Are you a contemporary visual arts organization without a collection, with the presentation of visual arts as your core activity? Do you have plans for a publicly accessible art venue programme? Whether your plans are experimental or otherwise, whether they aim at a broad or indeed a specific audience, you may be eligible for an Art Platform Programme Grant.
Application closed
Art Platform Start
For small organizations and collectives in the field of contemporary visual arts.
For professional contemporary art organizations that have presented a regular artistic and substantive programme for at least two years, complemented by activities that support that programme for a diverse audience of professionally and otherwise interested parties.
For institutes ranging from the local to the international level with a fully-fledged professional organization, which seek support for a regular annual programme of presentations, complemented with an extensive programme of activities.
For those art platforms hoping to qualify for a grant or subsidy, presenting contemporary visual arts must be a core activity.
With the Arts Platform Programme arrangement, the Mondriaan Fund provides support to art venues whose programming contributes to the high qualitative standards and pluriform range of visual arts in the Netherlands, and to reaching and expanding its audiences. Small arts initiatives, collectives and visual arts organizations with one- to four-year programmes may apply. All sorts of applications are welcome. Indeed, diversity among the recipients is of great importance. Collectively, a varied range ensures a fully-fledged visual arts field in the Netherlands, as well as a diverse audience.
For those art platforms hoping to qualify for a grant or subsidy, presenting contemporary visual arts must be a core activity. A planned programme to that effect is essential.
The Art Platform Programme scheme applies to four categories of art venues. Together, they ensure a broad range of contemporary visual art in the Netherlands. Before you apply, please carefully consider which of the four categories best suits your practice and your plans.
For whom and for what / The categories:
START – for small organizations and collectives in the field of contemporary visual arts.
Do you have plans for a series of visual arts presentations in the coming year, perhaps including associated activities? If so, Start is your category. The grant amount is € 25,000 for a single calendar year. A minimum of 10% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings towards your organization’s structural operating costs.
All applicants for grants in the Start category need to endorse the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Each category has its own requirements concerning the codes. For an Art Platform Programme grant in the Start category, applicant organizations must endorse the codes.
BASIC – for professional contemporary visual arts organizations with a relevant, annual artistic programme for a professionally allied audience and intentions for expanding that audience.
Do you have plans for an annual programme that will provide a venue for two years of presentations and activities that contribute to the total range of visual arts in the Netherlands in an interesting way? Have you already presented such programming for at least two years and have you been able to find people in the field with demonstrable consistency? Are you seeking audiences that extend beyond the professionally associated visual arts audience? If so, you may qualify for a Basic grant. The grant amount is €110,000 per year for two calendar years. At least 30% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own income for the structural operation of your organization.
All applicant organizations must have a foundation for policy that endorses the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Each category has its own requirements. Applicants for Basic grants are asked to reflect on the codes and identify areas for improvement: what do you hope to achieve in this respect and how do you hope to get to that point?
PRO – for professional contemporary visual arts organizations with a regular, pertinent and substantive artistic programme, complemented with activities to support that programme for a diverse audience of professionals and interested parties.
Do you have a regular annual programme of presentations and activities and, in addition to what you regularly offer, do you want to develop new ideas in order to bring diverse target groups to your organization and your programming? Does your existing practice inspire confidence that your organization is able to achieve these goals? An Art Platform Pro grant could give you that opportunity. The grant amount is €175,000 per year for three calendar years. At least 50% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or the venue’s own earnings or income towards structural running costs.
All applicants in the Pro category must consider and reflect upon the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Each grant category has its own requirements. The Art Platform Pro category requires a significant, actively implemented policy vision that endorses and reflect the codes. Include factors that can be improved upon and formulate a step-by-step plan to achieve that improvement.
BROAD – For institutes spanning the local to the international level, with fully-fledged professional organizations, which seek support for a pertinent, regular annual programme of presentations, complemented with an extensive programme of activities.
Do you have well-considered artistic programming with a high degree of production excellence? Is this a regular, annual programme of presentations and activities? Does your hospitality policy aim towards reaching a broad audience and are your public facilities advantageous for the reception and care of large audiences? Do you have a unique and ambitious plan that extends beyond your regular offerings and regular role and with which you can attract and maintain an audience that reaches well beyond the professional visual arts field? Do you moreover have a clear and convincing vision of marketing and communication and a convincing approach to informing, expanding and educating your audience? If so, you may qualify for an Art Platform Broad category grant.
The subsidy amount is €275,000 per year for four calendar years. At least 50% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or the venue’s own earnings or income towards structural operation costs.
All applicants for support in the Broad category must consider and reflect on the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Each category has its own requirements. The Art Platform Broad category requires that organizations endorse the codes, actively implement a policy vision that sets an example, reflect on the codes and identify where improvements can be made, as well as identifying goals and describing how these goals will be achieved and put into effect.
Which category?
In assessing the applications, the committee can consider whether or not the applicant has selected the appropriate category. As a result, an application can be rejected or approved in a different category. The committee may also be requested to consider the necessity of an application. If the applicant has received support in the past for a programme that is ongoing, the committee will be asked to take this into critical account.
All decisions and advisory texts regarding these four categories will be published online.
How and when to apply?
Applications for Art Platform Programme grants and subsidies can be submitted once each year through the Mondriaan Fund’s online application system. In 2022, the deadline for the receipt of the applications is 5:00 PM on Monday, 11 April. You need to have an account with the Mondriaan Fund in order to submit an application. If you do not yet have an account, you can apply for one through the website. When applying, please remember that the application process takes three months following the deadline. Funds cannot be approved retroactively.
For small organizations and collectives in the field of contemporary visual arts. Do you have plans for a series of presentations for the coming year, perhaps along with associated activities? If so, Start is your category.
The grant amount is €25,000 for a single calendar year. At least 10% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of the organization.
The Art Platform Programme scheme applies to four categories of art venues. Read below the explanation of category Start.
For whom
For small organizations and collectives in the field of contemporary visual arts.
For what
The grant is intended for plans for a number of presentations during the course of a single year, possibly also with associated activities.
How much
€25,000 for a single calendar year.
A maximum of 12 grants will be awarded for the year 2023.
Institutions for higher art education and organizations that are directly supported by the Dutch government (through the Basisinfrastructuur, Rijkscultuurfondsen, or sector and umbrella institutes) may not apply.
At least 10% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or the organizations own earnings towards structural running costs.
All applications and the relevant attachments are first checked by Mondriaan Fund staff to ensure they are complete. If so, the application is then submitted to the committee that advises on awarding Art Platform Start grants.
An Art Platform Start grant can only be awarded if the committee advises to that effect.
Because the total amount available is limited, it may unfortunately not be possible for all positive advisories to be honoured. If this is the case, the Board of Directors of the Mondriaan Fund will ask the advisory committee to consider the applications against one another and indicate an order of priority. Here, the pluriformity of the entire group of organizations to be approved for funding will be taken into account in order to ensure a representative and multifaceted range of contemporary visual arts in the Netherlands. This means that it is possible that an application receives a positive advisory, but unfortunately does not receive financial support.
All assessments and advisory texts will be published online following the decisions.
A brief description of the initiative, the people involved (artists, curators, collaborating partners, etc.), activities developed in the recent past and ambitions for the near future.
A programming plan, including the following:
A presentation plan which describes how target groups are to be reached.
An explanation of why financial support is important at this particular point in time and in what way this support offers an impulse for the initiative in the longer term.
A description of the local importance of the initiative. The Mondriaan Fund takes the organization’s local context and regional outreach into account.
A total budget, including a financial coverage plan.
The role, position and working methods of the organization in recent years and the way in which the initiative relates to the current context in the broader sense. The following aspects are addressed here:
To what extent does the art venue have a convincing artistic vision about current topics of importance in visual art and/or other fields?
Is the translation of that artistic vision sufficiently visible in the activities and programming of the past year?
Have the art venue itself and, where applicable, those involved with the art venue, shown positive development?
The artistic quality of the programming plan. This concerns the following aspects:
Does the programming plan convincingly connect with the development of the art venue?
How is the quality of the artists and curators involved assessed? Does the selection sufficiently fit in with the programming plan?
Is the plan practicable and feasible, and is there sufficient confidence that the envisioned artistic and substantive plan will be realized?
Does the art venue have a convincing public reach in mind in relation to the programming plan? This also concerns the following aspects:
Are the target groups convincingly described in the programming plan?
Does the programming plan offer confidence that these target groups will be reached?
What does a production, presentation, or research project contribute to the cultural infrastructure that is already present?*
This concerns the following aspects:
Does the organization or institute convincingly relate to the local and/or regional cultural context and infrastructure?
To what degree and how does the applicant art venue distinguish itself from other institutes providing cultural programmes in the same region?
*Please note that this criterion carries more weight in the decision-making process, as this is a policy focus point within the grant.
Art Platform Start Application Checklist
Carefully run through the following list before you begin filling in your application. In order to process your application, the Mondriaan Fund needs information, both in the form of information filled in on the application form and PDF documents that need to be uploaded. Below is a checklist that follows the same order as the application form.
Tip: collect all your information before you start filling out the online application form. Your attachments should be uploaded as PDFs. Important: Wherever a maximum number of pages is given, do not exceed that number of pages! Additional pages will be disregarded.
Dutch Chamber of Commerce / Kamer van Koophandel registration (organization) An art initiative that is registered with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce – Kamer van Koophandel or KvK – must apply as an organization. Here you need to upload your up-to-date proof of registration (uittreksel) from the Kamer van Koophandel. It must be less than one year old.
Where applicable For individuals: a recent proof of registration with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce – Kamer van Koophandel or KvK (individuals) If you, as an individual, are using a business bank account in your name in your correspondence with the Mondriaan Fund, you must upload your own current proof of registration with the Kamer van Koophandel. This shows that this account concerns a one-person business. For individuals, it is only possible to use a business bank account for your own one-person business.
Where applicable Extract from the Dutch Basic Registration of Persons (individuals) If you do not have Dutch nationality, upload a recent extract (less than three months old) from your local population register (Basisregistratie Personen) to confirm your place of residence in the Netherlands.
Bank details If your application is approved, we need the bank account number of the applicant in order to transfer funds. If your account number is not already known to the Mondriaan Fund, or if it has been changed, please upload a recent bank statement that clearly shows the account holder’s name and IBAN.
Statements of permission from individuals for Art Platform Start grants (individuals) This confirms that you have permission from the individuals directly concerned with the art venue for the use of the bank account number you provide. These permission statements should be included and uploaded in a single PDF document.
Profile of the art venue (no more than three pages) Provide a brief description of the art venue, the people involved, activities that have recently been developed and your ambitions for the near future. Here, you can also indicate what the effects of measures to counteract the effects of COVID-19 have been and how your organization has responded to them.
Programming Plan (no more than ten pages, including pictures if desired) In the proscribed space on the application form, give a short summary of the programme, including a relevant selection of the artists and activities concerned. The total number of characters in this text should be no more than 1375.
The Programming Plan, which includes the following segments:
A description of why financial support is important at this particular point in time and how it will be an impulse for your initiative in the longer term.
The artists, curators and collaborating partners involved.
The expected numbers of participants and visitors (distinguish between physical visitors and online participants of digital programmes).
A presentation plan which describes how the envisioned target groups will be reached.
A description of the local importance of your initiative.
Optional: relevant visual documentation.
Include all of this information in a single PDF document.
Specified budget with financial coverage plan An Art Platform Start grant is in the amount of €25,000 for the year 2023. You need to upload a total budget, including a financial coverage plan for the calendar year. The budget comprises an overview of income and expenditures. A minimum of 10% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties, such as other government agencies, private funds and/or your own incomes for the structural operation costs of the organization.
Where applicable Letters of confirmation Collect all letters in which third parties confirm their intended financial contributions to your programme and include these together in a single PDF document.
For professional contemporary visual arts organizations with a relevant artistic and substantive programme.
Have you been programming your events for at least two years and are you able to consistently attract people in the field for these events? Do you have plans for the upcoming two years with interesting ways of offering venues for presentations and activities that contribute to the total range of visual arts in the Netherlands? Do you strive to achieve greater audiences for these professional-level plans? If so, you may qualify for support in the Art Platform Basic category.
An Art Platform Basic grant comprises an amount of €110,000 per year for two calendar years. At least 30% of the total budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of the organization.
The Art Platform Programme scheme applies to four categories of art venues. Read below the explanation of category Basic.
For whom
Basic grants are for professional contemporary visual arts organizations that have had a relevant artistic and substantive programme for at least two years, attracting audiences comprised primarily of people professionally involved in the visual arts, and that also have plans to expand their audiences beyond that professional audience.
For what
The grant is intended for a programme that for the next two years shows an interesting way of offering a platform to presentations and activities that add to the total range of visual arts in the Netherlands.
How much
An Art Platform Basic grant comprises €110,000 per year for two calendar years.
No more than nine Art Platform Basic grants will be awarded for the 2023-2024 period.
Institutes for higher art education that are directly financed by government (via the Basisinfrastructuur, Rijkscultuurfondsen, or sector and umbrella institutes) may not apply.
At least 30% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of the organization.
Applications and associated attachments are first checked for completeness by Mondriaan Fund staff. When they are approved, the application is presented to the committee that advises on awarding Art Platform Basic grants.
An Art Platform Basic grant can only be awarded if the committee advises to that effect.
In making its assessment, the committee can consider whether the applicant organization has attributed itself to the correct category. Depending on that assessment, an application can be rejected or awarded in a different category.
The committee can be requested to consider the necessity of an application. If an applicant has received support in previous years for a programme that is ongoing, the committee will be requested to take this into critical consideration.
Because overall funds are limited, we are not always able to honour all positive advisories. In that case, the Board of Directors of the Mondriaan Fund will request that the advisory committee compare the positive advisories and indicate which have greatest priority. Here, the pluriformity of the total group of venues to receive grants is considered, in order to ensure a representative and multifaceted range of contemporary visual arts in the Netherlands. This means that it can happen that an application receives a positive advisory, but the grant can unfortunately not be awarded.
All assessments and advisory texts will be published online following the decisions.
A description of the institute or venus, including the persons involved and the activities developed over the last two years, with an emphasis on innovative developments on both the artistic and the organizational levels.
A programming plan with the following segments:
A programme with a convincing artistic and substantive foundation.
A presentation plan that explains how the envisioned target groups are to be reached and a strategy to draw a broader public beyond the professionally aligned audiences.
A description of the local embedding of your organization and the degree to which it distinguishes itself from other cultural organizations in your region. Include here all local and/or regional collaborations, as well as support, financial or otherwise, and/or involvement by other parties.
A budget with a financial coverage plan.
The cohesion between the substantive artistic principles of the art platform and the way in which these are expressed in the activities of the recent past. This includes the following aspects:
To what degree does your art venue have a convincing artistic vision regarding current discourses in visual arts and/or other areas?
Is the translation of your artistic vision sufficiently visible in the activities and programming of the last two years?
How has the quality of the activities from the recent past been appreciated by other parties?
Is your programming plan a distinctive one, or exceptional for some other reason? What possibilities does the plan offer for the further development of the initiative? The following aspects should be included here:
Does the programming plan convincingly address the role, position and the development of the art platform?
How is the quality of the artists and curators involved assessed? Does your selection adequately reflect the programming plan?
Is the plan feasible and is there sufficient confidence that the envisioned artistic and substantive programming can be achieved?
Innovative qualities. These concern the following aspects:
Can the activities be considered innovative for the institute or organization itself?
Does your programming relate to developments in society as a whole?
In what way does your art platform present itself to the outside world and strive not only to attract and develop allegiance with professionally interested audiences, but also a broader public? This concerns the following aspects:
Does the art platform have a convincing strategy for further public reach, beyond professionally associated audiences?
Does the plan describe target groups in a convincing way?
Does your communications strategy offer confidence that the desired target groups can be reached?
Does your programme add something to the existing cultural infrastructure and is it relevant for the audiences to which it relates? * This concerns the following aspects:
Does the organization convincingly relate to the local and/or regional cultural context and infrastructure?
How does the applicant organization distinguish itself from other organizations that present cultural programmes in the same region?
Is there local and/or regional support or involvement, financial or otherwise?
*Please note that this criterion carries more weight in the decision-making process, as this is a policy focus point within the grant.
Art Platform Basic Application Checklist
Carefully run through the following list before you begin filling in your application. In order to process your application, the Mondriaan Fund needs information, both in the form of information filled in on the application form and PDF documents that need to be uploaded. Below is a checklist that follows the same order as the application form:
Tip: collect all your information before you start filling out the online application form. Your attachments should be uploaded as PDFs. Important: Wherever a maximum number of pages is given, do not exceed that number of pages! Additional pages will be disregarded.
A recent, up-to-date proof of registration (uittreksel) with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce / Kamer van Koophandel, no more than one year old.
Annual Accounts
Upload your annual accounts or financial statements for last year, signed and approved by your Board of Directors. If your 2021 annual accounts are not yet available, upload your annual accounts from 2020. The annual accounts show your organization’s financial status. If your application is approved, we will ask you to provide your accountant-approved 2021 annual accounts.
Profile of the art venue (three pages maximum)
Provide a brief description of your organization, the people involved and the activities developed over the last two years, with an emphasis on innovative developments at both the artistic and organizational levels. Here, you may also include what the effects have been of the COVID-19 measures and how your organization has responded to them.
Appendix with reviews and articles from the past 2 years about the art stage (max. 5 articles merged into one PDF of max. 5 pages. URLs to web pages are not allowed).
Programming Plan (no more than 25 pages, including images) In the appropriate space on the application form, give a brief summary of the planned programming, with a relevant selection of the artists and activities concerned (no more than 1375 characters).
The Programming Plan must include the following elements:
A programme description with a convincing artistic and substantive foundation.
The artists, curators and collaborating partners involved.
The expected numbers of participants and visitors (distinguish between physical visitors and online participants of digital programmes).
A presentation plan which describes how the envisioned audience will be reached, including a strategy for expanding that audience beyond the professional visual arts public.
A description of your organization’s local embedding and the degree to which it distinguishes itself from other cultural organizations in the region. Include here any local and/or regional collaborations and support from third parties, financial or otherwise.
Optional: relevant visual documentation.
Include all of this information in a single PDF document.
Applying the fair practice codes (no more than two pages) All applicants must endorse the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Endorse and reflect upon the codes, identifying points for improvement in your own performance in terms of the codes and their application in organization policy. Compliance with the fair practice codes automatically means that your organization follows the guidelines for honoraria for artists.
Specified budget with financial coverage plan An Art Platform Basic grant offers an amount of €110,000 per year for the years 2023 and 2024. You need to upload a specified budget, including a financial coverage plan. For each calendar year, the budget includes an overview of income and expenditures. A minimum of 30% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties, such as other government organizations, private funds and/or your own earnings for the structural operations of your organization. Ensure that the total amount of honoraria to be paid to artists is included in your budget.
Letters of confirmation Collect the letters in which third parties have confirmed their respective financial contributions to your upcoming programme. Upload these in a single PDF document.
Art Platform Pro grants are for professional contemporary art organizations that have presented a regular artistic and substantive programme for at least two years, complemented by activities that support that programme for a diverse audience of professionally and otherwise interested parties.
Do you have a regular, annual programme of presentations and activities, and are you moreover able to develop ideas in order to attract and win the allegiance of different target groups to your programming and your organization? Do you furthermore have an existing practice that inspires confidence that your organization can realize these plans? A Pro grant offers possibilities.
The Pro category includes a subsidy of €175,000 per year for three calendar years. A minimum of 50% of your budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of your organization.
The Art Platform Programme scheme applies to four categories of art venues. Read below the explanation of category Pro.
For whom
Professional contemporary visual arts organizations that have maintained a regular artistic, substantive programme for at least two years, complemented by activities for a diverse public of professionals and interested parties, and that also, in addition to the regular programming, moreover develop ideas to attract and win the allegiance of different target groups to the organization and the programming.
For what
An Art Platform Programme Pro grant is for a substantive artistic programme for contemporary visual arts, complemented with activities that support the programme and draw audiences extending beyond the professionally allied audience.
How much
€175,000 per year for three calendar years
A maximum of two Pro grants will be awarded for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Terms and conditions for Art Platform Pro grants
Applicants have an extensive and actively implemented policy vision in terms of the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. You must be able to reflect upon the position of your organization in relation to the codes and include a step-by-step plan in which you sketch points for improvement in your own performance in regards to the codes.
Institutes for higher art education and organizations that are directly financed by government (via the Basisinfrastructuur, Rijkscultuurfondsen, or sector and umbrella institutes) may not apply.
At least 50% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of the organization.
An Art Platform Pro grant can only be awarded if the advisory committee advises to that effect.
In its assessment, the committee can consider whether the applicant organization has selected the correct category. Depending on that assessment, an application can be rejected or approved within the same or a different category.
The committee may be asked to weigh the necessity of an application. If an applicant has already received support for a programme that is still ongoing, the committee will be requested to take that into critical consideration.
To help assess compliance with the codes, for the Pro and Broad grant categories, an external agency will provide an analysis of the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. This agency will provide preliminary advice based on that analysis. For applications for Pro and Broad grants, the preliminary advisories of the external agency will be used in assessing the three fair practice codes.
Because the total budget is limited, it is unfortunately not always possible to honour all positive advisories. If this is the case, the Board of Directors of the Mondriaan Fund will ask the committee to compare the approved applications and indicate which have greater priority. In doing so, they will weigh the pluriformity of the of the entire group of art platforms being awarded support in order to ensure a representative and multifaceted range of contemporary visual arts in the Netherlands. This means that it can happen that an application is approved but that the organization unfortunately does not receive a grant.
All assessments and advisory texts will be published online following the decisions.
Mondriaan Fund staff check 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 Art Platform Pro grant.
A description of the mission, vision and profile of the organization, including the individuals involved, a reflection on the activities developed over the last two years with an emphasis on innovative developments at both the artistic and organizational levels.
A programming plan with the following elements:
A well-considered and relevant artistic, substantive programme for a diverse audience.
A presentation plan that describes how a significant audience reach beyond the professionally aligned audience will be achieved. Describe your present and anticipated public facilities and offer a convincing public relations strategy that gives insight into more diverse target groups and how these can be reached.
A description of the local importance of your initiative and the degree to which you distinguish yourselves from other cultural institutions in your region. Include any local and/or regional collaborations and support, financial or otherwise, or involvement by other parties.
A clear and convincing vision concerning marketing and communications.
The coherence between the substantive artistic principles of the art venue and the way in which these are expressed in your activities. *
The following aspects are included here:
Which goals are expressed in the mission and can it be presumed that these goals will be reached?
To what degree does the art venue have a convincing artistic vision on topical subjects and discourse in the visual arts and/or other areas?
Has the translation of the artistic vision been sufficiently visible in the activities and programming of the past two years?
How have your recent activities been valued by third parties?
Is the programming plan a distinctive one, or is it exceptional for other reasons, and what possibilities does the plan offer for the substantive development of the initiative? This includes the following aspects:
Does the programming plan convincingly match the role, position and development of the art venue? Does the programme set an example, distinguish itself, or is it exceptional for some other reason?
How is the quality of the artists and curators involved assessed? Does the selection sufficiently match the programming plan?
Is the plan practically feasible and is there sufficient confidence that the envisioned artistic and substantive programme can be realized?
Innovative qualities. These concern the following aspects:
Can the activities be characterized as innovative for the arts field?
Does the programming convincingly reflect developments in society as a whole?
In which ways does your art venue project itself to the outside world and attempt to attract not only a related professional audience, but also earn the allegiance of a broader audience to its activities? *
This involves the following aspects:
Does the institute reflect a welcoming, hospitable approach and provide the appropriate public facilities?
Does the art venue have a convincing strategy for expanding its public? Does it wish to win the allegiance of a broader audience interested in arts, as well as the professionally aligned arts audience?
Are target groups convincingly described in the plan?
Does the communications strategy provide confidence that the envisioned target groups will be reached?
What does your programme add to the available cultural infrastructure and how is it relevant for the audience to which it will relate?* This concerns the following aspects:
Does the institute convincingly relate to the local and/or regional cultural context and infrastructure?
How does the applicant organization distinguish itself from other institutes that have cultural programmes in the same region?
Is there any local and/or regional support or involvement from third parties, financial or otherwise?
Does the institute have a professional business structure and a qualitatively strong organization? The following aspects are relevant here:
Has there been a healthy financial and business structure thus far?
Is the budget realistic and appropriate to the plan?
Does the budget give sufficient confidence in a healthy financial and business structure in the future?
The Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion: does your art venue have a grounded policy regarding these codes? Does the institute duly reflect on these codes, mentioning points that can be improved upon in terms of your own performance and formulating a step-by-step plan for improvement?
*Please note that these criteria carry more weight in the decision-making process, as this is a policy focus point within the grant
Checklist Pro
Carefully run through the following list before you begin filling in your application. In order to process your application, the Mondriaan Fund needs information, both in the form of information filled in on the application form and PDF documents that need to be uploaded. Below is a checklist that follows the same order as the application form.
Tip: collect all your information before you start filling out the online application form. Your attachments should be uploaded as PDFs. Important: Wherever a maximum number of pages is given, do not exceed that number of pages! Additional pages will be disregarded.
A recent, up-to-date proof of registration (uittreksel) with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce / Kamer van Koophandel, no more than one year old.
Bank details
If your application is approved, we need a bank account number in order to transfer funds. If your account number is not already known to the Mondriaan Fund, or if it has been changed, please upload a recent bank statement that clearly shows the account holder’s name and IBAN.
Annual Accounts Upload your annual accounts for last year, signed and approved by your Board of Directors. If your 2021 annual accounts are not yet available, upload your annual accounts from 2020. The annual accounts show your organization’s financial status.
Art platform profile (no more than three pages) Give a brief description of the mission, vision and profile of the organization, the individuals involved and a reflection on the activities developed over the last two years, with an emphasis on innovative developments at both the artistic and organizational levels. Mention here the professional qualities of the business structure and audience recruitment. You may also mention here what the effects have been of the COVID-19 measures and how your organization has responded to them.
Appendix with reviews and articles from the past 2 years about the art stage (max. 5 articles merged into one PDF of max. 5 pages. URLs to web pages are not allowed).
A Programming Plan (25 pages maximum, including images or desired) In the appropriate space on the application form, provide a summary of the programme, including a relevant selection of the artists and the activities involved. This summary must be no more than 1375 characters long.
The Programming Plan, with the following segments:
A well-considered and relevant artistic and substantive programme.
The artists, curators and collaborating partners involved.
The expected numbers of participants and visitors (distinguish between physical visitors and online participants of digital programmes).
A presentation plan that describes how a significant audience reach will be reached, beyond the immediate, professionally aligned public. Discuss the public facilities either already available or intended and offer a convincing public relations strategy that reflects insight into respective target groups.
A clear vision on marketing and communications.
A clear insight into your own local context
and the contribution that your programming adds to the existing cultural infrastructure and the audiences to which it relates. To what degree does your venue distinguish itself from other cultural institutes in the region? Include here all local and/or regional collaborations and support from other parties, financial or otherwise.
Optional: relevant visual documentation.
This information should all be included in a single PDF document.
Applying the fair practice codes (no more than three pages) Applicants must have an extensive, implemented policy vision and step-by-step plan regarding the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. Endorse the codes, reflect on them and present a step-by-step plan showing how you plan to approach points for improvement. Compliance with the fair practice codes automatically means that your organization follows the guidelines for honoraria for artists.
Specified budget and financial coverage plan An Art Platform Pro grant comprises an amount of €175,000 per year for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025. You need to upload a specified budget, including a financial coverage plan. The budget consists of an overview per year of income and expenditures. A maximum of 50% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties, such as other government agencies, private funds and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of your organization. Do not forget to mention the total amount that you have budgeted for honoraria to be paid to artists.
Letters of confirmation
Collect the letters in which third parties have confirmed their promised contributions to the programme. Include all these letters of confirmation in a single PDF document.
Art Platform Broad grants are for institutes ranging from the local to the international level with a fully-fledged professional organization, which seek support for a regular annual programme of presentations, complemented with an extensive programme of activities.
Do you have a well-considered artistic, substantive programme of high production quality standards? Is it a regular annual programme with presentations and associated activities? Is your hospitality policy aimed at a broad public and are your public facilities sufficient to receive and care for large audiences?
Do you have a unique and ambitious plan with which you reach beyond your regular programming and role in order to attract and win the allegiance of a public that transcends the related professional visual arts audience? Do you moreover have a clear and convincing vision of marketing and communications and a convincing financial commitment directed towards public information, audience expansion and cultural education? In that case, your organization could be eligible for support in the Broad category.
A Broad category subsidy concerns a contribution of €275,000 per year for four calendar years. At least 50% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings towards the structural operation of the organization.
The Art Platform Programme scheme applies to four categories of art venues. Read below the explanation of category Broad.
For whom
For institutes extending from the local to the international level with a fully-fledged professional organization which, with a significantly higher budget than is available in the Pro category, wants to achieve ambitious plans for expanding audiences beyond the relevant professional audience or the audience whose allegiance you have already attracted.
For what
This amount is intended for ambitious artistic and substantive programming, with which you reach beyond the regular offerings and transcend your regular role in order to win the allegiance of a public extending beyond the professional visual arts audiences.
How much
The amount is €275,000 per year for four calendar years.
Only one Art Platform Broad grant will be awarded for the four years from 2023 to 2026.
Terms and conditions for Art Platform Broad grants
To apply, organizations must have an actively implemented policy vision that sets an example in regards to the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. You must be able to reflect upon the position of your art venue in relation to the codes, identify areas for improvement, set goals and describe how you will achieve and express those goals.
Applicant organizations do not only exhibit the work of artists, but regularly contribute to the development and production of new work.
Institutes for higher art education and organizations that are directly financed by government (via the Basisinfrastructuur, Rijkscultuurfondsen, or sector and umbrella institutes) may not apply.
At least 50% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of the organization.
An Art Platform Broad grant can only be awarded if the advisory committee advises to that effect.
In its assessment, the committee can consider whether the applicant has selected the correct category for their organization. Depending on that assessment, an application can be rejected or approved within a different category.
The committee may be asked to weigh the necessity of an application. If an applicant has already received support for a programme that is still ongoing, the committee will be requested to take that into critical consideration.
To help assess compliance with the codes, for the Pro and Broad grant categories, an external agency will provide an analysis of the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. This agency will provide preliminary advice based on that analysis. For applications for Pro and Broad grants, the preliminary advisories of the external agency will be used in assessing the three fair practice codes.
Because the available funds are limited, it is unfortunately not always possible to honour all positive advisories. If this is the case, the Board of Directors of the Mondriaan Fund asks the committee to compare the approved applications and indicate which have greater priority. In doing so, they will weigh the pluriformity of the entire group of art venues being awarded support in order to ensure a representative and multifaceted range of contemporary visual arts in the Netherlands. This means that it can happen that an application is approved, but the organization unfortunately does not receive a grant.
All assessments and advisory texts will be published online following the decisions.
Mondriaan Fund staff check 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 Art Platform Broad grant.
A description of the mission, vision and profile of the organization, including the individuals involved and a reflection on the activities developed over the last three years, with an emphasis on innovative developments at both the artistic and organizational levels.
A programming plan with the following elements:
a well-considered artistic and substantively broad programming of high production quality standards.
A presentation plan with a description of how, along with the usual or regular audiences, new and broader audiences will be reached, with account taken of how the experience around the programming suits the target groups that are currently not or are insufficiently involved with the arts sector.
A clear strategy explaining how the extra €100,000 per year, compared to the Pro category, will be employed to achieve significant audience expansion beyond the regular reach of the art platform.
A clear and convincing vision of marketing communications and audience participation, as well as a convincing financial investment aimed at public information and audience expansion, which among other things is reflected in an ambitious plan for distinctive audience-friendly facilities.
A description of the local and regional importance of your organization and the stimulating role it has for the existing cultural infrastructure. Also, to what degree are you distinctive in comparison to other cultural institutes in your region? Include here the local and/or regional collaborations and involvement or support, financial or otherwise, from third parties.
The coherence between the substantive artistic principles of the art venue and the way in which these are expressed in your activities. *
The following aspects are included here:
Which goals are expressed in the mission and can it be presumed that these goals will be reached?
To what degree does the art venue have a convincing artistic vision on topical subjects and discourse in visual arts and/or other areas?
Is the translation of the artistic vision sufficiently visible in the activities and programming of the past two years?
How are the activities of the recent past valued by third parties?
Is the programming plan a distinctive one, or is it exceptional for other reasons, and what possibilities does the plan offer for the substantive development of the initiative? This includes the following aspects:
Does the programming plan convincingly match the role, position and development of the art venue? Does the programming plan set an example, distinguish itself, or is it exceptional for some other reason?
How is the quality of the artists and curators involved assessed? Does the selection sufficiently match the programming plan?
Is the plan feasible and is there sufficient confidence that the envisioned artistic and substantive programme can be realized?
Innovative qualities. These concern the following aspects:
Does the programming reflect an exemplary connection with current social developments?
Can the programming plan be characterized as innovative for the national and international art world?
In what way does your art venue project itself to the outside world and try to reach and generate allegiance among a new and broader public, in addition to professionally related audiences, including by way of inviting, audience-friendly facilities?* This involves the following aspects:
Does the institute reflect a welcoming, hospitable approach and provide the appropriate public facilities?
Will the art venue invest the extra €100,000 per year in a convincing strategy that leads to significant audience expansion? Does reaching a public that is not yet indoctrinated in the visual arts constitute a sufficient part of the strategy?
Does the plan describe target groups that are suited to these activities? Does the art venue have sufficient insight into these target groups and their requirements?
Does the communications strategy in the plan generate confidence that the envisioned target groups will be reached?
What is the stimulating role of your art venue for the existing cultural infrastructure and what alliances and commitments will the platform engage in order to realize the activities, exchange knowledge and information, and work collaboratively? The following aspects are pertinent here:
Does the institute actively add to the local and/or regional cultural context and infrastructure?
To what degree does the applicant organization distinguish itself from other institutes that present cultural programmes in the same region?
Does the art venue engage in convincing alliances and collaborations?
Is there local and/or regional support or involvement, financial or otherwise?
Does the applying institute have a professional business structure and qualitatively strong organization? Consider here the following aspects:
Has there been a healthy financial and business structure to date?
Is the budget realistic and is it appropriate to the plan?
Does the budget provide sufficient confidence in a healthy financial business structure for the future?
Is the organization designed and facilitated in such a way that one can assume that a significant and demonstrable expansion of its audience can be achieved in the next four years?
The Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion: does your art platform have an extensive policy that sets an example in terms of these codes? Does the venue have a vision in regards to the codes, with concrete objectives, and does it implement and express this vision?
*Please note that these criteria are weighted more in the decision-making process, as they are the policy focus points within the grant.
Art Platform Broad Application Checklist
Carefully run through the following list before you begin filling in your application. In order to process your application, the Mondriaan Fund needs information, both in the form of information filled in on the application form and PDF documents that need to be uploaded. Below is a checklist that follows the same order as the application form.
Tip: collect all your information before you start filling out the online application form. Your attachments should be uploaded as PDFs. Important: Wherever a maximum number of pages is given, do not exceed that number of pages! Additional pages will be disregarded.
A recent, up-to-date proof of registration (uittreksel) with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce / Kamer van Koophandel, no more than one year old.
Bank details If your application is approved, we need a bank account number in order to transfer funds. If your account number is not already known to the Mondriaan Fund, or if it has been changed, please upload a recent bank statement that clearly shows the account holder’s name and IBAN.
Annual Accounts You need to upload your annual accounts for 2021, approved and signed by an accountant. If these are not yet available for 2021, you can instead submit your annual accounts for 2020. The annual accounts show your organization’s financial situation.
Profile of your art venue (no more than three pages) Give a brief description of the mission, vision and profile of your organization and the individuals involved, as well as a reflection on the activities developed over the last three years, with an emphasis on innovative developments at both the artistic and organizational levels. Mention here the professional qualities of your financial and business structure and audience recruitment. You can also mention here what the effects have been of the COVID-19 measures and how your organization has responded to them.
Appendix with reviews and articles from the past 3 years about the art stage (max. 5 articles merged into one PDF of max. 5 pages. URLs to web pages are not allowed).
Programming Plan (no more than 25 pages, including images if desired) In the appropriate space on the application, provide a short summary of the programme, with a relevant selection of the artists and activities involved. (This summary must be no more than 1375 characters long.)
The programming plan with the following segments:
A well-considered artistic, substantive and broad programme, with high production quality standards, and distinctive in character.
The artists, curators and collaborating partners involved.
The expected numbers of participants and visitors (distinguish between physical visitors and online participants of digital programmes).
A presentation plan which explains how the art venue will succeed in using the additional €100,000 per year in order to extend beyond the regular visual arts offerings in order to attract and involve audiences that are currently not or are insufficiently reached in the arts venues circuit.
A clear vision of marketing communications and public participation and a convincing financial investment devoted to public information and audience expansion, in part achieved by inviting, audience-friendly facilities.
A description of the local, regional and, where relevant, also the national and/or international importance of the organization and the stimulating role it plays for the existing cultural infrastructure. Explain the degree to which you are distinctive from other cultural institutes in your region. Include here also the local and/or regional collaborations and support from third parties, financial or otherwise.
Optional: relevant visual documentation.
All of this should be compiled and uploaded in a single PDF document.
Applying the fair practice codes (no more than three pages) Applicant organizations must have an actively implemented policy vision that sets an example in regards to the Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code for Culture and the Code for Diversity & Inclusion. You must be able to reflect on the position of your organization in terms of the codes, mention points for improvement, set goals and describe how you will achieve and implement those goals. Compliance with the fair practice codes automatically means that your organization follows the guidelines for honoraria for artists.
Specified budget and financial coverage plan An Art Platform Broad grant entails an amount of €275,000 per year for the years 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026. Applicants must upload a PDF version of your specified budget, per annum, including a financial coverage plan. The budget includes an overview of income and expenses for each calendar year. At least 50% of the budget must be covered by financial contributions from third parties, such as other government organizations, private funds and/or your own earnings for the structural operation of your organization. Do not forget to include the total amount that you are budgeting for artists’ honoraria.
Letters of confirmation Collect the letters in which third parties have confirmed their promised contribution to the programme. Upload all of these letters of confirmation in a single PDF document.