Currently 17 active paid design grants, fellowships and residencies. Hand-curated and updated weekly. Almost every entry is funded; a few notable unpaid open calls and festival submissions are included as clearly flagged exceptions. Browse the list below, or use the interactive desk for filtering and shortlisting.
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Kick-start grant for architecture practitioners to develop early-stage projects. The grant period opens 6 May 2026 15:00 CEST and closes 13 May 2026 16:00 CEST. A maximum of 35 applications are considered per period; once the window closes all applications are ranked in random order via a draw system before processing begins. Round budget €167,000; maximum grant request €10,000.
The 10th edition of the LOEWE FOUNDATION Craft Prize is open for registration until 15 October 2026. Established in 2016, the prize rewards works combining technical excellence, artistic quality and innovation in craft. WHAT YOU GET: the winner receives EUR 50,000, and shortlisted works are shown in an exhibition in Europe in spring 2027. DISCIPLINES: textiles are explicitly listed among the eligible craft disciplines, alongside ceramics, woodwork, metalwork and other applied arts, which makes the prize a home for e-textile and material-innovation work with a craft dimension. ELIGIBILITY: entries must be original one-of-a-kind works made entirely or partly by hand, created within the last five years, and not previously awarded a prize; applicants must be professionals at least 18 years old, and individuals and collectives of all nationalities may apply. DEADLINE: registration closes 15 October 2026 at 23:59 CET.
Design Trust offers grants to individual designers, curators, collectives, and non-profit organisations for projects and activities relevant to various design disciplines, supporting work relevant to the context and content of Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area (the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao and the nine Guangdong municipalities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Zhaoqing). It supports innovative, thought-provoking investigations across design disciplines from graphics, media, and wearables to architecture and the built environment, including exhibitions, research projects, and creative installations that advocate the positive role of design in the region. THREE GRANTS: (1) SEED GRANT (HKD 50,000) fosters experimentation, testing, and sharing, awarded to individuals kick-starting a meaningful project with social, educational, economical, or environmental impact; supports emerging designers, young scholars, and projects in the pipeline needing additional resources, including research and prototypes focused on Hong Kong and Greater Bay Area issues to be showcased at international venues, symposia, or biennales. (2) FEATURE GRANT (capped at HKD 300,000, awarded annually upon special consideration) fosters cross-disciplinary projects on the Greater Bay Area with wide-reaching audiences, often sited at an exhibition or biennale of international standing, supporting exchange between a Hong Kong/China-based collective and an internationally renowned cultural institution. (3) IMPACT GRANT supports public-facing, community-based projects led by former Design Trust grant recipients, fellows, and mentees with a proven track record; considered case-by-case (contact grantapplication@designtrust.hk). ELIGIBILITY: individuals, collectives, and certified non-profit organisations either based in the Greater Bay Area or seeking support for design projects related to the region. Individuals or collectives who have completed two Feature Grants or three Seed Grants should apply for the Impact Grant instead. APPLICATION: two cycles annually, deadlines 20 April and 20 October (late submissions roll to the next cycle); apply at least 3 to 6 months before the project's commencement. Design Trust may provide full or partial funding on a case-by-case basis.
The Creative Industries Fund NL (Stimuleringsfonds) is recruiting one Netherlands-based designer, architect or spatial practitioner for a two-month residency in 2027 at Jatiwangi art Factory (JaF), an internationally recognised artistic collective based in a former roof tile factory in West Java, Indonesia. Jatiwangi's history is closely bound up with the colonial history of Indonesia: the Dutch government built large roof tile factories in the region in the early twentieth century, turning it into the most important centre of roof tile production in Southeast Asia. Now that this industry has largely disappeared, JaF develops new visions for the changing rural area with clay and community empowerment at their heart. The residency is part of Tahun Tanah, a recurring programme on the relationship between the people of Jatiwangi and the region's history of clay and terracotta civilisation; the 2027 theme is Elmu Ning Tanah (Learning from the Earth). As resident you explore with the local community what tanah (earth) means in this area, not only as a material for the terracotta industry but also as a carrier of history, memory and culture, and you help shape a future for the terracotta industry rooted in local knowledge, traditions and the needs of the community. ELIGIBILITY: you are an individual designer, architect or spatial practitioner; you are established in the Netherlands, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius or Sint Maarten (Kingdom of the Netherlands); you are registered in the business register of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KvK) or another business register within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; and you have had a professional practice in the creative industry for at least four years. NOT open to duos, collectives or cooperative ventures, nor to designers and makers who receive a grant during the work period under the Talent Development Grant Scheme, the Open Call Self-taught Designer or the Open Call Emerging Design Practices ABCSSS; accepting this open call means you cannot apply to those schemes and open calls in 2027. FUNDING: EUR 4,500 subsidy for the two-month residency; accommodation at JaF is a small private container house with two single beds and a bathroom/toilet. Assessment takes the form of a tender: an external advisory committee ranks proposals on the artistic quality of the work, the quality of the proposed project and the motivation in relation to the goals of the residency, and the highest-scoring proposals are awarded. Decision within eight weeks of the closing date. Submit via the Creative Industries Fund NL by 21 October 2026, 16:00 CEST.
The Creative Industries Fund NL (Stimuleringsfonds) is recruiting one Netherlands-based designer, architect, spatial practitioner or maker for a two-month residency in 2027 at Think Tanger, a multidisciplinary cultural platform dedicated to stimulating culture, creativity, innovation and exchange in Tangier, Morocco. Founded in 2016, Think Tanger unites artists, designers, researchers, entrepreneurs and local communities to explore the urban and cultural dynamics of a city in transformation and to promote understanding and dialogue, working through alternative education, creative entrepreneurship, art production and participatory research. The residency was set up with the Fund to stimulate crossovers and experiments, initiate exchanges and learn from other people's perspectives, knowledge and ideas. It offers the opportunity to carry out research, expand your network and develop new work with a focus on design, urbanism and socio-spatial dynamics, creatively researching existing presuppositions and social issues in Tangier's unique urban context. ELIGIBILITY: you are an individual designer, architect, spatial practitioner or maker; you are established in the Netherlands, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius or Sint Maarten (Kingdom of the Netherlands); you are registered in the business register of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KvK) or another business register within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; and you have had a professional practice in the creative industry for at least two years (note: a lower bar than the four years required by the Fund's other 2027 residencies). NOT open to duos, collectives or cooperative ventures, nor to designers and makers who receive a grant during the work period under the Talent Development Grant Scheme, the Open Call Self-taught Designer or the Open Call Emerging Design Practices ABCSSS; accepting this open call means you cannot apply to those schemes and open calls in 2027. FUNDING: EUR 5,500 subsidy for the two-month residency. Assessment takes the form of a tender: an external advisory committee ranks proposals on the artistic quality of the work, the quality of the proposed project and the motivation in relation to the goals of the residency, and the highest-scoring proposal is awarded. Decision within eight weeks of the closing date. Submit via the Creative Industries Fund NL by 21 October 2026, 16:00 CEST.
ONX Seeds 2026 is a four-month incubation and seed funding program run by Onassis ONX, the Onassis Foundation's platform for art and advanced technologies, hosted in Athens in a hybrid format under the theme Soft Circuits for Hard Times. It invites emerging artists, creative technologists, designers, game makers, performers, sound and visual artists and makers (individuals, groups and collectives, Greek and international) to develop early-stage prototypes that make the digital tangible: interactive objects, wearable or embedded systems, screen-based worlds, participatory environments, games, rituals, sonic works, moving images and hybrid analogue-digital forms. Proposals should be realistic in scope and result in an exhibitable prototype. SUPPORT: EUR 1,000 to 5,000 seed funding per project, weekly technical mentoring plus curatorial and business mentoring and online masterclasses, studio and equipment access at Onassis Ready for Athens-based teams (remote participation for everyone else), presentation at ONX Exhibition Athens (17 to 21 March 2027) with travel, accommodation and artwork transport covered for non-Athens participants, and connections to the ONX network in Athens, New York and beyond. HOW TO APPLY: via the Onassis open calls portal, with project summary, concept, visitor experience, technical requirements, production plan and bio, plus a mood board or project deck, portfolio and development budget as single PDFs; technical documentation and links to demos or repositories optional. DEADLINE: 26 October 2026.
ONX Seeds, Onassis ONX's early-stage prototype program, opens its 2026 call under the theme Soft Circuits for Hard Times: how do we touch the digital, reclaim the analog, preserve the human? It looks for projects that treat technology not as intangible infrastructure but as a material for experience, imagination and design, something that can be worn, touched, heard, inhabited, played and activated with others, moving between the analog and the digital, the material and the networked, the personal and the collective. The call is explicitly interested in work emerging from algorithmic micro-realities: self-organized communities, bodies mediated by interfaces, online and offline rituals, and digital pop cultures from manga, anime, K-pop, cosplay, video games and streetwear to digital idols, collectibles and memes, treated as living spaces of translation, connection and belonging. FORMATS: interactive installations, moving-image works, screen-based narratives, immersive experiences, new media performances, generative systems, playable worlds, speculative design objects, analog-digital objects and garments, digital games, apps, platforms and participatory environments; emphasis on projects that activate audiences as participants or users rather than viewers. WHO: emerging new media creators, creative technologists, speculative, fashion, product and game designers, developers, sound and visual artists, and interdisciplinary teams, Greek and international. WHAT: up to four prototypes receive seed funding of up to EUR 5,000, ONX Studio Athens access, mentorship, and technical, artistic and production support across a four-month program, with presentation at the ONX Exhibition in Athens in March 2027 and connections to ONX New York and the partner network. DEADLINE: 26 October 2026, via the online application form.
Travel voucher for Dutch-based professionals in design, architecture and/or digital culture who have been invited by a foreign party to give a presentation, lecture or workshop. To apply you must have submitted an application to the Fund in the past five years that was positively assessed (previous International Vouchers do not count). The inviting foreign party must cover a proportionate share of the costs. Covers hourly fees, travel and accommodation directly related to the activity. IMPORTANT TIMING RULE: applications are accepted from 5 months to a minimum of 7 weeks before the activity begins, and processing takes about 6 weeks. This lead time can rule out activities that fall shortly after a round opens. Round 2 (4 May to 22 June 2026) has closed. Round 3 runs 8 September 2026 15:00 CEST to 27 October 2026 16:00 CEST, with a budget of EUR 33,000; given the 7-week rule it effectively serves activities starting from late October 2026 onwards. IMPORTANT PREREQUISITE: you must already have had an application to the Fund positively assessed within the past five years, and a previous voucher does not satisfy this, so this is not a viable first approach to the Fund. The window runs 8 September 2026, 15:00 CEST to 27 October 2026, but closes early once 20 complete applications are received. Maximum one voucher per applicant per calendar year.
The Rome Prize supports roughly 30 artists and scholars a year with a residential fellowship at the American Academy in Rome; disciplines include Design and Visual Arts, where media and new-genre work is regularly funded. Fellows receive a USD 16,000 (half-term) or USD 30,000 (full-term) stipend plus housing, workspace and weekday meals on the Academy's Janiculum campus. ELIGIBILITY: US citizens for most categories; foreign nationals who have lived in the US for the three years preceding the deadline may apply in Environmental Arts and Humanities and certain postdoctoral categories. FEES: USD 50 (one category) or USD 60 (multiple) by 1 November 2026; a late window runs to 15 November at USD 80/90. DEADLINE: 1 November 2026.
Creatives for Our Future is the Swarovski Foundation's global grant programme for emerging creatives aged 21 to 30. Each selected participant receives a EUR 20,000 grant to support their creative project, alongside a mentorship and education programme. DISCIPLINES: fashion, design, art, architecture and engineering, which makes it a direct fit for fashion-tech, wearable and smart-textile projects. ELIGIBILITY: applicants must be aged 21 to 30 at the time of application and working on an initiative that uses creativity to accelerate awareness, technology, or solutions toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals; open worldwide. DEADLINE: 9 November 2026 at 11:59 pm BST.
Annual design commission for an ambitious, technically challenging large-scale public artwork or structure, built over summer 2027 by more than 100 young people working with Beam staff. The selected designer collaborates through bi-weekly remote planning meetings and may visit the build with travel reimbursed, making this genuinely remote-friendly for a physical commission. A strong fit for creative-technology and installation practices. AWARD: USD 5,000 to the proposer plus roughly USD 15,000 in fabrication budget. ELIGIBILITY: open worldwide, any age, individuals or teams. DEADLINE: 30 November 2026, 11:59pm EST.
make-a-thek, a Horizon Europe project (grant No. 101177660) coordinated by Fab Lab Barcelona at IAAC, connects creative spaces, public libraries and makers across Europe and beyond to share skills in circular fashion, traditional crafts and technology. Its open call runs two tracks. MOBILITY SCHEME (Track A): experienced practitioners (make-a-thek Experts) travel to an EU pilot location (Antwerp, Barcelona, Berlin, Budapest, Helsinki, Kranj, Milan, Opole, Reykjavik, Kyiv or Zaporizhzhia) to deliver a workshop, talk or hands-on training, with a EUR 1,000 stipend to support expenses. KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE PROGRAMME (Track B): learners, practitioners, makers, craftspeople and librarians travel to a 2-day in-person group meet-up (Cohort 1 in Barcelona between end of November and start of December 2026; Cohort 2 in Berlin in May 2027), then organise a local knowledge-sharing activity, with a EUR 850 stipend. Up to 12 participants per track annually. ELIGIBILITY: legal residents of EU member states, Horizon Europe associated countries, or the international pilot countries Ghana, South Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines and Chile; proposals must align with at least one focus area: Circular Fashion, Digitising Traditional Crafts, or Open Technologies. HOW TO APPLY: via the Typeform linked from the open call page. The early-bird round closed 15 September 2026; late applications are accepted until 1 December 2026, and the next call runs 1 February to 31 March 2027. DEADLINE: 1 December 2026.
The A4 Residency Art Center in Chengdu, the residency platform of the A4 Art Museum in Luxelakes Eco-City, opens its full-year 2028 recruitment. The interdisciplinary, open and collaborative platform fosters creative exchange among artists, scientists, writers and other professionals, with residents initiating participatory local activities that connect them with the city and community; A4 also organises group activities, sharing sessions, media promotion and exhibition opportunities. CYCLES: Spring 2028 (April to June) and Autumn 2028 (July to October), each approximately eight weeks. WHAT YOU GET (International Residency Fellowship, fully funded): private studio and accommodation, round-trip economy airfare or second-class train within a set budget, a production grant of RMB 10,000 per person or team for materials and production (excluding living expenses), community engagement and cultural experiences, media promotion and networking. ELIGIBILITY: multidisciplinary creators worldwide, including visual and performing artists, musicians, filmmakers, architects, curators, designers and creatives with interdisciplinary backgrounds bridging art, business and culture. APPLICATION: free; submit a photo, portfolio, CV and project proposal in English and Chinese to a4residency@a4am.cn, with the subject line specifying the programme tier and preferred cycle. DEADLINE: 31 December 2026 for the 2028 full-year recruitment. A parallel self-funded light track exists; this listing covers the funded fellowship only.
The Loeb Fellowship at Harvard Graduate School of Design is a year-long residential fellowship for accomplished mid-career practitioners shaping the built and natural environment: urban designers, public artists, architects, landscape architects, urban planners, developers, journalists, civic leaders, policymakers and community development leaders (past fellows have included a theater director, public artists and a documentary filmmaker). Fellows audit courses at the GSD and across Harvard (minimum one GSD course per semester), engage with the school community, and join a lifelong global alumni network. SUPPORT: a stipend of USD 57,500 for the academic year (taxable income), housing through 30 June for fellows and families of modest size coming from outside the Boston/Cambridge area, and a travel grant covering roughly one economy round trip home per semester. ELIGIBILITY: minimum 8 years of experience in the field (a typical class averages about 42 years of age); international candidates are encouraged to apply and must be eligible for a J-1 visa at selection; fellows must remain in residence in the Cambridge area while classes are in session. HOW TO APPLY: via SlideRoom with a resume, three recommendation letters (due 7 days after the deadline) and optional supplemental materials. No application fee. DEADLINE: 5 January 2027 at 11:59 PM ET for the 2027-28 class.
WOW is the world's largest wearable-art competition, culminating in a staged show in Wellington, New Zealand, with the 2027 awards night on 17 September 2027. The Kinetic and Avant-garde sections regularly attract technology-driven wearables, making this a natural target for e-textile, robotic and sensor-driven garment work. WHAT YOU GET: a prize pool exceeding NZD 200,000 across 25 awards; in the published 2026 schedule the Supreme WOW Award paid NZD 30,000, the runner-up NZD 15,000 and each section winner NZD 8,000 (the 2027 schedule was not yet posted at the time of listing). KEY DATES: the 2027 section themes are published and entries open in November 2026; international designers must lodge an intention to enter by 11 February 2027 and submit their entry by 25 February 2027 (New Zealand designers: 31 March and 14 April 2027); finished garments ship to New Zealand with a final delivery cut-off of 2 June 2027. ELIGIBILITY: designers worldwide, entering under their own names rather than as a business; teams of up to three allowed; entrants must be 18 or over. There is no entry fee.
The Bradford Textile Society, which has run its design competition since 1893, awards a collective GBP 17,000 across textile categories in the 2027 cycle. CATEGORIES: weave, knit, print, embroidery, combined textile processes, mixed media and new technologies, the last being a natural home for e-textile and smart-textile work; a new Coldharbour Mill Award for Tartan is added for 2027. ELIGIBILITY: all UK-based students and independent designers are welcome to enter. KEY DATES: entries open 22 March 2027 and close at midnight on 7 May 2027; the entry portal is currently closed between cycles, but the deadline and categories are published now. No entry fee is stated on the competition page.
Commissioned long-form writing at the intersection of design, technology, art and culture. Editorial themes: designing with AI as cultural and infrastructural system; responsive and adaptive materials; politics of platforms and creative-infrastructure governance; post-digital hybrid making; designing for collapse and continuity; creative research as practice. In-depth pieces only, no press releases or promotional copy.