MAINE ARTIST RELIEF FUND

The Maine Artist Relief Fund will award grants of $500 to individual artists who live in Maine whose creative practices and incomes are being adversely impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19). 

With events of all types being cancelled to reduce spread of COVID-19, people who make income partially or fully through gigs, exhibits, events and freelance work are losing critical opportunities to support their well-being in our state.

The Maine Artist Relief Fund will open for applications on April 1, 2020 for artists who have lost or anticipate losing income. The Maine Artist Relief Fund will be open through the rest of our fiscal year, ending June 30, 2020.

We welcome applications from all artists living in Maine, but will prioritize lower income artists. The fund will be open for but not limited to the following uses:

• Recouping financial losses due to cancelled events. This includes but is not limited to:
• Performances in all performing arts disciplines
• Readings, panels, and speaking opportunities
• Classes or workshops
• Festivals or events
• Gallery shows
• Artist residencies 
• Reimbursement for travel expenses related to creative work that you paid for yourself. This includes but is not limited to:
• Attending conferences and convenings that have been cancelled
• Artist Residencies
• Touring
• Events
• Festivals
• Offsetting loss of income for teaching artists who could not teach during this time because of cancelled classes and school closures\
• Support for artists working full or part-time in the service industry who have lost supplemental income used to support their creative practices.

Application Cycle

The application will open on April 1, 2020 and is anticipated to close on June 30. The application may be closed sooner depending on how many applications we receive. We will review applications in the following on an ongoing first-come-first-served basis.

Please note that following the grant deadline it will take us time to review applications, award applicants, and have payments processed. We cannot make funding immediately available through this relief fund. We hope after applying, artists will have to wait no more than six weeks to receive funding and will do our best to move quickly. Applicants will be required to submit a completed W9 in order to receive funding.

Reporting Requirements
Grantees are encouraged to keep all receipts in case we need them for auditing purposes.

Who can apply? 

All individual artists living permanently in the State of Maine can apply.

Donating

Individuals can donate to the Artist Relief Fund HERE.