South Arts State Fellowship Grant

The South Arts State Fellowship offers a $5,000 grant to artists reflecting the rich visual arts culture of the Southern U.S. It aims to support individual artists or collaborative teams creating original works. Each state will select one awardee based on artistic excellence. Applicants must be legal U.S. residents and provide proof of residency.

NOTE: There is a $25 application fee. If the application fee creates a barrier, the applicant may request a waiver from South Arts.
South Arts State Fellowships: $5,000
The South Arts State Fellowship (state fellowship) is a state-specific prize awarded to artists whose work reflects the best of the visual arts in the South. A national jury will select one awardee per eligible state, based on artistic excellence that reflects and represents the region’s array of artistic expression. Each of the nine-state fellowship awardees will receive a $5,000 state fellowship and will compete for one of the two Southern Prizes. State fellowship recipients will be required to attend the awards ceremony in late summer 2026.

Eligibility

Applicants to the State Fellowships program must meet the following eligibility requirements:
Actively practicing Visual Artist.An individual artist or a collaborative team of no more than two artists creating original works of art.  The applicant(s) must be the artist(s) whose original work is represented in the submitted work samples.  Only one application per aritst per grant cycle will be accepted. Age 18 or Older.  Artists must be a legal US citizen or have permission from the Department of Homeland Security to work permanently in the U.S.  A permanent legal resident of the South Arts’ nine-state region for at least the prior two years (not later than December 2023). The applicant must be a current resident of the State they are applying in at the time of application and agree to maintain residency in that state until June 30, 2027.  Applicant must be able to prove current state residency as requested by South Arts staff.

Ineligibility

Artists who are awarded a South Arts State Fellowship are ineligible to apply to the Southern Prize and State Fellowships program for six years (not earlier than 2032).Cannot be a high school student or matriculated student in a graduate, or undergraduate program in the fine arts.NOTE: Film/video/media art are not eligible; however, works can be submitted that support the Experimental or Mixed Media categories including video/film and/or sound.South Arts Employees and Board Members and their families are ineligible to apply.  Please note: Collaborations are ineligible for the Southern Prize and State Fellowships for Literary Arts.