The First-Time Applicant Pool is available only to applicants who have never submitted a grant application to the Arts Council. If you have applied before, regardless of whether you were awarded the grant or not, you are no longer a first-time applicant.

Some examples include but are not limited to: fees and travel expenses to attend a class or conference, apprenticeship, hiring a consultant, software purchases, social media support, updating a website,  purchasing equipment, or even marketing materials for a specific development opportunity (such as a film festival). View our list of current grantees for some examples of recently funded Develop grants (note that all types of grants are included on this webpage).

Yes, we recognize that in certain cases materials or supplies can have a significant impact on an artist’s skills or career, even if they are “consumable” and will be used up quickly. However, you must be able to make a clear case for why those specific materials will have an impact for you in the long term. What will happen once those materials/supplies are gone? Will you then be at a new place in your artistic development? If so, it may be worthwhile to apply. If not, an application for those materials/supplies will likely not be very competitive compared to other applications. We know every artist needs access to materials and supplies, but since our grants are limited by our available budget, we want to ensure our grants have the most impact possible.

First, read the guidelines and attend the grants orientation (or watch the recording). Once you've done that, if you're still unsure, please feel free to reach out and ask! Email our team at grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.

We would like to learn more about your recent professional development (in the past two years) and how the activities/expenses you are seeking funding for are related to the professional development work you have engaged in most recently.

If you are planning to have an audience and / or participants, then you most likely are eligible to apply for a Create grant, which has a higher maximum award. If you're not planning to share your work publicly as part of the grant, then a Develop grant may be a better fit. However, certain activities can sometimes fit either type of grant. First, read the guidelines and attend the grants orientation (or watch the recording). Once you've done that, if you're still unsure, please feel free to reach out and ask! Email our team at grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.