The Prince Claus Fund invites applications for the 2026 Seed Award, supporting emerging artists and cultural practitioners working in contexts where cultural expression is under pressure. The award provides flexible, trust-based support to help recipients deepen their artistic practice, explore new directions, and build momentum in their work.
By Creatives Unite CommunityDeadline: 8 January 2026, 17:00 (Amsterdam time)
Organiser: Prince Claus Fund
Who is it for: Emerging artists and cultural practitioners (1–5 years of professional practice)
Read more here
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Each year, the Prince Claus Fund awards 100 Seed Awards to emerging artists and cultural practitioners whose work is socially and politically engaged and contributes meaningfully to cultural resilience, free expression, and structural equity. The 2026 Seed Award continues this commitment by supporting a new generation of practitioners who bring fresh perspectives, ideas, and energy to the cultural field.
The Seed Award is designed to offer recipients the time, space, and autonomy to explore, experiment, and strengthen their artistic or cultural practice. As a trust-based grant, it places full confidence in the recipients’ vision, allowing them to decide how best to use the support in line with their needs and ambitions.
Each selected recipient will receive a grant of €5,000, intended to support the growth and development of their practice without restrictive reporting or predefined project requirements.
- Trust-based grant of €5,000
- Flexible use of funds according to the recipient’s artistic or cultural needs
- No requirement to deliver a specific output or final project
The grant may be used to explore new perspectives, invest in materials, collaborate with others, participate in residencies or workshops, or create time and space for artistic experimentation.
This open call is for individual emerging artists and cultural practitioners who:
- Are in the early stages of their professional career (1–5 years of practice, excluding years of study)
- Work independently (applications from collectives, groups, or organisations are not eligible)
- Have received little to no institutional recognition or support to date
- Are committed to socially and politically engaged artistic or cultural practices relevant to their local context
- Are from, living in, and working in eligible countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe
- Have not previously received a Prince Claus Seed Award
Applicants whose work is primarily academic or embedded in formal development frameworks are not eligible.
For more information about the Seed Awards and the application process, please visit the Prince Claus official website.
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Image: from the story of Culture is Memory of Gabriel Pinto, 2024 Seed Awardee
