INVESTING IN THE ARTS. Financial support for the arts has perhaps always been trickier to garner than other fields – especially in Wisconsin. According to the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) 2025 data, Wisconsin ranks 48th in the country in terms of state funding for the arts per capita. (Volume One's photos from 2025 Banbury Art Crawl)

Create Wisconsin is offering artists and creatives across the state a gift – or, at least, the opportunity to receive a gift – before 2025 officially wraps up. The statewide cultural development organization announced it is now accepting applications for its new grant program in partnership with the Ruth Foundation for the Arts.

The new grant program will award 16 artists annually over its three-year period, awarding a new set of artists each year. Each awardee will receive $7,500 toward their proposed project.

According to a recent media release, the grant – succinctly entitled the Create Wisconsin Statewide Artist Grant Program – is open to artists aged 21 and older residing in any of Wisconsin's 72 counties. Eligible applicants include visual and performing artists with “demonstrated creativity ability and professional achievement.”

The application portal is open as of Dec. 17 and will close at 11:59pm (CT) on Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. The first round of awardees will be announced by March 31, 2026.

There are a myriad of goals the program seeks to achieve throughout its three-year life cycle. As part of its effort to invest in the development of individual creatives, the grant program aims to benefit a wide range of artists and mediums. For example, up to 35% of award funding must go to individuals who reside in counties with populations of less than 55,000 (roughly 46 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties fulfill that guideline); both individual and community-based projects will be considered.

“We will keep in touch with the grantees and showcase them and their work as much as we can over the course of the next three years,” Create Wisconsin Program Administrator Hailey Fuller said.

The panel of jurors which will determine grantees will be announced in the new year, Fuller added. Organizations or agencies will not be considered for this grant program, as it is intended to support individual creatives. Full eligibility and submission guidelines can be found online.

Learn more about Create Wisconsin online at www.createwisconsin.org. The Create Wisconsin Statewide Artist Grant Program will only accept applications through its online portal, open now through Feb. 16, 2026.