Guidelines & FAQs
Power Plant Grants support Indiana visual artists making new, public-facing work that takes a risk. The program is funded by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and facilitated by Big Car Collaborative.
New for 2026: eligibility is open to artists living anywhere in Indiana.Previous rounds were limited to Indianapolis.
The award
Five grants of $12,000 each. $60,000 total, awarded annually.
The award amount is fixed. You cannot apply for more or less. This is so the panel doesn't have to partially fund projects in order to distribute the full $60,000.
Who can apply
Visual and multidisciplinary artists working in painting, drawing, sculpture, book art, ceramics, fiber, printmaking, digital and media work, film, video, photography, performance, sound, social practice, and hybrid or interdisciplinary combinations of these
You must live in Indiana. Working here is not enough — residency is required
You must be 21 or older on the application deadline
You may not be a full-time student
Teams, partnerships, and unincorporated collectives are eligible. The lead artist must live in Indiana. Other participants may live elsewhere
Groups that intend to pursue 501(c)(3) status later are eligible. What matters is your status when you apply
Past recipients may apply again once they have successfully completed their funded project
Who cannot apply
Organizations holding 501(c)(3) status, including incorporated artist-run spaces
Employees and board members of Big Car Collaborative, and their immediate family
Projects originating with someone other than the artist — a developer, a community development corporation, a community organization
What we fund
New work with a strong visual component, made accessible to the public through process, production, presentation, or publication. "The public" means the audience you define. It can be large and open or small and specific.
An ongoing project can qualify if the application proposes a real shift in direction — new scale, new scope, new collaborators, new risk.
What we don't fund
Private studio work in conventional formats, or repair and restoration of existing work
Proposals whose main purpose is buying or renting equipment, renting or reconfiguring studio space, travel, or professional services. These can appear as line items inside a larger project
Projects presented at established or conventional arts venues
Projects at Big Car or CAMi spaces
Music, literary, and theater projects. These can be components of a visual project
Programming for a nonprofit organization
Work presented outside Indiana
A 501(c)(3) can support your project with money, materials, or space. It just can't be the beneficiary of the grant.
How projects are selected
An independent panel of artists and arts professionals makes all funding decisions. Big Car staff administer the program and do not vote.
The panel scores proposals on four criteria:
Impact
Goals and objectives
How the work reaches an audience
Innovation and creativity
Finalists are interviewed in Indianapolis, where the panel will ask about your relationship to your chosen venue or community. Everyone who applies is notified by email, whether or not they receive an award.
If you're awarded
We make one payment to the lead artist and require a W-9. Award income is taxable, and dividing funds among collaborators is your responsibility. We encourage you to consult a tax professional — as a professional artist, you may want to file a Schedule C to write off project expenses against taxable income. Long-term collaborations can form an entity such as an LLC to split income and tax liability among members.
Keep good records and keep grant money separate from your regular expenses.
Frequently asked questions
All funding decisions are made by an independent panel of artists and arts professionals, not by our staff. These answers are here to clarify the guidelines above so you have the best chance of success. The outcome depends on the quality and inventiveness of your proposal and how the panel rates it against everything else submitted.
Special thanks to our mentors at Charlotte Street Foundation.
Eligibility
We're not a nonprofit, but we plan to start the 501(c)(3) process later this year. Does that disqualify us?
No. Eligibility depends on your status when you apply. Power Plant Grant funds come from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, which restricts using them to benefit organizations that already hold 501(c)(3) status. If you don't hold it at the time of application, you can apply.
I'm not a 501(c)(3), but I want to work with one. Does their status disqualify our project?
Not necessarily. Power Plant Grants may not be used to provide or support programming for a nonprofit organization. But a 501(c)(3) can support your project — in kind or financially — and that includes letting you use their facilities.
Two things to consider. First, whether the organization is an established or conventional arts venue, since projects proposing to use those are typically not funded. Second, the intention is for funds to go directly into the hands of artists. Your application should show clearly that the entire project was conceived and driven by the artists involved, and that grant funding would not be supplementing a program the organization had already established.
My idea involves an artist from New York. Can that be funded?
Yes, as long as the lead artist lives in Indiana. A collaborating artist can be brought in from elsewhere to strengthen the work. But a final performance, exhibition, or event funded by the grant must take place in Indiana.
Can music, literary, or theater projects be submitted?
No. Any of these may be part of your project, but the grant is for visual artists as defined in the guidelines above.
Your project
Can I apply for a project that's already under way?
Possibly. Power Plant Grants exist to help artists take new risks, push the scope and scale of their work, pursue collaborations, and engage the public in inventive ways. If you're already in a process that meets those criteria, you can apply — but be clear about how the grant would grow the work. This grant is meant to launch experimental and expansive projects that wouldn't happen otherwise. The application includes a question to help you make that case.
We'd like to repeat a project we've already done. Does that qualify?
Not if it's identical to previous work. Look for a way the grant could genuinely expand it.
Could I use funding to repair an existing sculpture for a gallery exhibition?
No. The grant is not awarded for conventional private studio work.
What's the difference between a typical community-based arts project and one that would qualify here? And what does "accessible to the public" mean?
An ideal Power Plant Grant project brings unconventional and experimental practice to a new audience. We often use the phrase "under the radar" — these are projects that may not find funding from more traditional sources.
The requirement that projects be accessible to the public through process, production, presentation, or publication does not mean the "general public." Your audience can be large and abstract or small and defined.
If you're proposing community-engaged or social practice work, define the community you want to connect with and design the project to build relationships with them. We expect any project set in a neighborhood to be welcomed by the people who live there — which means initiating conversations early and communicating responsively with residents and local leaders throughout.
Could I use my award to conduct research in Spain for a project that unfolds later in Indiana?
This is not a travel fund. Funds are meant to carry out your project. Research travel may be eligible if it's persuasively linked to necessary elements of the work, if the result directly benefits artists or audiences in Indiana, and if travel costs don't make up an unreasonable portion of your budget.
Applying
Can I submit two proposals?
The online application allows two submissions from one artist, but consider how that looks to a panel reviewing a large number of entries. You can only receive one award, so submitting twice may dilute the impact of your strongest idea.
I just realized the deadline is today. Is there any flexibility?
No. All materials must be submitted by the published deadline, and the online system will not accept anything after it. Prepare your materials early — you can submit well ahead of the deadline, and we encourage it.
What happens after I submit?
The panel reviews all applications and selects a group of finalists, who are interviewed in Indianapolis. Everyone who applies is notified by email, whether or not they are selected.
Will I be notified by phone or email?
Email, whether or not you receive an award.
Work samples and written materials
The application asks for a list of URLs for websites I want viewed as work samples. Do you mean video work hosted online, or websites I've built?
Both have a place, but they go in different sections. Video work uploaded to a site should be entered wherever the application asks for video URLs. The website sample question is for sites that document an individual's or group's activities, or that are standalone artworks.
Panelists won't have time to review a site in depth, so point them to specific features. You can also use this section to show work by others that has informed your thinking — just label it clearly as such in your title.
If my time-based work sample runs long, will only the first three minutes be considered?
Yes. Consider how that reflects on your application: an unedited sample tends to look rushed. We encourage you to prepare a three-minute sample edited specifically for this application.
I prepared a video on a Windows machine. Can you check that it works on a Mac?
No — you're responsible for confirming that your digital samples work across platforms. Samples that don't open can't be reviewed, which puts your application at a serious disadvantage.
The application asks how my images relate to the proposed project. Does that mean all images must be my own past work?
No. Your images should persuade the panel that you have the expertise, experience, and vision to carry out your proposal. The description is your chance to explain the connection — for example, "this image shows the mechanisms I'll use for my puppets, though the overall look will be closer to sample 2."
Your own sketches can help, as long as they're clear. Inspirational material made by others can be appropriate if properly credited. But it's important to demonstrate your skill as a maker, if making is what you do. You can show work that differs from what you intend to make, as long as it's relevant and establishes you as a strong candidate.
The word limit in this section accounts for projects with multiple artists or complex relationships between samples and proposal. Be as brief as you can.
I'm the lead artist but I'm collaborating with someone. Whose demographic information do I enter?
Both yours and your collaborator's.
Should my bio be in first or third person, and how long should it be?
Either is fine. The goal is to persuade the panel that you have the attitude and experience to carry out your project, so use whatever works. The limit is 600 words, but shorter is fine — panelists read a great deal of material, so clear, concise, engaging writing matters.
Budget
Can I apply for less than $12,000?
No. The amount is fixed so the panel doesn't have to partially fund projects in order to distribute all $60,000. Build your budget honestly and carefully. The panel reviews budgets closely, and one that looks unconsidered or inflated will hurt your chances. Include proper compensation for your own time and a small cushion for the unexpected.
Can we use the grant to buy video equipment to finish a video art work we've been making?
Not if that's the main purpose. Funds aren't awarded to proposals whose sole or primary aim is purchasing or renting equipment, renting or reconfiguring studio space, covering travel, or paying for professional services. These costs can be covered as part of a larger, persuasive vision, as long as they don't make up an unreasonable portion of the budget.
Does volunteer labor count as an in-kind donation?
Generally, if it's a task you'd ordinarily pay someone for, volunteer labor can be counted in kind. If the volunteers are collaborating artists, they should be covered under artist fees instead. Often volunteers are treated the way an unpaid intern would be, since they're learning or benefiting from the opportunity in another way.
Can in-kind donations come from anyone, including me?
Yes, including your own contributed goods and services. Your creative time belongs under artist fees — for labor-intensive work, a higher proportion of the award going to fees can be justified. Studio rental, equipment rental, and similar items go under production costs.
If there's a manufacturing process you could hire out but will do yourself, it's reasonable to budget what it would cost in a professional workshop, then balance it in income as "service performed by artist." You can also show income as a personal contribution to balance your budget — though as a professional artist, it's usually wiser to trim the project or seek other income.
Can funds be split among the artists with multiple checks? If it all goes to one person, won't they be taxed on it?
We make a single payment to the lead artist and require a W-9. Award income is taxable. See "If you're awarded" above.
Venues and community
Do you need documentation confirming a venue is available?
No, we'll take your word. But if the venue isn't confirmed when you apply, address what your alternatives would be.
We think our project could benefit a particular community, but we don't have contacts there. Can we identify that as research to do after funding?
Artists working in neighborhoods and public space need to be informed, respectful partners. We expect you to initiate conversations and research proposed community venues before applying. If you're interviewed, the panel will ask about your relationship to your chosen venue, and vagueness here will not help your application.
Can my project include an exhibition at a Big Car or CAMi space?
No. Big Car venues are not available for Power Plant Grant projects, and double-dipping with another partner opportunity would conflict with the rule against providing programming for a nonprofit. Spin-off material from an event, performance, or intervention could find its way into these venues later, once your project is complete.
Please bear in mind that all decisions about which projects receive funding will be made by a panel of independent artists and arts professionals, not by our staff. These FAQs are intended to help clarify the guidelines so that you will have the best chance of success. But, ultimately, the outcome will depend on the quality and inventiveness of your proposal and how the jury rates it relative to all the other applications.
Special thanks to our mentors at Charlotte Street Foundation.
SUPPORTING THE PROGRAM
Q: Can I support this program as a financial donor?
A: Yes, you can also donate directly here and select the Power Plant Grant option.