Deadline: 30-Jul-25
The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Cultural Programs Division (ECA/PE/C/CU) seeks to advance international understanding of American values by exposing foreign audiences to innovative and compelling works of art that reflect promote American values and foster international dialogue on shared global challenges.
The International Art Biennale is a prestigious bi-annual festival organized by La Biennale di Venezia, in Venice, Italy, featuring contemporary artists from around the world. The U.S. exhibition will be installed at the U.S. Pavilion, owned by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and operated by the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. The U.S. Pavilion at the Biennale is a high-profile platform for illustrating the innovation, ingenuity, high artistic merit, and breadth of the American arts community. Typically, at least 85 countries including the United States, participate in the Venice Biennales.
Objectives
- Objective 1: Conduct a three-day Preview/Inauguration (the Vernissage) of the Biennale prior to the official opening of the exhibition, by holding public outreach events and activities in/around Venice with the aim of including all audiences.
- Objective 2: During the Biennale, develop robust exhibition-related educational and outreach activities including innovative virtual programming to engage foreign audiences to broaden the exposure of the exhibition.
- Objective 3: Develop a robust media campaign to broaden the exposure of the exhibition with U.S. audiences.
Funding Information
- Pending availability of funds, ECA/PE/C/CU will issue a grant up to $375,000 per biennale cycle of this amount, $125,000 must be made available to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice to provide the staffing, maintenance, and operations of the U.S. Pavilion during exhibit installation, display, and removal (approximately 7 months).
Expected Outcomes
- All projects should aim to advance international understanding of American art, ideals, and values as well as demonstrate how art can effectively address shared global challenges. Outcomes may include but are not limited to:
- Foster mutual understanding and deepen trust between the people of the United States and foreign countries to counter negative stereotypes and advance safety and security.
- Advance and complement U.S. foreign policy objectives by enabling U.S. citizen cultural experts to interact with key foreign audiences worldwide.
- Build the capacity of creative leaders and institutions to develop new skills, partnerships, and opportunities, which promote creative industries and entrepreneurship.
- Identify and recruit the most appropriate U.S. cultural experts to undertake Public Diplomacy programs in response to Department of State strategic initiatives and requests from U.S. missions abroad.
- Convey the variety and high artistic merit of the United States and increase awareness and understanding of U.S. culture, values, and society among international participants and audiences.
- Enable foreign audiences to learn about U.S. culture, society, and institutions, supporting development and growth of civil society and cultural and social institutions abroad, and countering negative stereotypes.
- Establish sustained relationships and linkages between the U.S. and foreign audiences, peers, and institutions to cultivate the exchange of knowledge and skills that benefits participating communities.
Eligibility Criteria
- ECA/PE/C/CU welcomes applications from U.S.-based non-profit/non-governmental art, design, educational, and cultural organizations with 501(c) (3) status of the U.S. tax code.
- Curators and Artists whose work is proposed for representation must be U.S. citizens or have permanent resident status in the U.S. States
Ineligibility Criteria
- Non-U.S. entities or curators or artists applying as individuals are not eligible under this announcement.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.