About the Open Call

The NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship is an $8,000 unrestricted cash grant available to artists living in New York State and/or one of the Tribal Nations located therein. This grant is awarded in fifteen different disciplines over a three-year period (five categories a year) and the application is free to complete. The NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship is not a project grant, but is intended to fund an artist’s vision or voice, at all levels of their artistic development. The program is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Additional funding is provided by Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation, Joy of Giving Something, the Milton & Sally Avery Arts Foundation, Lawrence Foundation, and individual donors. Eligible disciplines for the 2026 Award Cycle include Craft/Sculpture, Digital/Electronic Arts, Nonfiction Literature, Poetry, and Printmaking/Drawing/Book Arts. The 2027 Award Cycle will include Fiction, Folk/Traditional Arts, Interdisciplinary Work, Painting, and Video/Film. The 2028 Award Cycle will include Architecture/Environmental Structures/Design, Choreography, Music/Sound, Photography, and Playwriting/Screenwriting. Applications are reviewed over the course of 3 elimination rounds, assessing artistic merit, clarity and cohesiveness, and originality and innovation. The fellowship prioritizes applications from New York State residents who live outside of the New York City metropolitan area.

What is Offered

An $8,000 unrestricted cash grant for Fellows, and a $1,000 cash grant for Finalists.

Requirements

Applicants must be 25 years or older by the application deadline date and current residents of New York State and/or one of the Tribal Nations located in New York State. Residency must have been maintained for at least the last two consecutive years (2024 & 2025). Applicants must not be enrolled in a degree-seeking program of any kind and must be the originators of the work. Those who received a NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in any discipline in the past five consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025) are ineligible. Work samples previously awarded a NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship cannot be submitted. Collaborating artists are eligible to apply (up to three individuals), and each must meet eligibility criteria. Collaborators cannot apply separately as an individual in the same year. Applicants can apply in a maximum of 2 categories per cycle. NYFA employees, members of the NYFA Board of Trustees or Artists’ Advisory Committee, 2026 panelists, or immediate family members of any of the above are ineligible. Artists awarded five NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowships receive Emeritus status and are no longer eligible.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted via Submittable. First-time users will need to register with the free Submittable platform to access the application portal. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be accepted. It is recommended to complete applications in advance of the deadline to allow time for work samples to upload and to avoid potential technical problems. The application portal is available at https://apply.nyfa.org/submit. For assistance, contact NYFA at least two weeks prior to the deadline.