Art Commission

Do you want to commission an artist to create new work or works that will be visible to everyone, in a publicly accessible space, for example in a hospital, museum or shopping centre? Or would you like to establish a partnership or supportive collaboration with an artist? If so, you may be eligible for an Art Commission grant from the Mondriaan Fund.

Van grijze muur naar 500m2 aan kunst in Utrecht

For whom

Anyone without intention to sell the work can commission visual artists to create new works of art accessible to the public in the Netherlands or the Caribbean part of the Kingdom.

For what

For the production of publicly accessible works of art.

How much

The amount of the stipend is individually determined for each application.

Checklist

Please check this list before starting your application.

Who preceded you?

View granted applications for this grant.

Start your application

Do you meet the conditions and did you go through the checklist?

For whom

With this grant, anyone without intention to sell the work can commission visual artists to create new works of art accessible to the public in the Netherlands or the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. Art Commission grants are for parties in the public or private sector or for public-private partnerships such as individuals, organizations, institutions, companies and so on.

The Mondriaan Fund offers Art Commission grants to stimulate the commission of relevant publicly accessible artistic projects and commissions for artists. This is intended to result in closer involvement of (market) parties in the creation of visual arts and therefore in improved quality and visibility of contemporary Dutch visual arts for a relevant audience.

For what

Art Commission grants are intended for the production of publicly accessible works of art. This could be a single commission for 1 or more artists, or a longercollaboration, for example, between a museum and an artist which centres on the intensive following and presenting of the work. Or the production of new work during a period of no more than 4 years.

How much

The amount of the stipend is individually determined for each application. That amount can be awarded in the form of:

  • A grant for a concrete commission, covering no more than 50% of the costs, such as production and presentation;
  • A grant for an exceptionally longer collaboration with an artist, totalling no more than 50% of the costs for a period of up to 4 years;
  • A grant for the development phase of a commission, totalling no more than 70% of the costs, up to a maximum of € 15,000.

Apply

Applications can be submitted at any time of the year, using the Mondriaan Fund’s online application system. You must first establish an account with the Mondriaan Fund before you can apply. When determining your dates, always allow for a processing period of 3 months from the time your application is submitted in full, as grants cannot be awarded retroactively. However, due to the many applications to the fund, the processing time can take longer than expected.

The following is based on the deelregeling Kunst Opdracht (in Dutch).

Apply now

Conditions

  • Anyone can apply, except for individual artists, art education institutions, post-graduate institutions and predominantly sales-oriented commercial art institutions. Applications may be submitted by, for example, institutions for visual arts, cultural heritage or design, municipalities, social and/or community organizations, such as (sports or retailers’) associations, schools, hospitals, churches, residents’ associations and foundations. Businesses, companies and individuals may also apply.
  • The applicant must be established in the Netherlands or the Caribbean part of the Kingdom.
  • The work to be commissioned must be accessible to the public and presented in the Netherlands or the Caribbean part of the Kingdom.
  • The work may not be for profit.
  • A realistic fee for the artist is mandatory and must be included in the budget as part of the production costs. The guidelines of the Dutch Government Buildings Agency can be used to determine the amount of the fee for permanent works. In the case of temporary exhibitions or presentations with no sales objectives, the artist honoraria guideline should be followed.* Organizations that do not have the presentation of visual arts and/or heritage without sales as a core activity can apply for the artist honorarium as part of the Art Commission grant.
  • The artist receiving the commission must:
    – be working for at least 1 year as a professional visual artist and be registered as such with the Kamer van Koophandel (KvK); or
    – have had at least 3 years of higher art education and have been working as a professional visual artist for at least 1 year; or
    – have been working as a professional visual artist for at least 3 years.
  • The commissioned artist must be artistically active in the visual arts and in that capacity be embedded in the professional visual arts practice in the Netherlands and/or the Caribbean part of the Kingdom.
  • If the project concerns a permanent work of art, it may not be moved or traded without permission of the Mondriaan Fund. In that case, realistic compensation must also be paid to the artist.
  • All cultural institutions subscribe to the Fair Practice Code (Dutch only), the Culture Governance Code and the Diversity & Inclusion Code (Dutch only). Compliance with the Fair Practice Code automatically means that the institution implements the guidelines on artists’ honoraria.
  • The financial contribution from the client must be in acceptable proportion to the contribution requested from the Mondriaan Fund.

*Please note: The Artist’s Fee Directive was reassessed in 2023 and can be consulted at www.kunstenaarshonorarium.bknl.nl. The revised guideline will be applied from January 1, 2025.

Assessment

The Mondriaan Fund staff checks the submitted applications and attachments to ensure that they are complete. Once an application is complete, it is submitted to the committee that advises on awarding the Art Commission grant.

An Art Commission grant can only be awarded if the committee advises to that effect. In addition, the advisory committee can make recommendations concerning the amount of the financial stipend and the period for which this is valid.

Due to budgetary restrictions, we are unfortunately not always able to award grants to all applications that receive positive advisories from the committee. In this case, the Mondriaan Fund Board asks the advisory committee to prioritise the positive advisories. This means that an application may receive a positive advisory, but a grant is nevertheless not awarded.

What happens with my application?

Checklist

To process your application, The Mondriaan Fund needs information. All of this information can be submitted in the application form itself, along with documentation that you can upload. Below is a checklist that follows the layout of the application form and contains all the information required.

Tip: collect all your information before you start filling out the online application form. Your attachments should be uploaded as PDFs. Please note: make sure that your documents meet the stated conditions. Otherwise, we will unfortunately not be able to process your request. Do not exceed the number of pages where a maximum is indicated.

Questions & contact

If you have a question please reach out to a contact person of this grant.

Or call to 020 523 15 23 or send an e-mail to vasb@zbaqevnnasbaqf.ay

Mirthe Wacki

Tessa Ebbers

Iris van Hest