Emerging artists can kickstart their career with a grant of up to $10,000 from the Australia Council.
Australia Council Director Early Career Artists and Arts and Education Dr David Sudmalis said applications were now open for the ArtStart grant, which was available to recent creative arts graduates to support a career or business development strategy for their arts practice.
The Australia Council started the ArtStart program in 2009 to provide financial assistance for young artists wanting to establish a career as a professional artist, Dr Sudmalis said.
Since the program began, the Australia Council has awarded just over 1,000 grants to emerging artists.
Some of the previous recipients who have benefitted from the program include flautist Lina Andonovska, writer Demet Divaroren and visual artist Becc Orszag.
ArtStart funding can be used for services, resources, skills development and equipment to help establish an income-generating career in the artform they have studied.
To be eligible, applicants must be committed to building a career as a professional writer, visual, hybrid or performing artist or a creative practitioner working in community arts or cultural development.
They also need to present a viable plan outlining their proposed ArtStart activities, demonstrate their artistic potential and display a commitment to their chosen field.
Previous ArtStart recipients include jazz guitarist Harry Edwards (Tas), visual artist Alica Bryson-Haynes (Vic), visual artist and photographer Alex Bishop-Thorpe (SA), and visual and performance artist Hannah Raisin (Vic).
Harry is using his ArtStart grant to receive guitar tuition in the niche style Jazz Manouche from experts in North America and France, Dr Sudmalis said.
He will also buy a Jazz Manouche instrument from Europe, which is not available in Australia.
Alicia is currently in Mexico researching and networking with local and international artists and working on a new project.
ArtStart has also enabled her to set up a studio in Melbourne and buy equipment for her practice.
Alex has used his grant to learn new techniques and meet other artists through a month-long residency at the Banff Centre in Canada and a workshop at George Eastman House in Rochester, New York.
Hannah used some of her grant to present at a forum at the Queensland University of Technology during the Brisbane Festival. This led to her work being shown in two exhibitions in Brisbane, one in Adelaide and a residency on a farm in Cooran, Queensland.
She used the rest of her grant to establish a studio, buy camera equipment and take short courses.
ArtStart applications close on 22 September.
The grant supports the professional development of recent graduates and cannot be used to fund the creation of new work or to develop one-off performances or exhibitions.
For more information and to apply go to: https://creative.gov.au/grants/2014/artstart4
