Visual Artist and Craft Maker Award, Argyll and Bute 2025/26
Posted by CHARTS
Type
Awards and CompetitionsDeadline Date
03/02/2026The Visual Artist and Craft Makers Awards (VACMA) offer small grants to visual artists and craft makers for their creative development at all stages of their careers. This includes activities such as mentoring and skills development, testing new ideas, experimenting with sustainable and renewable materials, purchasing necessary equipment, and residencies tailored to the artist’s creative and professional development.
Established by Creative Scotland, these partnerships provide support at a local level and work with local panels to offer funds to practitioners at all stages of their careers who have demonstrated a commitment to their work and to developing their practice through new work, new skills, or new opportunities.
VACMA offers fixed bursaries of £500 of £1000.
£500 Early-Career Bursary: for artists and makers who have graduated within the past 3 years or those who can demonstrate experience of the public presentation of their work within the same timeframe.
£1000 Bursary: for artists and makers who can demonstrate more than 3 years’ experience of the public presentation of their work.
CHARTS is an Argyll and Bute wide member network designed to promote the sector and increase opportunities. Membership is free; if you haven't already registered for membership, please see: https://www.chartsargyllandisles.org/register/
Downloads
Guidance for applicants (plain text)
More information at Creative Scotland.
How to apply
The deadline for Argyll and Bute will be 5pm, Tuesday 3 February 2026
Please submit all applications to info@chartsargyllandisles.org with the subject line VACMA 2026
For any further information, please contact info@chartsargyllandisles.org
Information Sessions
Information sessions, delivered by partner representatives and members of Creative Scotland’s Visual Arts Team, to be announced.
VACMA is supported by Creative Scotland through funding from the National Lottery in partnership with Argyll and Bute Council and made possible in Argyll and Bute by support from CHARTS.
Image credit: Mhairi Killin, VACMA Awardee 2024/25
 offer small grants to visual artists and craft makers for their creative development at all stages of their careers. This includes activities such as mentoring and skills development, testing new ideas, experimenting with sustainable and renewable materials, purchasing necessary equipment, and residencies tailored to the artist’s creative and professional development.</span></p>
<p><span>Established by Creative Scotland, these partnerships provide support at a local level and work with local panels to offer funds to practitioners at all stages of their careers who have demonstrated a commitment to their work and to developing their practice through new work, new skills, or new opportunities.</span><span></span></p>
<p class="p1"><strong>VACMA offers fixed bursaries of £500 of £1000.</strong></p>
<p class="p2"><strong>£500 Early-Career Bursary:</strong> for artists and makers who have graduated within the past 3 years or those who can demonstrate experience of the public presentation of their work within the same timeframe.</p>
<p class="p3"><strong>£1000 Bursary:</strong> for artists and makers who can demonstrate more than 3 years’ experience of the public presentation of their work.</p>
<p class="p3"> </p>
<p><strong>CHARTS is an Argyll and Bute wide member network designed to promote the sector and increase opportunities. Membership is free; if you haven't already registered for membership, please see:<span><a rel="noopener" href="/register/" target="_blank"> https://www.chartsargyllandisles.org/register/</a> </span></strong></p>
<p> </p>
<h3>Downloads</h3>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/81879ec16bf640ca8a37e62518f37e39" href="/media/8340/vacma-guidance-2526-final.pdf" target="_blank" title="VACMA Guidance 2526 FINAL">Guidance for applicants</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/f16da0a3d0104a61bdb2b77b64d2c659" href="/media/8341/vacma-guidance-25-26-final-plain-text.docx" target="_blank" title="VACMA Guidance 25 26 Final Plain Text">Guidance for applicants (plain text)</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/8f1f19deaefd43c8a0f7162eb0ba84f6" href="/media/8339/vacma-guidance-2526-gaelic-final.pdf" target="_blank" title="VACMA Guidance 2526 Gaelic FINAL">Guidance Gaelic</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" href="https://vimeo.com/1111098682?share=copy" target="_blank" data-anchor="?share=copy">Guidance BSL Vimeo</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/11bd0d9030fe45f78a7ec3ea1aa790e1" href="/media/8343/vacma-artist-checklist-25-26.pdf" target="_blank" title="VACMA Artist Checklist 25 26">FAQs Artist Checklist</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/adf7e8a207274a5c941b9eaa07088097" href="/media/8344/vacma-equalities-monitoring-form-v2.docx" target="_blank" title="VACMA Equalities Monitoring Form V2">Equalities Monitoring Form</a></p>
<p><a rel="noopener" data-udi="umb://media/58b4dbedd6644737816f6adde087be69" href="/media/8345/vacma-application-form-2025-26-argyll-bute.docx" target="_blank" title="VACMA Application Form 2025 26 Argyll & Bute">Application Form</a></p>
<p>More information at <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.creativescotland.com/funding/funding-programmes/funding-delivered-by-partners/visual-arts-and-crafts-awards" target="_blank">Creative Scotland</a>. </p>
<p> </p>
<h3>How to apply</h3>
<p><span>The deadline for Argyll and Bute will be <strong>5pm, Tuesday 3 February 2026</strong></span></p>
<p><span></span><span>Please submit all applications to <a href="mailto:info@chartsargyllandisles.org">info@chartsargyllandisles.org</a> with the subject line VACMA 2026</span></p>
<p><span>For any further information, please contact </span><a href="mailto:info@chartsargyllandisles.org"><span>info@chartsargyllandisles.org</span></a><span> </span></p>
<p> </p>
<h3 class="preamble">Information Sessions</h3>
<p>Information sessions, delivered by partner representatives and members of Creative Scotland’s Visual Arts Team, to be announced.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>VACMA is supported by Creative Scotland through funding from the National Lottery in partnership with Argyll and Bute Council and made possible in Argyll and Bute by support from CHARTS. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Image credit: Mhairi Killin, VACMA Awardee 2024/25</p>
<p><img style="width: 114px; height: 72px;" src="/media/1805/lotteryfunded.jpg?width=114&height=72" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/0c2ae52a97f84b7cb2266e7a462dcef1"> <img style="width: 90px; height: 78px;" src="/media/4384/screenshot-2022-02-21-at-134831.png?width=90&height=78&mode=max" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/bd1853a106b443789b8b21dbbc73a46f"><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="/media/4384/screenshot-2022-02-21-at-134831.png?width=0&height=0" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/bd1853a106b443789b8b21dbbc73a46f"></p>%0ahttps%3a%2f%2fwww.chartsargyllandisles.org%2fopportunities%2fvisual-artist-and-craft-maker-award-argyll-and-bute-202526%2f){kind=link}