• Clay • Fiber • Glass• Leather • Metal • Paper• Plastic • Wood • Mixed Media
Craft artists must submit slide documentation of works completed within the past four years (2001 or later). Photographs will not be accepted. Artists should consider a consistency in the body of work submitted for review.
Specific requirements for Crafts submissions.
Non-matching Fellowships in fixed amounts of $7,000 are awarded to Illinois artists of exceptional talent to enable them to pursue their artistic goals. Artists Fellowships are given to creative individuals in recognition of their outstanding work and commitment within the arts. In addition, a limited number of Finalist Awards will be given. These awards of $700 recognize and encourage additional applicants who demonstrate considerable talent.
Recommendation for a Finalist Award has no bearing on an applicant's opportunity to receive a Fellowship Award. Finalist Award recommendations are made only after all Fellowship recommendations in a given category are completed. If you do not wish to be considered for a Finalist Award, you may indicate this on the application form.
Awards are highly competitive. In past years, approximately 10% of total applicants have been awarded Fellowship or Finalist Awards. Funding recommendations are presented to the Illinois Arts Council, which renders all final award decisions.
Two-Year Rotating Cycle
The Artists Fellowship Program operates on a two-year rotating cycle. For more information on these categories, see the Categories section.
NOTE: Applicants can apply in one category only in a given fiscal year (FY). MULTIPLE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
Applicants must be citizens of the United States or holders of permanent resident alien status. Applicants must also be current residents of Illinois and must have been residents for at least one year prior to the application deadline.
For proof of residency, applicants must submit a copy of one of the following at the time of application
- Illinois drivers license which includes the date issued and expiration date
- state of Illinois identification card which includes the date issued and expiration date
- Illinois state income tax forms for the most recent year
- voter registration card
The following individuals are not eligible to apply:
- Individuals enrolled in any degree or certificate granting program (including high school, bachelor or master degree programs) at the time of application or during the award period. (Ph.D. candidates need to have completed their course work by the application deadline to be eligible)
- recipients of an IAC Fellowship in FY03 or FY04
COLLABORATIVE APPLICATIONS
Collaborative applications are accepted if each collaborator meets the requirements listed in the eligibility section above. A collaboration is defined as up to 3 artists who can clearly demonstrate a history of ongoing collaboration. Separate application forms must be filled out by each collaborator and submitted together with one set of work samples. Collaborative applications must be delivered or mailed in one package. If a collaborative application receives an award, the award will be divided equally between collaborators.
Artists planning to apply collaboratively must contact the Supervising Director for Programs prior to the submission.
Non-matching Fellowships in fixed amounts of $7,000 and Finalist Awards of $700.
Applications are reviewed on the criteria listed below:
- the quality of the applicant's work as demonstrated by the work samples submitted
- the applicant's record of professional arts activity and achievement as reflected by material submitted
- evidence that the applicant's work reflects continued, serious and exceptional aesthetic investigation in his/her chosen medium
Awards are made based on the quality of the work as demonstrated by the work samples submitted. Records of Professional Arts Activities and Achievements and statements of all final-round applicants will be available for review by the jury, however, the quality of the work submitted will remain the primary criterion.
You are strongly urged to submit the maximum work samples in your discipline for a more consistent, quality presentation. Be aware that the award decisions are heavily based on the samples submitted. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to submit the highest quality work samples in the most professional manner possible.
Samples of work completed within the past four years (2001 or later), in the format and number requested, must accompany the application form unless special arrangements are made with the Supervising Director for Programs. If you feel your work cannot be adequately represented in one of the formats described, contact the Supervising Director for Programs to discuss alternatives.
NOTE: Past Fellowship Recipients must apply with new work.
IAC staff makes every effort to handle work samples with care; however, the IAC cannot be held responsible for any damage or loss that may occur. Applicants are urged to submit copies of original tapes, manuscripts, scores, films, etc - not the original work.
RETURN/RETENTION OF WORK SAMPLES
Applicants who wish their work samples returned to them by mail must enclose a self-addressed stamped (not metered) envelope of appropriate size and protection.
Due to the lack of storage space, unclaimed work samples will be destroyed 60 days after Fellowship Awards are announced.
PROSE SCRIPTWORKS MANUSCRIPTS WILL NOT BE RETURNED.
Work samples of Fellowship or Finalist Award recipients
will be retained or copied by the Illinois Arts Council for its archives or
submission to a public-use archive. By submitting work samples, applicants give
permission to the IAC to use images and content in IAC produced publications.
WORK SAMPLE INSTRUCTIONS 
- Submit a minimum of six and a maximum of nine 35mm slides. You may include different views or details of individual pieces. You are encouraged to show at least five different works.
- Do not send glass or thick plastic slides.
- Slides must be clearly labeled #s 1-9 and placed accordingly in a clear plastic slide sheet.
- Label each slide with the following: your name, slide number, title of work, date of execution, medium, dimensions (height x width x depth).
- Place a dot in the bottom left-hand corner of each slide.
Work Sample Sheet
- On a sheet of paper, indicate your name, slide number, title of work, date of execution, medium, dimensions (height x width x depth) for each slide submitted.
NOTE: Slides are reviewed three at a time. Slides #1, #2 and #3 are projected simultaneously, then #4, #5 and #6 and lastly #7, #8 and #9. If you plan to show details or different views of a work, your slides should be ordered in such a way that related slides are projected together.
NOTE: You are strongly urged to submit the maximum number of slides requested for a more consistent, quality presentation. Please be aware that the award decisions are based heavily on the work samples submitted. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to submit the highest quality slides.
Complete Application instructions
September 1, 2005
Applications for the Artists Fellowship Program must be delivered to the IAC office by 5:00 p.m. on September 1, 2005.
READ ALL DIRECTIONS CAREFULLY.
Call the Illinois Arts Council if you have questions.
Assemble application materials with correct number of copies and in order specified.
assembly of application materials
To be eligible, all applicants must submit the following items by the application deadline:
- The orginal signed application form plus two copies
- one copy of proof of Illinois residency
- 10 copies of the Basic Application packet
each collated and stapled in the following order:
» work sample sheet for the specified application category,
» two-page Narrative (Ethnic and Folk Arts applicants ONLY)
» one page (single-sided) Artistic Resume
» optional for all applicants: one-page (single-sided) artist's statement. (This statement may be used to describe the direction, the focus or the aesthetic concerns of your work) - Work sample(s) in the number and format specified for the application category
- Package together with self-addressed stamped envelope for return of work samples (if appropriate).
THE APPLICATION FORM SHOULD BE COLLATED SEPARATELY FROM OTHER APPLICATION MATERIALS AND ALL APPLICATION MATERIALS SHOULD BE COLLATED SEPARATELY FROM WORK SAMPLES.
Do not send more than the requested application materials. Additional pages or materials not requested will not be reviewed nor returned.
Applications must be postmarked by the deadline. Hand delivered applications must be received by 5pm. If the deadline occurs on a weekend or legal holiday, the next weekday automatically becomes the deadline date. Applications may be mailed or hand-delivered to the following address:
Illinois Arts Council
James R. Thompson Center
100 W. Randolph, Suite 10-500
Chicago, IL 60601-3298
NOTE: Applicants hand-delivering their applications must visit the building’s SERVICE CENTER on the ground floor to have their application package scanned prior to delivering it to the IAC offices on the 10th floor. In addition, applicants must bring photo identification, such as a driver’s license, to gain access to the IAC offices.
Applications are reviewed by advisory juries comprised of three to five arts professionals who reside out of state. Jurors are chosen on the basis of their highly regarded professional achievements and broad knowledge of the arts to represent a wide range of artistic styles and aesthetic concerns. Juries are assembled with consideration given to providing a balance of geographical representation, cultural diversity, age, and gender. New jurors are selected each year.
With the exception of the Ethnic and Folk Arts category, the initial review process is anonymous; applicants' identities will not be given to the jurors. The selection of artists for the second round of review is based solely on the quality of the works submitted. In the second round, the jurors discuss submitted information for the selected applicants, along with the work. The final recommendations for Fellowship and Finalist Awards result from the second-round discussion. These recommendations are presented to the Council for their consideration and approval. With the exception of the Prose and Scriptworks categories, which are reviewed by telephone conference call, Fellowship juries meet in Chicago to review applications. Meetings are open to the public and applicants may attend but may not address the jury.
Applicants will receive notification of receipt of their application within eight weeks of the application deadline. Note: Receipt of application will not be acknowledged by phone.
- Notification of review meeting dates will be posted on the IAC web site: www.state.il.us
- Applicants will be notified of the Council's decisions on their applications in late December 2005.
- All notification will be sent by email or, when necessary, by regular mail.
Credit must be given to the Illinois Arts Council in all promotional materials pertaining to work produced with the support of the award. A statement such as "This work is partially supported by an award from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency." must be part of credits, publicity and promotion.
All work produced with IAC funds remain the property of the artist.
The Internal Revenue Code provides that the full amount of Fellowship or Finalist Awards is taxable to its recipient. If you have any questions about your income tax liability, you should contact the Internal Revenue Service or tax counsel.
By providing the information on this application, all applicants will automatically be listed with the Illinois Artists Registry, a computerized mailing list of Illinois artists. The Registry contains up-to-date basic information about listed artists and is designed as a comprehensive directory to link artists with professional opportunities.
An interactive PDF (Portable Document Format) file is availble for download. In order to open this file, Adobe Acrobat Reader must be installed on your computer. It is free and easy to download from www.adobe.com
Staff Contact
Rose Parisi
Supervising Director of Programs
312/814-4991
Rose.Parisi@Illinois.gov