Applicants for grants in the area of art and culture

In 2025, art and culture grants will be awarded for art and artistic projects dealing with climate change, the environmental crisis, the state of Finnish nature and nature conservation.

The grants will be awarded to projects that will result in, for example, artwork, a presentation or an exhibition.

In addition to work processes, grants can be awarded, for example, for the purpose of organising an exhibition in Finland or abroad, production costs of a presentation, acquisition costs for artwork materials and travel expenses directly related to the implementation of the project.

The grants are intended to be used for expenses incurred or work taking place after the grant has been awarded.

In 2025, grants will only be awarded to private individuals.

Finnish nationals and persons residing or working in Finland are eligible to apply for a grant. The applicant may also be a Finnish national working abroad, if the application has a clear, strong connection to Finland. The applicant must have a Finnish personal ID number, a Finnish bank account and online banking codes or a mobile certificate.

The motivation to apply for a grant may come from the applicant themselves or may be driven by an initiative of the Foundation. The Foundation particularly welcomes applications from young artists or those looking to become artists. Instead of focusing on art degrees, the Foundation primaly emphasises entrepreneurship, goal-oriented work and vision.

The assessment of applications will take into consideration any art previously done by the applicant and their possibilities to implement their vision.

The assessment of applications will focus on the following elements:

• Vision and inventiveness of work
• A goal-oriented approach and feasible implementation plan
• The social impact of the project, as well as a responsible and environmentally sustainable implementation

 

Grant applications should include the following:

• A summary that states the core content and objectives of the application. The length of the summary shall not exceed 500 characters (including spaces).
• A work plan that presents the artistic objectives, content and implementation timetable of the artistic work or project. The plan should also explain why the grant is necessary and how it would facilitate the project in question. The length of the work plan may be no more than 5,000 characters (including spaces).
• A financial plan detailing how the overall costs of the project are intended to be covered.
• Information on other possible grants awarded or grant applications submitted for the same project. If the need for funding changes after the end of the application period because, for example, the applicant has received another grant, the Foundation must be informed of this as soon as possible.
• 3–5 photos of previous artistic work or, alternatively, a link to virtual material.
• The applicant’s CV, which is a maximum length of 2,500 characters (including spaces).

 

The grant application shall be submitted in Finnish, Swedish or English using the electronic application system. The application shall be signed electronically using online banking codes or a mobile certificate.

The Foundation can, if necessary, request additional information from the applicant before making its final decision. The Foundation may use external anonymous experts in the assessment of applications. The final grant decisions will be made by the Board of the Sakari Alhopuro Foundation and will not be publicly justified.

Grants awarded in 2025 will be a total of EUR 10,000.

The applicant may also be a Finnish national working abroad, if the application has a clear, strong connection to Finland.

The applicant must have a Finnish personal ID number, a Finnish bank account and online banking codes or a mobile certificate.

The names of the grant recipients, as well as the amount of the grant and art form in question, will be published on the Foundation’s website by the end of May. Grant applicants will be notified of the decision by e-mail.

In order to receive a grant, the applicant must commit to the grant terms and conditions stipulated by the Sakari Alhopuro Foundation. The terms and conditions require that the grant recipient:

• reports, upon request, on the use of the grant and the progress of the project throughout the project period
• compiles, at the end of the project, a final report for the Sakari Alhopuro Foundation that specifies the type of work of art, presentation or exhibition the grant has facilitated. The report must be given no later than September of the year following the grant decision.
• mentions the Sakari Alhopuro Foundation when communicating about the project in both traditional media and social media. When posting on social media, the applicant commits to using the hashtag #sakarialhopuronsaatio or #sakarialhopurofoundation.

 

An art and culture grant awarded by the Sakari Alhopuro Foundation must be used within two years of its receipt. 

The grant must be used for the purpose for which it was awarded. Grants are not awarded retroactively to cover expenses incurred before the date on which the grant was awarded.