History of Art Grants

The History of Art Grant Program, supported by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, aims to enhance the appreciation and understanding of European art and architecture from antiquity to the early 19th century. It funds scholarly projects, including exhibitions, publications, and research activities, fostering knowledge sharing among art historians through professional events and exchanges. Grants are available to non-profit institutions with 501(c)(3) status, emphasizing the importance of conservation and education in the field of art history.

We make grants in defined program areas and offer professional development fellowships for historians of art and architecture, art conservators, art museum curators and educators, and art librarians.
The History of Art Grants program supports scholarly projects that will enhance the appreciation and understanding of European works of art and architecture from antiquity to the early 19th century. Grants are awarded to projects that create and disseminate specialized knowledge, including archival projects, development and dissemination of scholarly databases, documentation projects, museum exhibitions and publications, photographic campaigns, scholarly catalogues and publications, and technical and scientific studies.
Grants are also awarded for activities that permit art historians to share their expertise through international exchanges, professional meetings, conferences, symposia, consultations, the presentation of research, and other professional events.

Eligibility

Grants are awarded to non-profit institutions that have 501(c)3 status in the United States, which includes supporting foundations of European institutions and foreign institutions that have obtained recognition of exemption from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. These are competitive grants.

Ineligibility

This grant program does not typically support the documentation (cataloging, photography, research and publication) of the object collections of individual art museums.The Foundation does not pay grants directly to individuals