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This week’s opportunities are centered around rounding out your creative and personal life! Each one has either been designed to change your life, or offers you a chance to change someone else’s. Whether it’s encouraging social change or surrounding yourself with new people, culture, or environments, engaging in any of this week’s programs ensures a pathway to a deeper understanding of yourself and the world around you. The Lewis Center for the Arts The Lewis Center has ope

Every Friday here at SAEN, we strive to leave new funding opportunities at your door. Often these come in the form of grants and residences, which are general open calls to relatively understood pathways. But what avenues of funding exist beyond these? If grant applications aren’t your thing, and your lifestyle can’t accommodate a residency that would take you away from your daily responsibilities, what options are you left with as an artist? Fortunately, a lot! There are a p

This week, take a look at some opportunities coming up later this month! With a collection of diverse media based programs, some specifically for New York based artists and some international, these calls offer something for everyone, opening doors you may not have even realized you've been waiting to walk through! Photo credit: Liu Shiming Foundation Liu Shiming Foundation The 2026 Liu Shiming artist grant application is now open! Designed to support artists in the first de

Have you ever wondered where your ideas come from? Ever had a sudden strike of inspiration, while driving or taking a shower, and had no idea how you thought of it? Or maybe you pick up a new skill and find it's as easy as if you've been doing it for years. Sometimes, our brains lock onto things almost seamlessly. Other times, even things we have been doing for years still feel foreign and difficult. Why is this? And what does it reveal about the nature of human consciousnes

This week, as July draws to a close, explore opportunities you can work towards throughout the month of August! A mix of fellowships, grants, and residencies, these deadlines give you time to research the ins and outs of each program and perfect your application. This way, when fall rolls around, you’ll be exactly where you need to be to take your creative and professional life to new levels! The Homiens Art Prize Photo credit: Homiens The Homeins Art Prize is open to both em

If you follow contemporary art, or even politics, chances are at some point in the last 10 years you’ve heard the name Banksy. The anonymous street artist who leaves viscerally political messages in public spaces at night, and disappears by morning. Both in and out of the art world, he’s considered revolutionary for the way he engages in activism, and brings social injustices to light entirely from the shadows. His work however, more often than not, is ephemeral. No matter wh

This week, our primary focus is residency and fellowships! There are so many opportunities designed not just to help artists market their work, but to work on themselves. Whether it’s an introspective journey or a collaborative experience, these programs reinforce the importance of the journey as the destination, and serve to remind us of what’s really important in the act of creation. Stiftung Künstler*dorf Schöppingen Residency Open to professional composers, artists, and

The narrative of the arts as a practice that dwells strictly in the humanities is a long-standing one. So much so, in fact, that it can be hard for people to grasp just how seismic of an impact it has in realms far beyond its own; politics, science, and linguistics, for example. But perhaps most directly relevant to our day to day lives is the economic impact that the arts, and the cultural institutions that foster them, have on our societies, that are so often overlooked. It

This week’s Funding Friday brings you some of July’s finest opportunities for open calls and upcoming artists residencies. Keep reading for the chance to discover a life-changing opportunity! Women United Art Magazine: Photo credit: Women United Women United Art Magazine has opened its submissions for Issue 13, which will be published in the Winter of 2026. Curated by founder and women’s advocate Mona Lerch, this publication highlights women across artistic disciplines, emp

Happy Independence Day! Around this time of the month, the conversation surrounding freedom, and what it means to be truly free, can take on a plethora of shapes. Naturally, here at SAEN, we’re using this time to reflect on the value of artistic freedom, the necessary limitlessness of expression, and the cultural importance of maintaining an honest practice. In other words, what does it mean to be free? And why, as artists, does the freedom to express ourselves with autonomy

Welcome to our new segment here at SAEN, Funding Fridays! As artists, the Photo credit: Pioneer Works process of juggling a consistent work flow while maintaining deadlines and seeking open calls for work can be overwhelming. Sometimes it’s the sheer number of opportunities and the pressure to apply to every single one that can feel almost paralyzing, and others it’s the hopelessness of the opposite; that the right opportunity will never present itself. We’re setting out to c

The sounds of salsa, reggaeton, cheers from the crowd, and waves of Puerto Rican flags transformed Manhattan into a vibrant celebration of culture and pride this past Sunday as the 69th Annual Puerto Rican Day Parade made its way up Fifth Avenue. Stretching from 44th to 79th Street, the parade brought together thousands of performers, families, and community organizations in one of New York City's most cherished cultural traditions. Rooted in a rich heritage shaped by African

If you’re familiar with the mission statement here at SAEN, or you’ve spent time in or around the art scene, it’s likely you’ve heard the term ‘starving artist’. Certainly it’s a concept that drives the work we do here at SAEN, but it’s also an exceptionally prevalent idea that generates artistic aesthetics, fuels myths and stereotypes and, most detrimentally, acts as a repellent that keeps aspiring artists from pursuing their dreams. But where did it come from? And why does

Manhattan has produced some of the biggest names in modern art; Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Mark Rothko are amongst the most well known, working alongside infamous figures of the literary world like John Ashbery and Frank O’Hara. It seems surreal that all of these game-changing artists were, at one point, walking these streets at the same time, let alone working together in their creative practices, and surreal is exactly what it was. The rise of Abstract Expressi

You’re conflicted. You know you want to make a change or build out your resume, but there are a thousand organizations vying for your time and attention. You’re not sure which ones are the real deal, and the process of vetting every opportunity you come across can be far too time consuming. Don’t worry! I’m here to do that job for you. Today, we’ll meet the most recent participants of SAEN’s Readiness Program, as well as hear more about the interns stepping into new roles, an

This past Thursday SAEN hosted its second annual Karaoke Fundraiser, and we're so grateful to everyone who showed up and made our success possible. We kicked off the night at Dramma, where a few brave souls serenaded guests as they trickled in with the first (of many) rounds of karaoke. Guests ate and drank while they got to know one another, occasionally being swept to the stage or to the camera for an interview, where they had the opportunity to delve into what art has mean

Right now somewhere in New York, maybe on the subway or tucked into a shoebox apartment or sprawled under the sun in Central Park, there is an artist. Maybe they’re playing saxophone under a bridge, or memorializing a moment in charcoal, or sitting quietly with their hands in their lap, fingers twitching with unfulfilled desire. Maybe you recognize this image because you’ve seen them on your afternoon walk. Or, maybe, you recognize it because this person is you, or the person

Get all the details on our upcoming karaoke fundraiser at Palma Verde!

Are you interested in donating to the arts, but you’re not sure how? Or maybe you’re worried that your money’s not going where you think it is once you do? Everyone’s been there; on the cusp of clicking “donate” until a voice in the back of your head points out you could be getting scammed. In this day and age, it’s not easy to trust every site asking for your credit card information. Many feel far more comfortable with cash donations, or well-known, reliable organizations li