National Endowment for the Arts  
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DESIGN

From the typeface on this page to the neighborhood in which you live, every product crafted by humans is the result of design. Unlike many arts, design surrounds us and its quality has a direct impact on the quality of our lives. The design field encompasses many disciplines including, but not limited to, planning, urban design, architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, product design, and graphic design. The National Endowment for the Arts recognizes design's ever-present role by funding activities across the design disciplines that encourage, preserve, and disseminate the best in American and global design.

The Arts Endowment often receives questions from potential applicants about the appropriate discipline for their project. Applications that address multiple design disciplines (e.g., urban design and graphics) should be submitted under Design. Similarly, historic preservation organizations that focus on architecture, landscape architecture, or designed objects also should apply under Design. Museums and visual arts venues presenting a design exhibition or installation should contact Arts Endowment staff to determine whether to apply under Design or under Museums or Visual Arts. Finally, applicants should be aware that the Arts Endowment does not fund capital campaigns, construction costs, or the purchase or leasing of sites or structures. Please contact us if you have further questions.

  Swimming pool design model
Confluence Project site in Clarkson, WA. A traditional Nez Perce blessing is said at the future site of a Maya Lin landscape art installation. For the Noguchi Museum exhibition, The Imagery of Chess Revisited, a game room was set up with chess sets for families and visitors.


Funding Opportunities in Design

Grants for Arts Projects
CFDA No. 45.024

The National Endowment for the Arts' primary funding opportunities for organizations can be found here. An organization may submit only one application through one of the following FY 2011 Grants for Arts Projects categories (see "Application Limits" for the few exceptions to this rule). For most organizations, these categories represent the full range of funding options for the entire year. Applicants should examine the goal and purposes of their project as well as the review criteria of these three categories, and apply to the one category that is most relevant. The Arts Endowment will not transfer applications between categories.

  • Access to Artistic Excellence: To encourage and support artistic excellence, preserve our cultural heritage, and provide access to the arts for all Americans. An organization may request a grant amount from $5,000 to $150,000. (Deadlines: March 11 and August 12, 2010)
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  • Challenge America Fast-Track: To support projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations. Grants are for $10,000. (Deadline: May 27, 2010)
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  • Learning in the Arts for Children and Youth: To advance arts education for children and youth in school-based or community-based settings. An organization may request a grant amount from $5,000 to $150,000. (Deadline: June 10, 2010)
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The NEA Mayors' Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative
CFDA No. 45.024

Since 1986, the Mayors' Institute on City Design (MICD) has helped transform communities through design by preparing mayors to be the chief urban designers of their cities. To build on the momentum created by the MICD over its history, a limited number of grants, ranging from $25,000 to $250,000, will be made to showcase and celebrate the goals of the MICD during its anniversary in 2011. (Deadlines: Statement of Interest Deadline: March 15, 2010; Invitation to Apply Issued: April 8, 2010; Formal Application Deadline: May 10, 2010)

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Universal Design Leadership Project
CFDA No. 45.024

The Arts Endowment seeks to enter into a Cooperative Agreement with an organization that will carry out a project to increase understanding, acceptance, and practice of universal design within the design profession, by design educators, and by the American public. (Deadline: February 9, 2010)

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Coming Up Taller

Nominate outstanding community arts and humanities programs that celebrate the creativity of America's young people. (Receipt deadline: January 29, 2010)

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The Arts on Radio and Television
CFDA No. 45.024

Supports projects for radio and television arts programs that are intended for national broadcast. Grants generally range from $20,000 to $200,000. (Deadline: September 3, 2009)

Note: The link below goes to the expired guidelines for information purposes only. The next deadline will be September 2, 2010; new guidelines will be posted late May/early June.

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Lifecycle of an Application
Guidelines available: Application guidelines are made available on the Arts Endowment's Web site and through Grants.gov
Application submitted: Applications that meet the deadline are assigned an application number. Applicant receives acknowledgment of application receipt. Applications are forwarded to Program staff
Staff review: Staff reviews applications for completeness and eligibility and may contact an applicant for clarification and additional information. Application materials are sent to panelists several weeks before the panel meeting. Work samples may be distributed in advance or may be held for review at the panel
Panel review: The staff reconciles the panel recommendations with available funds and forwards them to the National Council on the Arts, where they are reviewed in open session. The Council makes recommendations on which applications to fund and which applications to reject. Fast-Track Review Grants receive an expedited review. Following panel and staff review, recommendations are forwarded to the Chairman
National Council-Chairman Review: The staff reconciles the panel recommendations with available funds and forwards them to the National Council on the Arts, where they are reviewed in open session. The Council makes recommendations on which applications to fund and which applications to reject. Fast-Track Review Grants receive an expedited review. Following panel and staff review, recommendations are forwarded to the Chairman who makes the final decision on all grant awards.
Notification: A letter is sent to applicants not recommended for funding. Applicants recommended may be contacted first for revisions to the project. Fast-Track Grant applicants will receive a preliminary letter of notification. Grantees later receive an official grant award notification with information about legal and reporting requirements
 

 

      
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