Decorative Arts Trust: Publishing Grants for Collections, Exhibitions, and Conferences

Decorative Arts Trust: Publishing Grants for Collections, Exhibitions, and Conferences

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Decorative Arts Trust
Amount: US $5,000 - US $50,000
Last Updated: February 12, 2026

Summary

The Decorative Arts Trust offers publishing grants aimed at enhancing scholarship in the decorative arts. With a commitment to support diverse projects, the program funds publications related to collections, exhibitions, and conferences, providing up to $50,000 annually. Eligible applicants include independent scholars and nonprofits focused on American material culture. The initiative also promotes digital accessibility and original research, ensuring a wider reach for valuable contributions to the field.

Overview

Decorative Arts Trust The mission of the Decorative Arts Trust, a non-profit organization, is to promote and foster the appreciation and study of the decorative arts. We achieve our mission through: Exchanging information through domestic and international programming;Collaborating and partnering with museums and preservation organizations; andUnderwriting internships, research grants, and scholarships for graduate students and young professionals. Publishing Grants The Decorative Arts Trust established a new publishing grant program, the latest expansion of the organization’s efforts to invigorate scholarship and broaden appreciation of material culture. The endeavor is structured to support publications tackling the broad context of the Americas and to encourage projects that advance diversity in the study of American decorative arts and material culture. The program will also respond to the changing needs of the field and will consider publishing efforts in both the print and digital sectors. The Trust receives dozens of requests for funding for publishing related projects each year and recognizes the strong demand for and limited supply of resources focused on publishing in the art community. This new venture establishes a commitment to sharing important art historical research as broadly as possible. An advisory committee consisting of museum professionals and academics with broad experience in publishing stewards the program and oversees the selection of grant recipients. The Trust will allocate funding to two separate grant lines within the publishing program: Publishing Grants for Dissertations and First-Time Authors and Publishing Grants for Collections, Exhibitions, and Conferences. Publishing Grants for Collections, Exhibitions, and Conferences The program awards grants to support book-length publications tied to collections, exhibitions, and conferences that increase the awareness and appreciation of important areas of research in the decorative arts including catalogues, and compilations of conference papers. We will provide up to $50,000 per year in funding, and proposals can request funding from $5,000 up to $50,000, depending on the level of need.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. Independent scholars and nonprofit organizations are welcome to apply.We use the terms decorative arts and material culture in relation to three-dimensional objects but will also consider proposals that focus on decorative painting, prints, maps, and wallpaper as well as those that analyze the interiors for which objects were designed or in which they were placed.Proposed topics should focus on objects made or used in an American context, defined as North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean.Proposals from authors located outside of the United States will be accepted.Publications are expected to contain original research which yields information of high scholarly value.We support in-print as well as digital publications, with an expectation that in-print books will have some level of digital accessibility.All funding will be directed to the publisher upon receipt of invoices for incurred expenses.Acceptable costs for printed publications are: printing, binding, design, layout, editing, indexing, and production.Publications do not need to be under contract at the time of application.

Ineligibility

Funding cannot be used for authors fees, overhead, photography, or licensing, reproduction, copyright, and marketing costs.