Joyce Awards To Relaunch With $100,000 Unrestricted Artist Grants

The Joyce Foundation is reopening its Joyce Awards after a year-long pause, and the relaunch marks a significant change in how the Chicago-based program will support artists across the Great Lakes region. Beginning with the 2026 cohort, each of four selected artists will receive a $100,000 unrestricted grant, replacing the awards' former project-based model.

The new structure also adds a second layer of support: each winning artist will choose a Great Lakes–based nonprofit organization to receive a $40,000 grant. According to the foundation, that funding is intended to help“realize, expand, or deepen” the artist's work in the region.

The awards will now operate in two alternating cycles. Artists based in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin will be eligible in even-numbered years, starting in 2026. Artists based in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio will be eligible in odd-numbered years, beginning in 2027.

Applications for the 2026 cohort are open now through May 4, and artists may self-nominate. The foundation will also continue to accept peer nominations, with both pools reviewed together. The 2026 recipients will be announced in November.

Eligibility remains tied to place and practice. Artists must be based in one of the six Great Lakes states and address racial equity through collaborative community engagement. The program is open to artists working in visual art, performing arts, film and media, multimedia, literary arts, and other traditional, interdisciplinary, or community-based cultural practices.

The relaunch follows a period of reflection for the Joyce Foundation, which launched the awards in 2004. In their first 20 years, the Joyce Awards supported more than 90 new works with more than $5 million in funding. Foundation leaders said the pause offered a chance to reassess what artists need most now, especially in a moment when flexible support can shape whether ambitious work reaches the public at all.

The foundation is also partnering with United States Artists to administer the funds, underscoring the program's shift toward direct support. For the Joyce Awards, the change is not only financial. It signals a broader view of artistic practice as something sustained by trust, community infrastructure, and room to take risks.

MENAFN14042026005694012507ID1110983719