Scholarships, Competitions & Prizes

In the artistic and musical fields, there are a various calls for applications and options for artists to find support in shaping their own individual artistic profiles such as scholarships, which include but are not specifically limited to young artists, as well as competitions and prizes.

Allianz Cultural Foundation
The Allianz Cultural Foundation supports cooperative projects of young academics and artists in Europe which involve partners from at least three countries. Special attention is given to innovative and in particular transdisciplinary approaches to artistic research, cultural education and the humanities.

“Catalogues for young artists” prize (in German only)
This annually awarded prize honors young artists in the fine arts by enabling them to realize an exhibition of their art work including an exhibition catalogue. Funding amounts to a maximum of EUR 25.000. The foundation expects applicants to co-finance the exhibition as well as the catalogue by covering at least one fourth of the overall costs.

Creative Europe
The “Culture” sub-program of the EU framework program “Creative Europe“ is open to artists from all disciplines except the audiovisual area. The main measures consist of project funding for European cooperation projects, European networks, European platforms and Literary Translation projects.

Foundation Cultural Funds (in German only)
This program seeks to promote contemporary fine art in Germany by awarding scholarships, project and exhibition funding, or publication grants. The HAP-Grieshaber-Preis der VG BILD-KUNST prize worth EUR 25.000 honors one artist in recognition of his or her work.

Foundation for Culture Rhineland-Palatinate (in German only)
The Foundation awards scholarships to promote artists and operates the artists‘ residencies Schloss Balmoral and Edenkoben. The artists’ residency Schloss Balmoral also coordinates the award of the scholarships.

German Music Council
The promotion schemes of the German Music Council range from producing a debut CD and organizing laureate concerts at music festivals and concert series to the acquisition of chamber concerts within the framework of the Federal Selection of Concerts for Young Artists (Bundesauswahl Konzerte Junger Künstler – BAKJK).

Goethe Institut Residency Programs
The purpose of the Goethe Institut’s Residency Programs is to invite artists and cultural workers to live and work in another country and culture for an extended period of time. The programs are intended to promote and support young artists in establishing themselves as artists in the cultural scene and building networks.

Minister of State for Culture and Media – international scholarships (in German only)
Young artists are offered the opportunity to apply for an international scholarship or a study stay at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris. Exceptionally talented, primarily young artists doing work in the fine arts, architecture, literature and music (composition) are eligible for application. The artists‘ residence Schloss Balmoral supervises the selection of the scholarship recipients.

Minister of State for Culture and Media – promotion of musicians (in German only)
The German Music Competition supports young musicians who have already successfully taken the leap into professional music playing and are among the top young artists in Germany at an early stage in their career. The conductor forum (Dirigentenforum) focuses on young conductors with above-average talent and offers them opportunities to work with orchestras in rehearsals, performances and master classes. Distinguished conductors act as mentors. Further promotion measures are the following programs, among others: Edition Contemporary Music, PopCamp and the German musical instruments funds.

State Foundation Villa Musica Rhineland-Palatinate
The Rhineland-Palatinate state foundation in collaboration with SWR supports outstanding young musicians through scholarships, especially those playing chamber music. Moreover, the foundation has many cooperation partners at state and federal level.

ZURÜCKGEBEN – Foundation for the support of Jewish women in the arts and academia
Through project grants, the Foundation supports young female artists and researchers of Jewish faith and/or Jewish background who live in Germany.