Artist Programs
Fulfilling Joan Mitchell’s ambition to “aid and assist” artists, the Foundation offers a range of programs and resources designed for artists committed to sustaining their creative practices and planning their legacies.
Joan Mitchell Fellowship
The Joan Mitchell Fellowship annually awards 15 artists working in the evolving fields of painting and sculpture with $60,000 each in unrestricted funds, distributed over a five-year period and interwoven with learning, peer engagement, and network-building opportunities. These awards are decided through a nomination and jury process; artists receive an invitation to apply if they are nominated.
Residencies in New Orleans
At the Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans, we offer artists dedicated time and space for the creative process. Each year, past Foundation grant recipients and artists based in New Orleans are invited to apply for 6 or 10 week residencies.
Artist Legacy Initiatives
As stewards of Joan Mitchell’s legacy, and grounded in three decades of work in direct support of artists, the Foundation is committed to advocating for the importance of intentional legacy planning and stewardship throughout the arts field. We have developed a range of initiatives in collaboration with artists and arts leaders—from gatherings, conversations, research, and publications, to mapping and programming—with the goal of capturing and sharing our learnings over time.
Legacy Planning Tools
We believe that artists must guide how their stories are told, and that legacy stewardship is strongest when that work is shared across the field. The Foundation is committed to providing clear, accessible resources that support that process, including practical guides produced as part of our longstanding Creating a Living Legacy (CALL) program, covering career documentation, inventory management, and estate planning. These free, accessible materials are available to artists, their family members, estate executors, and other champions of artists’ legacies.
Past Programs
The Foundation's artist programs have evolved over the past three decades in response to the needs of artists. Past programs have included:
- Painters & Sculptors Grant (1994 to 2020)
- Emergency Grants (2005 to 2019)
- MFA Grants (1997 to 2012)
- Art Education (1997 to 2016)
- Organizational Grants (2005 to 2017)
- Emerging Artist Grants (2015 to 2016)
- Early Art Practitioners Initiatives (2017 to 2019)