ARTIST RESOURCES
Resources & Opportunities for artists from throughout the contemporary art field.
Transformer is committed to connecting artists with information on resources and opportunities to support them.
On a rolling basis, we share helpful artist listings and links from colleagues throughout the contemporary art field. Please check back on our website & Instagram regularly for these updates.
List Updated: January 6, 2026
SUBMISSIONS
FLATFILE
Along with specific exhibition proposals, artists may submit samples of their work to be considered for inclusion in our FlatFile program - a growing collection of works on paper in a variety of two-dimensional mediums including photography, painting, drawing, and printmaking, approximately 16" x 20" in size and smaller, & priced under $500.
To submit to the FlatFile, please email your artist bio, website, and a small selection of images and corresponding artwork details to submissions@transformerdc.org. Artwork details to include for each piece: title, year made, medium, dimensions, price. Please format artwork file names as follows: LastName_ArtworkTitle.
EXHIBITIONS
With a unique store-front exhibition space at 1404 P Street, NW, Transformer’s Exhibition Series, consisting of six to seven exhibitions per season, encourages artists to be site-responsive, often producing a deeper and more thoughtful exploration of ideas and solutions to the presentation of their work. Exhibitions run five to six weeks and are organized by Transformer staff in conjunction with participating artists, guest curators, and advisors.
Artists are never charged fees for participating in Transformer’s exhibition series nor to have their work considered. We are not a commercial gallery, we do not offer artist representation, and only offer ONE solo exhibition per year - for which we do not accept applications.
To submit an exhibition proposal: please email a copy of your artist bio, CV, and proposal to submissions@transformerdc.org for consideration.
Include photos (proposed or representative pieces), an artist statement, and as much detail as possible in the proposal; What do you hope people will take away from your exhibition? Why is Transformer a good fit to exhibit your artwork?
If we have an opportunity for you, you will be contacted in 1-2 weeks. In the meantime, check out our artist resources page for additional local and national opportunities, and our upcoming events calendar for free and public Transformer programs.
Artist Resources
GLEAM | 2026 Request for Proposals
Olbrich Botanical Gardens invites proposals for large-scale, light-based art for GLEAM, Art in a New Light, a public art exhibition situated within a 16-acre Midwest landscape or 10,000 sq ft tropical conservatory. The 2026 GLEAM exhibit will focus on light-based art concepts that present a captivating environment, offer creative play experience, and bring to light creatures of all shapes and sizes, real and imaginative. GLEAM will be open for public viewing from August 29 - October 24, 2026.
Deadline: January 7, 2026
Each year, the Prince Claus Fund offers a Seed Award to 100 emerging artists working in contexts where cultural expression is under pressure. The Seed Award provides recipients with the space and support to deepen their artistic interests and inquiries and amplify their practice — helping spark a new generation of changemakers.
Deadline: January 8, 2026
Celebrating its twentieth year, the Aperture Portfolio Prize is an annual international competition that spotlights new talent in contemporary photography. When choosing the first-prize winner and short list, our judges look for innovative bodies of work that have not been widely seen in major publications or exhibition venues. The Aperture Portfolio Prize is open exclusively to Aperture magazine print subscribers.
Deadline: January 9, 2026
Decay, guest curated by Izzy Dunn
The Vestibule invites submissions of new or completed work by single artists or small collectives for Decay, an exhibition exploring how we navigate and engage with the inevitable entropy of our world, showing from April 4th – 25th.
Deadline: January 10, 2026
Virginia A. Groot Foundation Sculpture Grant
Grants for sculptors or ceramic sculptors – three levels ($60k/$30k/$20k). (ArtDeadline) Application Fee: $7
Deadline: January 10, 206
Arrowmont Artist-in-Residence | Gatlinburg, Tennessee
For over 30 years Arrowmont has welcomed Artists-in-Residence (AIRs) to campus for an 11-month, self-directed residency. This unique program provides 5 early-career artists the time, space and support needed to create new work, while actively participating in our robust community of artists, students and staff. Application fee $25.00
Deadline: January 11, 2026
Call for Artists - Capital Hilton | La Galerie on K
Capital Hilton is looking for their next featured artist for its on-property art exhibition space, La Galerie on K. The gallery is a free-entry, open 24/7 space, and has five areas for hanging prints, frames, or canvases, two glass enclosures for displaying non-hanging pieces, and easels for any wall space overflow. This would be for a springtime feature, running from mid-February to the end of April - primarily focused on the iconic cherry blossoms or other local springtime blooms.
Deadline: January 12, 2026
Good Hart Artist Residency | Harbor Springs, Michigan
The Good Hart Artist Residency offers 10-21 day residency stays to visual artists, writers, and composers at any stage of their career. Each artist is housed in a private residence with a detached studio and provided with a $500.00 stipend, a kitchen stocked with basic foods, a few home-cooked meals from local hosts, and a quiet setting along the shores of Lake Michigan. Tucked into the woods along the “Tunnel of Trees,” a Scenic Heritage Route, residents can walk into the village of Good Hart, enjoy Lake Michigan and the nearby sand dunes, and explore Northern Michigan’s inland lakes and wetlands. The Good Hart Artist Residency generally hosts one resident at a time, offering each artist the time, space, and quiet to focus and create. Application fee of $35.
Deadline: January 13, 2026
The Watermill Center’s 2027 Artist Residency Program
This residency is open to international artists 21+ years of age. All disciplines accepted including, but not limited to: visual arts, media/new genre, performance, design/architecture, film/video, literature, interdisciplinary arts, academic research, social practice, and music composition. Solo artists or collaborative groups (such as theatre or dance companies) are welcome to apply. Application Fee: $12
Deadline: January 14, 2026
The Urban Video Project (UVP) Residential Commission is an opportunity for media artists to come to Syracuse for a month-long residency at Light Work to make new film/video/electronic work for public exhibition at our unique architectural projection site on the facade of the Everson Museum. Application Fee: $10
Deadline: January 26, 2026
My First Arquetopia Residency | Puebla, Mexico
Arquetopia’s My First Arquetopia Residency supports emerging artists ages 20–25 in defining or reframing their creative foundations through contextual immersion and guided observation. Held in Puebla, Mexico between March and July, participants engage closely with local museum collections, deepen critical reflection through weekly meetings, and take part in field visits that situate artistic practice within wider social, historical, and material contexts.
Deadline: Rolling
Anderson Ranch Arts Center Residency | Snowmass Village, CO
Anderson Ranch’s Artists-in-Residence Program fosters creative, intellectual and professional growth for emerging and established visual artists. Residents have access to world-class facilities and studio time, free from everyday pressures. Residents can pursue interdisciplinary projects among a community of working artists, and gain feedback from prominent Visiting Artists and Critics. $30 application fee applies.
Deadline: Rolling
Pollock-Krasner Foundation grants
The Foundation welcomes applications from visual artists who are painters, sculptors, and artists who work on paper, including printmakers. Grants are intended for a one-year period of time. The Foundation will review expenditures relating to an artist’s professional work and personal expenses, and amounts range up to $50,000. Artists must be actively exhibiting their current work in professional artistic venues, such as gallery and museum spaces.
Deadline: Rolling
Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grants
Emergency Grants is the only active, multidisciplinary program that offers immediate, project-based assistance of this kind to artists living and working anywhere in the United States, for projects occurring in the U.S. and abroad. Grants range from $500 to $3,000, and the average grant is $2,300.
Deadline: Rolling
Indigo Arts Alliance mentorship residency | Portland, ME
Indigo Arts Alliance fosters mentorship by pairing two artists together during a residency period of 1-2 months to cultivate rich conversation, collaboration, and exchange experiences, knowledge, art industry information and technical skills. Housing, stipend, and 24-hour access to community studio provided. For Black and Brown artists.
Deadline: Rolling
Alterwork Residency | Long Island City, NY
This residency allows emerging contemporary artists time and space to create new work exploring their practice. The residency culminates in a solo closing reception that is promoted across an extensive network. Proposals should have a contemporary art focus showing experimentation and career reach for the artist. The program is especially interested in projects that involve conceptual art, practice or theory, or involve the public in their creative process.
Deadline: Rolling
ART14 Residency | Patton, Pennsylvania
During their stay, artists’ objectives are self-prescribed. The program welcomes all types of artists, writers, musicians, etc. of all skill levels, welcomes creators to explore new media and techniques, and encourages collaboration but does not require it. Residents are encouraged to explore and engage with the local community.
Deadline: Rolling
The Foundation welcomes applications from visual artists who are painters, sculptors, and artists who work on paper, including printmakers. Grants are intended for a one-year period of time. The Foundation will review expenditures relating to an artist’s professional work and personal expenses, and amounts range up to $50,000. Artists must be actively exhibiting their current work in professional artistic venues, such as gallery and museum spaces.
Deadline: Rolling
DC Arts Center Call for Curators | Washington DC*
Apply to curate and exhibition at the DC Arts Center, send your resume and cover letter/artist statement to info@dcartscenter.org
Deadline: Rolling basis, apply now!
Adolph & Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant
The Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant program provides interim financial assistance to qualified painters, printmakers, and sculptors whose needs are the result of an unforeseen, catastrophic incident.
The maximum amount of this grant is $15,000; an award of $5,000 is typical.
Deadline: Rolling
DC Arts Center Open Call For Artists | Washington DC*
The DC Arts Center accepts applications to exhibit in their Main and Nano Galleries on a rolling basis.
Deadline: Rolling
Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grants
Emergency Grants is the only active, multi-disciplinary program that offers immediate, project-based assistance of this kind to artists living and working anywhere in the United States, for projects occurring in the U.S. and abroad. Grants range in amount from $500 to $3,000, and the average grant is $1,900.
Deadline: Rolling
The Awesome Foundation is a global community advancing the interest of awesome in the universe, $1000 at a time. Each fully autonomous chapter supports projects through micro-grants, usually given out monthly. Projects include initiatives in a wide range of areas including arts, technology, community development, and more. Many awesome projects are novel or experimental, and evoke surprise and delight.
Deadline: Rolling
Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund
The Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund provides support to creators during times of extraordinary hardship. Current Fund efforts are focused on supporting creators who have been directly impacted by the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. If selected, you will receive $10,000 from the Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund.
Deadline: Rolling
Awesome Foundation on the Water Grant
This grant awards $1,000 per month to a water-focused project that brings creativity, culture, and inclusion to the water or provides a new way of thinking about the water. Applicants can be based anywhere in the world.
Deadline: Rolling
Creative Capital Artist Lab is a new online professional development curriculum designed to help artists build thriving practices at any career stage and in any discipline. Free for individual use, courses are created by art professionals, industry experts, and fellow artists who share vital concepts, skills, and tools to help grow artists’ careers—including courses on crafting artist statements, grant proposals, managing multiple income streams, and more.
Deadline: Rolling
Artist Communities Alliance Job Postings
ACA is hiring for a wide variety of positions. Apply ASAP!