Midwest Award for Artists with Disabilities
Midwest Award for Artists with Disabilities supports disabled Midwestern visual artists with unrestricted funding to encourage future work, advance artistic careers, and promote accessibility in the arts.
Funder: Arts Midwest
Due Dates: July 10, 2025 (2025 application deadline) | December 8, 2026, noon Central Time (2026 application deadline) | December 1, 2026 (Accessibility requests)
Funding Amounts: $3,000 unrestricted awards; nine artists annually, one per state in the Arts Midwest region
Summary: Unrestricted awards recognize disabled Midwestern visual artists, encourage their future work, and support accessibility in the arts.
Key Information: Applicants must be individual, mid-career 2D or 3D visual artists with 5–15 years of career development.
Description
Arts Midwest’s Midwest Award for Artists with Disabilities celebrates disabled visual artists across its nine-state region and the Native Nations and communities sharing that geography. The award recognizes artists’ efforts, encourages their future work, and advocates for the arts as viable employment for disabled people. It supports 2D and 3D visual art practices through unrestricted funding rather than project-specific grants.
Established in 2022 in honor of Minnesota visual artist, teacher, and arts-access advocate James Edward Scherbarth, the award reflects his belief that creativity lives in everyone. Arts Midwest uses the Social Model of Disability, recognizing that environmental and societal barriers disable people. Each year, nine recipients receive funding, and their submitted work is featured on Arts Midwest’s website and social media.
