Calls for Artists and Exhibitions
- Call for Student Artists: 2024 Hawaiʻi Regional Scholastic Student Art Awards competition and exhibition, open to Hawaiʻi students grades 7-12 (ages 13+). Gold Key Award winning artworks will be exhibited at Capitol Modern (Hawaiʻi State Art Museum). Submissions due by December 15, 2023 through the online Arts and Writing awards portal. For more information, please visit the SFCA website: sfca.hawaii.gov/call-for-student-artists-2024-hawai%ca%bbi-regional-scholastic-art-awards-competition-and-exhibition.
- Hawaiʻi Island Art Alliance (HIAA) Call for Artists: “Plein Air Perspectives 2024” exhibit. Entry deadline December 15, 2023. Exhibit January 5 – 25, 2024 at Wailoa Center (Hilo, Hawaiʻi Island). For more information, please visit the call detail on CallForEntry.org: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=12542.
- Honolulu Mayor’s Office on Culture and the Arts (MOCA): ‘Ewa Mahiko District Park Gymnasium. The City and County of Honolulu Commission on Culture and the Arts desires to commission a work of art for the ‘Ewa Mahiko District Park Gymnasium (91-1205 Renton Rd, ‘Ewa Beach, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i, 96706). One location has been designated to receive art. This Request for Qualifications is open to all artists, or artist teams, qualified to work for the City and County of Honolulu. Application deadline is January 1, 2024. For more information and to apply, please go to the Call For Entry website: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=11723.
- 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 monthly. 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.
- Kahilu Exhibits call for artists: “Interisland Action” exhibit. Entry deadline: December 10, 2023. Exhibit dates: January 18 – March 3, 2024 at Kahilu Theatre. For more information, please visit the call detail on CallForEntry.org: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=12560.
- 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.
- NOAA Marine Debris Program Art Contest and Calendar for students, grades K-8 in all U.S. states and territories. Entries due December 15, 2023. The U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Debris Program holds an annual art contest to reach students and help raise awareness about marine debris. Learn more on the NOAA website: marinedebris.noaa.gov/annual-noaa-marine-debris-program-art-contest-and-calendar.
- University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo Art Department and English Department call for artists: “The Paths We Cross: Perspectives from the Korean Diaspora” exhibit seeks artworks and audio files. International call open to artists of Korean heritage ages 18 years and older. Entry deadline February 14, 2024. Exhibition May 3 – June 27, 2024 at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. For more information, please visit the call detail on CallForEntry.org: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=12537.
- Wailoa Center call for artists: “Full Bleed, Art at the Edges: Anime, Manga and Urban Art”. Entry deadline January 5, 2024. For more information, please visit the call detail on CallForEntry.org: artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=12654.
- Arts at Marks Garage calls for artists
- “Surf’s Up” submissions due December 23, 2023. Exhibit dates January 5-26, 2024.
- “Once Upon a Time” submissions due January 20, 2024. Exhibit dates February 2 – 23, 2024.
- “HERstory III Exhibit” submissions due February 17, 2024. Exhibit dates March 1 – 29, 2024.
- For more information and to submit artworks, please go to the call to artists page on the Arts at Marks Garage website: ArtsAtMarks.com/call-to-artists.
- Find calls for artists on Call for Entry (CaFE): The Call for Entry (CAFE) website can be searched by state (choose the “sort by” menu on the left side of the screen). Search the Café website: Artist.CallForEntry.org.
Job Opportunities
- Kahilu Theatre (Waimea, Hawaiʻi Island) is hiring a Development Director. Application deadline is January 31, 2024. Learn more on the Western Arts Alliance jobs board posting for this position: WestArts.org/jobs-listings/ktg-dd.
- The Western Arts Alliance jobs board connects arts professionals with opportunities in Arizona, California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington state. Learn more on the Western Arts Alliance website job boards page: WestArts.org/job-listings.
Grants and Resources
Federal Grants and Programs
- National Endowment for the Arts
- ArtsHERE grants for organizations. Through grants and peer learning opportunities, ArtsHERE invests in organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to equity within their practices and programming, with the goal of increasing arts participation for underserved groups/communities and sharing insights that may inform similar funding programs in the future. Statement of interest due January 19, 2024. For more information, please visit the ArtsHERE website: usregionalarts.org/artshere.
- Challenge America grants for small organizations. Challenge America grants offers support primarily to small organizations for projects to reach historically underserved communities with rich and dynamic cultural identities. This program may be a good entry point for organizations that are new to applying for federal funding. Grants are awarded in all artistic disciplines for a wide variety of arts projects. Application deadline April 25, 2024, for projects beginning in 2025. Free guidelines webinar on Wednesday, February 28, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. EST. Register for the webinar on the NEA website: FY25 Challenge America Application Guidelines Webinar | National Endowment for the Arts.
- Creative Forces Community Engagement grant applications now available. Grants support community-based arts engagement programming for military and veteran populations—including family members and caregivers. Through the experience of art or art-making, participants can express themselves creatively while building resilience, social connectedness, and gain support for successful adaptation to civilian life. Applications for this round of funding are now open on maaa.org/CreativeForces. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, January 17, 2024.
- Creative Writing Fellowships: Poetry. The NEA Literature Fellowships program offers $25,000 grants in poetry to published creative writers that enable recipients to set aside time for writing, research, travel, and general career advancement. Applications are reviewed through an anonymous process in which the criteria for review are the artistic excellence and artistic merit of the submitted writing sample. Through this program, the NEA seeks to sustain and nurture a diverse range of creative writers at various stages of their careers and to continue to expand the portfolio of American art. Application deadline March 13, 2024. For more information, please visit the Creative Writing Fellowships Program Information page on the NEA website: arts.gov/grants/creative-writing-fellowships/program-description.
- Grants for Arts Projects. Grants for Arts Projects provides expansive funding opportunities to strengthen the nation’s arts and culture ecosystem. Grants are available for arts projects in a wide variety of artistic disciplines. Application deadlines February 15, 2024 and July 11, 2024, for projects beginning in 2025. Free guidelines webinar Wednesday, January 10, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. EST. Register for the webinar on the NEA website: FY25 Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) Application Guidelines Webinar | National Endowment for the Arts.
- Literature Fellowships for Translation Projects: through fellowships to published translators, the NEA supports projects for the translation of specific works of prose, poetry, or drama from other languages into English. The work to be translated should be of interest for its literary excellence and merit. We encourage translations of writers and of work that are not well represented in English, as well as work that has not previously been translated into English. The NEA is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and fostering mutual support for the diverse beliefs and values of all individuals and groups. Application deadline January 18, 2024. For more information, please visit the translation projects program description page on the NEA website: arts.gov/grants/translation-projects/program-description.
- Shakespeare in American Communities grant applications now open. Shakespeare in American Communities is a project-based, matching grant that helps theater companies and organizations bring Shakespeare and works inspired by Shakespeare to students. Nonprofit theater companies and organizations located across the United States and the Native nations that share this geography can apply. New this year, grantees applying to the schools path do not need to produce Shakespeare plays. They now have the option to conduct performances and educational activities that use the works of William Shakespeare as an inspiration. The mandatory Intent to Apply is due January 25, 2024. For more information and to apply, please visit the Shakespeare in American Communities page on the Arts Midwest website: artsmidwest.org/get-support/shakespeare-in-american-communities.