International Support for Galleries and Independent Exhibition Spaces (ISGIES)

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Please note. The allocated funding for ISGIES 2023 has been completed, and the scheme is now closed for the rest of the year.

Applications for participation at art fairs taking place in 2024 will be accepted from 1. January 2024.

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This grant scheme is aimed to strengthen the participation of Norway based galleries abroad and contribute to increasing both the demand and internationalisation of contemporary art, including fine arts and contemporary crafts.

The gallery support aims to stimulate international participation of galleries that are based in Norway, especially within significant international art fairs and temporary exhibition spaces. All applications are administered by OCA on behalf of OCA and Norwegian Crafts, with funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Culture and Equality.

Apply here

Application Process

Applications are only accepted via stikk.no. Read the extended guidelines on stikk.no thoroughly before filling in the form. For questions, please contact OCA's Grants Officer Eirik Zeiner-Henriksen.

Who can apply?

Norwegian galleries and independent exhibition spaces, that have entered into a binding agreement with one of the listed art fairs or temporary exhibition spaces, can apply for the grant scheme. The scheme also includes digital editions of these fairs.

Criteria for applications

Support will automatically be granted based on OCA’s available funds, if a gallery or independent exhibition space exhibits at least one contemporary artist who is Norway based, at one of the international art fairs or temporary exhibition spaces that are listed in the overview of eligible art fairs.

OCA and NC (when it comes to contemporary crafts) will produce and revise the list of eligible arenas annually. The list is completed by 1 October the previous year and will be available at www.oca.no and www.norwegiancrafts.no. Applications will be processed on a rolling basis.

What can be applied for

The following categories can be applied for:

Participation fee (documented fee for participating in fairs or temporary exhibitions)
Art transport
Art insurance
Information material related to the participation at the fair
Travel and hotel costs for the gallery during the exhibition period (maximum 10% of maximum support for each project).
External consultant for developing PR, promotion and marketing of the presentation in the art fair (one-off support on maximum NOK 50,000 per gallery)

The application amounts will be prioritized based on the categories mentioned above.

OCA calculates all amounts and percentages based on the attached quotes/price estimates. The applicant must not calculate this themselves.

The amounts applied for

Up to 100% support is given for costs between NOK 1 - NOK 100,000.

Costs for personal travel and accommodation can amount to a maximum of 10% of the total amount of support, but must be included in the total, which is between NOK 1 and NOK 100,000. For example, for total support amounting to NOK 100,000, support for personal travel and accommodation can amount to a maximum of NOK 10,000 and the rest NOK 90,000.

Up to 85% support is given for costs if these are larger than NOK 100,000.

Of the total number of applications where the costs are greater than NOK 100,000, up to 85% of the requested amount is granted. We can grant a maximum of NOK 600,000 per application. Costs for personal travel and accommodation are included in the total amount applied for and can amount to a maximum of 10% of the total amount of support. For example, if 85% of total requested costs amount to NOK 200,000, then support for personal travel and accommodation can amount to a maximum of 10% of NOK 200,000, i.e. NOK 20,000.

The above mentioned funding parameters are regulated by the following three points:

The maximum amount that can be given per application / participation is: 600,000 NOK.
The maximum amount that can be given to an applicant within a calendar year for participation in the fair within the same calendar year is: 850,000 NOK.
The maximum amount that can be allocated to an applicant over three calendar years is: 200 000 EUR or 1,900,000 NOK.

It is referred to the regulations of de minimis aid.

Application demands

Applications must be submitted through the application form, link published on www.oca.no. Guidelines and form are available on www.stikk.no. The guidelines must be read before applying. The application must be fully completed with sufficient grounds.

A copy of the commitment to the event must be attached to the application. Furthermore, a complete list of the artists the gallery will present at the fair, at least one of the artists must be a Norwegian citizen or permanently based in Norway, should be enclosed.

To process the application, OCA needs it to be accompanied by external price estimates/quotes/vouchers for each amount applied for.

If support is provided from other grant schemes, this must be stated in the application and in the budget.

Support is not granted retrospectively.

Traveling to areas where the Ministry of Foreign Affairs discourages travel is not eligible, see travel advice on www.landsider.no

Application process

The application process is ongoing through the year without deadlines. The amounts are calculated on the basis of the percentage set for the scheme. The grants are given to Norwegian and Norway based galleries and independent exhibition spaces that have been invited to attend art, or arts and contemporary crafts fairs that are listed each year by OCA and NC. The list is revised every October. Internal control of the calculations shall take place and be logged.