art.works.fra is a scholarship program that enables young artists to work in Frankfurt after graduating from art school.
art.works.fra is a scholarship program for young art school graduates who want to stay in Frankfurt (or return there) for the first years of their artistic career. The program offers financial support for renting a suitable studio. Graduates of recognized German and international art colleges in the first three years after graduation are eligible to apply.
Two-year scholarship for up to 50 % of the warm rent for a Frankfurt studio.
The two-year scholarship covers (up to a maximum of € 350 per month) 50% of the warm rent for a studio in which the scholarship holder wishes to work for at least two years.
How many scholarships will be awarded?
art.works.fra started in 2021 with six scholarships to celebrate its launch.
Starting in 2022 and going forward, a minimum of three scholarships will be awarded each year, possibly more depending on how much support we receive from others.
The hard part is that the artists have to find the studio themselves.
The scholarship holders have to find a suitable studio themselves, which has to be in or around Frankfurt.
The timetable? As of now.
Applicants are asked to apply via the website until March 31st, 2022 and upload their portfolio and CV. All applications will be reviewed shortly thereafter by a an expert jury whose members come from the arts sector.
The selected candidates are expected to be announced by the end of April 2022.
art.works.fra aims to support young artists to stay in Frankfurt or to come (back) there after graduation and to be able to concentrate on their work.
It is a joint project of individual Frankfurt residents and foundations that find it important to enable young artists to start their careers in or around Frankfurt and to keep the cultural scene alive and relevant through this rejuvenation.
art.works.fra is organized and supported by the non-profit Puhl Foundation, which was founded in 2015 by Oliver and Alix Puhl from Frankfurt with the aim of supporting and promoting young people (including artists) and motivating other citizens to do the same.
Jury-based selection process.
Scholarships are awarded on the basis of perceived artistic potential.
The jury members are:
Tamara Grcic (b. 1964, Munich)
1983-86 Studies in Art History, University of Vienna
1986-88 Studies in Cultural Anthropology, Goethe University, Frankfurt
1988-93 Studies at the Städelschule, University of Fine Arts, Frankfurt.
Since 2014 Professor of Sculpture, Mainz School of Art
Since 1992 numerous solo and group exhibitions at home and abroad
Lives and works in Frankfurt
tamaragrcic.com
Photo: Bernd Kammerer
Raoul Klooker (born 1990, Heidelberg)
2011-16 Studies in Art History, Free University of Berlin
2016-18 MA Curator of Contemporary Art, Royal College of Art, London.
2017-18, Co-director of clearview.ltd, London
2019-2021 Assistant curator, Kunstverein Braunschweig, Germany
Since 2021, co-director at the non-profit art association Octo, Marseille
Lives and works in Marseille and Berlin
Photo: private
Susanne Pfeffer (born 1973, Hagen)
1994-2000 Study of Art History, Humboldt University Berlin
2004-06 Artistic director of the Künstlerhaus Bremen
2007-12 Chief curator at KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin
2013-17 Director of the Fridericianum, Kassel
Since 2018 Director of the MMK, Museum of Modern Art, Frankfurt
Since 2019 Honorary professor at the Department of Art, Hochschule für Gestaltung, Offenbach
Lives and works in Frankfurt
www.mmk.art
Photo: Paul Englert
If necessary, the jury will call in other experts to assess the artistic potential of the applicants.
If you would like to support art.works.fra, please contact us and send us an email to art.works.fra@puhl.foundation. We would be happy to hear from you.
If you are interested in awarding a scholarship, please contact us and send us an email to art.works.fra@puhl.foundation. We would be happy to hear from you.
If you own studio space and would like to make it available as part of the program (for a minimum term of two years), we would be happy to hear from you. Please let us know the details (size of the space, address or approximate location, desired rent, term) by writing an email to art.works.fra@puhl.foundation.
art.works.fra started in 2021 with six scholarships to celebrate its launch.
Starting in 2022 and going forward, a minimum of three scholarships will be awarded each year.
The two-year scholarship covers 50% of the warm rent for a studio in which the scholarship holder wishes to work up to a maximum of 350 € per month.
Incidental costs (gas, electricity, WLAN, etc.) are also 50% covered by the stipend up to the maximum amount of 350 € per month.
Potential future increases of rent or incidental costs during the term of the stipend by the landlord are not covered by the stipend.
The stipend cannot be used for existing tenancy agreements or for the extension of contracts for spaces already used by the artist. Also, it cannot be used to further subsidize an already subsidized studio space. And finally, the studio may not be used for residential purposes.
Yes, the minimum rental period is two years, although the contract can of course also be valid for a longer period. However, the financial support under the program only runs for 24 months, from the month in which the lease begins.
No. We understand that unforeseen events or situations may require a change of plans. That’s life. We do not ask scholarship holders to repay the support they previously received under the program if they inform us of such a change.
Nevertheless, we naturally want applicants to think very carefully about whether they want to work in Frankfurt for at least two years. It would be unfortunate if there was no grant available for artists who wanted to stay longer because it was given to someone who would soon be leaving Frankfurt again.
At the moment, art.works.fra focuses on Frankfurt and the surrounding area. It is the city we love and where we want to help young artists start their careers despite the high cost of living and working.
Aspiring graduates can apply in the year they graduate. A scholarship awarded before graduation is linked to successful completion.
Graduates of recognized art colleges worldwide can apply for the scholarship within 36 months of graduation. It doesn’t matter where they graduated from.
Graduates of recognized art schools worldwide who wish to work in Frankfurt can apply for the scholarship regardless of their citizenship. It is the applicant’s responsibility to obtain any residence and work permits that may be required.
There is no age limit. For the purposes of the program, “young” artists are graduates of an accredited art school in the first 36 months after graduation, regardless of age.
Absolutely. If you have graduated from a recognized art college, would like to work in Frankfurt and need a studio, you can apply. It doesn’t matter whether your focus is on the visual or performing arts.
If necessary, the jury calls in other experts to assess the artistic potential of the applicants.
Yes, the scholarship comes with the option of taking out an interest-free loan that is repaid quarterly over the term of the scholarship.
This also means that the rent deposit is due to the scholarship holders at the end of the scholarship.
It is the responsibility of the scholarship holders to find a suitable studio.
We offer partial financing of the basic rent and a loan for the rent deposit.
art.works.fra is happy to explain the scholarship to interested landlords.
In addition, we want to publicize the program and the need for affordable studio space to landlords, the city of Frankfurt and other organizations.
Scholarship holders have six months to find a suitable studio, starting the month after they receive the grant. If the scholarship is awarded in June, for example, the scholarship holders have until the end of December to sign a rental contract and move into a studio.
Since the idea behind the scholarship is also to make additional working space available for artists, only new tenancy agreements can be subsidized. Existing tenancy agreements are excluded. Extensions of existing contracts for spaces that are already being used by the artist are also not eligible for funding.
Among other things, art.works.fra aims to open up additional working spaces for artists in and around Frankfurt. Double funding is therefore not possible.
Yes, the new rental of a studio space that you have not previously used is eligible for funding.
As long as both studios meet the other requirements, a move is possible and the grant can still be claimed. Any change in the basic rent upwards (or downwards) will be considered up to the maximum support of € 350 per month.
With regard to the rent deposit, the following applies: Once the first loan for the rent deposit has been repaid, another loan can be granted.
If you have an interest to stay informed about the program, please enter your email address