7, 2023. For more information please visit the National Archives website: archives.gov/nhprc/announcement/digitaleditions
  • NHPRC Publishing Historical Records in Collaborative Digital Editions. The National Historical Publications and Records Commission seeks proposals to publish online editions of historical records. All types of historical records are eligible, including documents, photographs, born-digital records, and analog audio. Projects may focus on broad historical movements in U.S. history, including any aspect of African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American history, such as law (including the social and cultural history of the law), politics, social reform, business, military, the arts, and other aspects of the national experience. Projects that center the voices and document the history of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color are especially welcome. Application closing date November 2, 2023. For more information please visit the National Archives website: archives.gov/nhprc/announcement/editions.html.
  • National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Our Town Grant applications due August 2023. Our Town is the NEA’s creative placemaking grants program. Through project-based funding, the program supports activities that integrate arts, culture, and design into local efforts that strengthen communities. Our Town projects advance local economic, physical, or social outcomes in communities, ultimately laying the groundwork for systems change and centering equity. These projects require a partnership between a local government entity and nonprofit organization, one of which must be a cultural organization; and should engage in partnership with other sectors. Applications will be due in August 2023. Exact dates and information sessions will be posted later this spring. Learn more about the Our Town grant program on the NEA website: arts.gov/grants/our-town. In fiscal year 2022, Our Town grant awardees included: Hawaiʻi County Department of Parks and Recreation (partnered with the East Hawaiʻi Cultural Center) to support community planning and the co-creation of artwork using plastics diverted from local beaches and landfills on Hawaiʻi Island; Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services (partnered with Honolulu Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts) to support a community-generated public art installation and exhibition in Hoʻoulu ʻAina, a 100-acre nature preserve in Kalihi; Hawaiʻi Arts Alliance (with support from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Investment Generative Economic Recover (TIGER) grant), to support an arts festival to celebrate a new cultural facility in Lihue (island of Kauaʻi); and 500 Sails (partnered with the Commonwealth Council for Arts and Culture), to support youth dance workshops and performances celebrating the traditional maritime heritage of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
  • NEA Grants for Arts Projects for organizations, applications due July 6, 2023. Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) is the NEA’s largest grant program for organizations, providing expansive funding opportunities for communities across the nation in a wide range of artistic disciplines, including media arts. Information sessions: GAP and Digital Technology Projects Webinar: Tuesday, May 16, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Hawaiʻi Standard Time; GAP Media Arts Office Hours: Tuesday, June 27, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Hawaiʻi Standard Time and Wednesday, July 12, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Hawaiʻi Standard Time. For more information, please visit the NEA website GAP page: arts.gov/grants/grants-for-arts-projects/program-description.
  • Volunteer to be a National Endowment for the Arts Panelist: Arts Endowment panelists play a central role in reviewing applications for funding. The NEA relies on panels composed of individuals who represent a broad range of artistic and cultural viewpoints, as well as wide geographic and ethnic diversity, to provide advice about the artistic excellence and artistic merit of proposals in a variety of funding categories. Panels are composed of both arts professionals and knowledgeable laypersons. Most panelists are arts professionals who are qualified by their activities, training, skills, and/or experience in one or more art forms. Every panel also includes a layperson – someone knowledgeable about the arts but not engaged in the arts as a profession either full- or part-time. Learn more on the NEA website: arts.gov/form/volunteer-to-be-a-national-endowment-for-the-arts-panelist
  • National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) NEH Public Scholars Grant: Eligible applicants: individuals. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Division of Research Programs is accepting applications for the Public Scholars program. The program offers grants to individual authors for research, writing, travel, and other activities leading to the creation and publication of well-researched nonfiction books in the humanities written for the broad public. It encourages non-academic writers to deepen their engagement with the humanities by strengthening the research underlying their books, and it encourages academic writers in the humanities to communicate the significance of their research to the broadest possible range of readers. The program continues to offer special encouragement to independent writers, researcher, and scholars and others who have no long-term affiliation with an academic institution. Deadline: November 29, 2023. For additional information and to apply, please visit the NEH website: neh.gov/grants/research/public-scholar-program.
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (U.S. FWS) U.S. FWS Youth Engagement, Education, and Employment Grant. Eligible applicants include nonprofits that reach or represent potentially underserved communities. Closing date for applications: September 10, 2023. For more information and to apply, please visit the Grants.gov website: grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=344392.
  • U.S. FWS Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program. This is a voluntary, incentive-based program that provides direct technical assistance and financial assistance in the form of cooperative and grant agreements to private landowners to restore and conserve fish and wildlife habitat for the benefit of federal trust resources. Eligible applicants include individuals, for-profit organizations, and nonprofits. Private lands include Hawaiian homeland properties. Closing date for applications: September 30, 2023. For more information and to apply, please visit the Grants.gov website: grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=343732.

This post was last updated on June 19, 2023.

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