Connecticut Sea Grant Arts Support Awards Program

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post card for CT Sea Grant Arts Support Awards ProgramConnecticut Sea Grant, through its competitive funding program the Arts Support Awards Program, will award up to $1000 to an artist or group of artists. The winning submission will be selected on the basis of aesthetic quality, relevance to coastal and marine environments and Connecticut Sea Grant themes, as well as its potential reach and impact on non-traditional “audiences.”

Eligibility: Artists or groups of artists who live in Connecticut, or non-Connecticut artists whose work is related to Connecticut’s coastal and marine environments and/or Long Island Sound are eligible for funding consideration. All artistic disciplines are eligible. Previous recipients of Sea Grant Arts Awards are not eligible for five years.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Sea Grant champions diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) by recruiting, retaining and preparing a diverse workforce, and proactively engaging and serving the diverse populations of coastal communities. Sea Grant is committed to building inclusive programs that serve people with unique backgrounds, circumstances, needs, perspectives and ways of thinking. We encourage applicants of all ages, races, ethnicities, national origins, gender identities, sexual orientations, disabilities, cultures, religions, citizenship types, marital statuses, education levels, job classifications, veteran status types, income, and socioeconomic status types to apply for this competitive research opportunity.  CTSG encourages applicants to identify how their project will have broader societal impacts on Connecticut communities including underrepresented or underserved communities and those with environmental justice concerns.

Application Procedure: The application should be submitted electronically as a compiled PDF file with one additional media file (mp3 or mov file), if needed, via email to SeagrantResearch@uconn.edu for receipt no later than 4:30 p.m. ET on Friday May 16, 2025.  If the proposal or additional media file exceeds 3 MB, provide an online link or utilize a dropbox/fileshare utility to transfer the media.  Submissions that are not received by the 4:30 p.m. ET May 16 deadline will not be considered for funding in this year’s competition.

The application must include the following items:

  • completed summary form (available at http://seagrant.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/1985/2017/03/artsgrant-summary-form.docx)
  • maximum two-page statement outlining:
    • the objectives of the proposal
    • the relevance of the proposed work to marine environments and Connecticut Sea Grant’s mission
    • specific plans for performing or exhibiting the work(s)
    • plans to reach a large, diverse or non-traditional audience with message(s) compatible with Sea Grant outreach efforts
  • itemized budget (note that funds may NOT be used for grantee self-compensation which includes salary and/or travel costs, see details below under Terms of Award)
  • budget explanation describing the proposed use of the funds
  • 1-to-2-page resume or summary of exhibition history and professional credentials
  • digital portfolio composed of a representation or outline of the proposed new work, in addition to previous works, containing image, video, text or audio files. See WORK SAMPLE REQUIREMENTS below for detailed guidelines.

Note that the summary form, budget, budget explanation, resume and digital portfolio are NOT included in the two-page limit.  Please submit all required documents and do NOT include additional support materials with your proposal.

Deadlines: Submissions will be accepted at any time up until the deadline for the 2024/25 funding year which is Friday May 16, 2025. Applicants will be notified of funding decisions by Friday June 27, 2025.

Criteria for Selection: Three criteria will be evaluated by the members of an Independent Arts Review Panel convened to evaluate the submissions received. These are 1) relevance to Connecticut Sea Grant’s themes as outlined in the Connecticut Sea Grant Strategic Plan (https://seagrant.uconn.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/1985/2022/12/CTSG.Strategic.Plan_.2024-27.final_.pdf); 2) artistic merit and aesthetic considerations; and 3) the tangible outcomes of the project, such as new works produced and displayed, number of art exhibitions planned, ability to reach a large, diverse and/or non-traditional audience, etc. This funding opportunity is aimed at funding new work or a body of new works.  Submissions will be reviewed by a panel convened by Connecticut Sea Grant that includes arts professionals.

Terms of Award: These funds may be used to pay for supplies, services, and other costs associated with producing works of art, exclusive of self-compensation (salary and travel). The funds must be used within one year of receiving the award and cannot be used to reimburse for expenses that were incurred prior to the start of the award period.

The Sea Grant Arts Support Award is considered a fellowship for income tax purposes.  The recipients of this award may have an obligation to self-report the fellowship on your income tax return.  Consistent with IRS guidelines, the University does not withhold income taxes from the award, or report the fellowship award to the IRS, except in limited circumstances involving nonresident aliens.

Artists will be asked to give permission to Connecticut Sea Grant to use images representing the work in promoting the Arts Support Awards Program’s accomplishments.  A written report of the results of creative activities supported by Sea Grant, including visual documentation of the artistic pieces and other outcomes, is required at the conclusion of the project. Projects are expected to be completed within 12 months of funding and recipient(s) are required to provide a final report at the end of the project.

Recipient(s) are expected to interface with the Connecticut Sea Grant Communications office while implementing funded projects. They should also acknowledge the support of Connecticut Sea Grant in any publicity or printed matter associated with the art developed from this award, and work with the communications office to obtain the Connecticut Sea Grant logo, which should be displayed in advertising associated with any public showings and in funding acknowledgments. Connecticut Sea Grant requests notification of all exhibitions displaying artworks funded under the award. If possible, funded artists are asked to arrange an exhibition of their completed work at the Alexey Von Schlippe Art Gallery at the Avery Point campus of UConn.

WORK SAMPLE REQUIREMENTS

WRITERS: Writing samples should be representative of the genre in which you propose to work. Works-in-progress may be submitted but should be accompanied by a sample of your finished work. Submit one digital file in WORD or PDF format containing an outline or portion of the proposed work as well as one of the following: (a) six to 10 poems, or (b) up to two short stories, or (c) the first chapter or 20  pages of a book (do NOT send a complete book), or (d) a script of a complete work.

VISUAL ARTISTS: Submit one digital file in PDF format containing rough sketch(es), model(s) or sample photo(s) of the proposed work as well as digital images of recent work, not to exceed 10 images in total (including both proposed and previous works), and a corresponding sheet listing images by title, medium, size and year work was completed. Please ensure that the images are sized large enough to allow for viewing the details of the works.

AUDIO/MUSIC/COMPOSERS: Submit one digital file in PDF format containing a sample of the proposed work as well as: (a) up to three scores (include your name, duration of composition, and date of composition), and, if available, (b) a corresponding audio file in MP3 format of the works labeled with title and your name.

OTHER GENRES (Video, film, digital media, puppetry, installation, performance, dance, conceptual art, interactive multi-media and related work): Submit an outline or sample of the proposed work as well as examples of previous works in the form of one digital file (see details below) or link to a web-site URL of the following: short video (not to exceed six minutes) or series of digital images. This should be accompanied by a WORD or PDF file containing:  title, artist name, duration of piece and date as well as a description of no more than one page contextualizing the segment. If submitting your works as a digital file, use PDF, MP4, or MOV format or file format compatible with Quick Time or Real Player.

For guidance and forms and information, visit these links:

or contact:

Dr. Syma A. Ebbin, Research Coordinator
Connecticut Sea Grant College Program
The University of Connecticut
1080 Shennecossett Road|
Groton, CT  06340-6048
Tel. (860) 405-9278; FAX:  (860) 405-9109
E-mail: syma.ebbin@uconn.edu