Australian Arts Opportunities: Grants, Prizes, and Residencies Open for Creatives
ArtsHub has compiled a list of creative opportunities available in Australia, with deadlines spanning from August to October 2026. Noteworthy entries include the First Nations Arts Leadership Program, which concludes on 16 August, and the Regional Arts Fund (WA) grants, offering up to $30,000, with a deadline of 17 August. The City of Sydney Creative Grants will hold an online briefing on 21 July. The Red Ochre Award, valued at $60,000, is set to close on 15 September. Additionally, the 4A Lab Emerging Digital Artist Program and the Mill Exhibition Program both have deadlines of 10 August. Other significant awards are the Portia Geach Memorial Award ($30,000, closes 14 August), the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Photography Award ($25,000, closes 17 August), and the Kilgour Art Prize ($50,000, closes 5 October). Various writing awards are also available, with deadlines extending through October.
Key facts
- First Nations Arts Leadership Program closes 16 August
- Regional Arts Fund (WA) offers grants up to $30,000, closes 17 August
- City of Sydney Creative Grants provide up to $50,000 for projects, close 1 September
- Red Ochre Award for lifetime achievement is $60,000, closes 15 September
- 4A Lab Emerging Digital Artist Program offers $1000 fee and $500 materials, closes 10 August
- Portia Geach Memorial Award is $30,000 for women's portrait painting, closes 14 August
- Head On Photo Awards close 16 August, with $5000 prize
- Netflix's My Brilliant Next Career seeks women and non-binary scriptwriters, closes 14 August
Entities
Artists
- Kimberley Moulton
- Georgia Mokak
- Teho Ropeyarn
- Rebecca Ray
- Lucy Culliton
- Natasha Bieniek
- Zoe Young
- Jude Rae
- Alana Hunt
- Natalya Hughes
- Salote Tawale
- Javier Arcenillas
- Polly Borland
- Merilyn Fairskye
- Shaun Gladwell
- Polixeni Papapetrou
- Darren Sylvester
- Justine Varga
- Tamara Dean
- José Da Silva
- Mikala Tai
- Anna Dunnill
- Misako Nakahara
- Michael Bell
- Nicholas Harding
- Natasha Walsh
- Blak Douglas
- Peter Gardiner
- Kelli Cole
- Jason Phu
- Rose KB
- Cate Kennedy
- Tara Moss
- Ellie Marney
- Dervla McTiernan
- Rachel Okine
- Ruby Arrowsmith-Todd
- Sasha Close
- Daley Rangi
- Declan Greene
- Anthea Williams
- Miles Franklin
- Laurens Tan
- Moshe Rosenzveig OAM
- Bronwyn Bancroft
- Hetti Perkins
- Margo Adler
- Jessica Alice
- Lauretta Morton
Institutions
- National Gallery of Australia
- Tate Modern
- NAVA
- Cairns Indigenous Art Fair
- Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
- City of Sydney
- Creative Australia
- 4A Centre for Contemporary Art
- The Mill
- SH Ervin Gallery
- Sheila Foundation
- Art Gallery of Western Australia
- Edith Cowan Gallery
- Goolugatup Heathcote
- John Curtin Gallery
- Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery
- Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts
- Walyalup Fremantle Arts Centre
- Head On Photo Festival
- HOTA Home of the Arts
- UNSW Galleries
- Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf
- Woollahra Council
- Australian Tapestry Workshop
- Newcastle Art Gallery
- Adelaide Fringe
- Theatre Works
- Midsumma
- Fringe World
- Helpmann Academy
- Adelaide University
- Flinders University
- University of South Australia
- Tasmanian Literary Awards
- Netflix
- Australian Writers' Guild
- Scarlet Stiletto Awards
- Natalie Miller Fellowship
- ABC
- Art Gallery of New South Wales
- Australian International Movie Convention
- Griffin Theatre
- ArtsHub
- ScreenHub
- Byron Writers Festival
- NIDA
- Beaker Street Festival
- Biennale of Sydney
Locations
- Australia
- Melbourne
- Sydney
- Darlinghurst
- Western Australia
- Adelaide
- 154 Angas Street
- Perth
- Gold Coast
- London
- Japan
- Newcastle
- Tasmania
- Hobart
- South Australia
- Redleaf