Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development Fund

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development Fund is administered by Arts Queensland, Department of Education, across three streams for eligible projects.

The Fund is open to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples only. For the purposes of this Fund, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisation is at least 50% owned and led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who have formal authority to make decisions in the operations and governance of the organisation.

Performing Arts Streams

These streams support projects whose primary activity is the creation and presentation of new performing arts work(s). Applications are open to individuals, groups and organisations and applicants will be assessed against others in their stream.

• Performing Arts projects to be completed by 31 December 2027.

Small Projects – up to $20,000

This stream is suitable for projects that have a short time frame, involve only individuals or a small number of artists/arts workers, and/or are for early-stage creative developments.

Eligible artforms:
Theatre, dance, circus and physical theatre, cabaret, opera, contemporary and classical music and comedy.

Eligible activities include:

• Creative development of new performing arts work
• Production, presentation and distribution of new performing arts work

Larger Projects – up to $70,000

This stream is suitable for projects that involve larger numbers of artists/arts workers and are for later stage creative developments or presentations of finished work that have confirmed presenting partners.

Eligible artforms:
Theatre, dance, circus and physical theatre, cabaret, opera, contemporary and classical music only.

Eligible activities include:

• Creative development of new performing arts work (i.e. brand-new work or significantly different interpretations of existing work)
• Production, presentation and distribution of new performing arts work
• Collaboration with a nationally or internationally significant artist or company in the development or presentation of new performing arts work

Projects which focus on capacity building or skills development activities, and for which the creation of new work is not critical to the success of the project, may be considered ineligible for this stream.

Peer assessors may use their discretion to determine which funding cap should apply to your project. Please contact Arts Queensland for advice regarding which stream is most suitable for your project.

Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development Stream – up to $30,000

The Fund supports applications for visual arts, craft and design, and fashion and textiles only.

• Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream projects to be completed by August 2028.

Eligible activities include:

• Showcasing or exhibiting work at high profile interstate or international galleries, museums or events.
• Showcasing or exhibiting work at recognised international markets or events held interstate or internationally, to which you have been invited.

Eligible costs include:

• Crating, freight, installation costs and equipment hire.
• Travel related expenses up to a total of $5000 for interstate activities and $10,000 for international activities including economy-class travel, accommodation, travel allowances, visas, registration fees, and travel insurance.
• Development of material to amplify impact of attending the market and extend promotion during and after market participation/exhibition (e.g. promotional video, catalogue).

This stream will not support:

• Website or e-commerce costs.
• Attending interstate or international conferences or events that do not include, or function as, an industry market. See the FAQs for examples.

Additional support for access costs

You can apply for up to an additional $10,000 for costs related to the inclusion and participation of people with disability or who are d/Deaf. This funding can be used to assist individuals with disability or who are d/Deaf to participate in the project as artists, performers, arts workers, collaborators etc; or for audiences or participants with disability or who are d/Deaf to access and engage with your activities.

Eligible costs must relate to the project, not an applicant’s general operations, and not be already funded under NDIS.  See our FAQs for examples of different types of access costs the funding will support.

Ineligible costs

• Non-arts activities:  activities that are not related to arts and culture. Note: For this Fund, applications for film, screen and games will be considered ineligible. Funding for screen-related activities can be found on Screen Queensland’s website.
• Remounts of existing work.
• Costs covered by other funding: project costs specifically covered by other funding including other Arts Queensland or Queensland Government grants, philanthropic funding, local, State, or Federal government grant funding or service contracts.
• First or business class travel and accommodation.
• Business costs: core operating costs including rent and utilities, business start-up costs, debts and loans repayments, contingency, agents’ fees, or management fees.
• Core staff costs: this includes expenses associated with core staff involved in funded activities including fees or wages, travel, accommodation and living-away-from-home allowances (Performing Arts stream only. Core staff travel related costs are eligible in the Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream).
• Infrastructure: purchase, planning or maintenance of infrastructure, including fit outs.
• Equipment: equipment or software purchases or digital upgrades (ineligible under the Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream), or equipment or software purchases or digital upgrades over $3,000 excluding GST (ineligible under the Performing Arts stream).
• Retrospective funding: funding for activities that have already taken place or for goods and services contracted or purchased prior to your funding being confirmed.
• Competitions, awards and private tuition: fundraising activities, awards, competitions, eisteddfods, prizes, private tuition or accredited courses and cost associated with participating in them.

Organisations, groups and individuals applying for this grant must:

• Be based in Queensland.
• Be an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person.
• Be an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander group or organisation.
• Have an active Australian Business Number (ABN) in the same name used in the application.
• Have a bank account in the same name used in the application.
• Have completed any Arts Queensland progress or outcome reporting that is due.
• NOT owe Arts Queensland any money.
• Only submit one application to this funding round.¹
• NOT have received funding in the previous round of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development funding.
• NOT have received more than $1 million per annum in grants from Arts Queensland in the last 12 months.
• Submit your application through SmartyGrants by the closing date.
• NOT apply for Arts Queensland funding for activities that commence before the activity start date.
• Submit all compulsory support material.
• Be deemed suitable to receive public funding (see Community Expectations relating to Qld Govt Investment)

For Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream – additional criteria

• Applicants have been invited by the national or international gallery or market partners directly or selected through a competitive process

If you are applying as an individual ², you must also be:

• An Australian citizen or permanent resident.
• Aged over 18.

If the application is being auspiced:

• The auspice body, rather than the applicant must have an active ABN and bank account in the name of the auspice body.
• The auspice body, must NOT owe Arts Queensland any money and must have completed any Arts Queensland progress or outcome reporting that is due.
• The Auspice body may:
  • Be based outside of Queensland.
  • Auspice more than one application in this funding round.
  • Have received funding in the previous round of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development funding.
  • Have received more than $1 million per annum in grants from Arts Queensland in the last 12 months.

Notes:

1. Applications cannot be submitted in an applicant’s own name and through an Auspice Body in the same round. Auspicing bodies may apply on behalf of multiple applicants in the same round.
2. This applies to Individuals applying themselves, or individuals applying on behalf of a group.

You will NOT be eligible to apply if you:

• Request 100% of the project costs from Arts Queensland.
• Are applying for an artform not listed in your selected funding stream.
• Are applying for activities that are the primary responsibility of another Queensland Government department or agency.
• Are an Arts Statutory Body, Arts Owned Company or State Government agency.
• Are an employee of the above and/or the Department of Education, unless the application is unrelated to your role.
• Are a current Arts Queensland employee or former employee who ceased employment less than six months before applying.
• Are an educational institution seeking funding for core business.

What is auspicing and who can be auspiced?

An auspice body takes responsibility for all legal and financial obligations, including how the grant funding is spent and ensuring the funded activity is completed and acquitted in time. For this Fund, auspice bodies must submit the application on behalf of the applicant and complete the certification on the application form. They are not considered to be the applicant.

 You can be auspiced if you:

• Do not have an ABN or bank account.
• Are seeking to increase your grant writing and administration skills by working with the auspice body.
• Are unable to meet your obligations under the funding agreement without the support of an auspice body.

Reasonable auspice fees are eligible for Arts Queensland funding. Please include information about the services the auspice body will supply and how they have been costed.

TIP: Still not sure if you are eligible? Please get in touch with Arts Queensland to discuss.

Community expectations relating to Queensland Government funding

The Queensland Government has made a commitment to enhance community safety through the introduction of a suite of changes focused on terrorist symbols and phrases including through the Fighting Antisemitism and Keeping Guns out of the Hands of Terrorists and Criminals Amendment Bill 2026.

Accordingly, in its administration of public monies, as an agency of the Queensland Government Arts Queensland will not support applicants or activities that do not represent an appropriate use of public money. This could include promoting behaviour or speech that is hateful, insulting or that promotes racism or religious intolerance, or that is contrary to Anti-Discrimination or hate speech laws. Arts Queensland will also consider any financial and operational risks in allocating funding and managing funding agreements.

To undertake these due diligence processes, Arts Queensland will consider publicly available information.

The Queensland Government acknowledges the unique role the arts can play in considering different points of view, the exchange of ideas and commentary on contemporary issues.

Please see the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development Fund FAQs for examples of further guidance onconsiderations in determining whether an applicant is suitable to receive public funding.

Eligible applications will be assessed against the following criteria:

High quality

• The strength and clarity of the creative idea or concept for the project.
• The skills and experience of the artists and arts workers involved in the project.
• The collaborators and partners involved in the project who will help you to deliver great outcomes.
• Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream: The market/opportunity is internationally significant and respected by industry.

Strong impact

• The project creates economic and career development opportunities for Queensland’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander artists, creatives and arts workers.
• The potential for the project to build markets and reputation for Queensland’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts and cultures.
• Performing Arts stream: The project has clear benefits and relevance for Queensland audiences and communities.
• Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream: The planned activity contributes to long-term strategy to build national or international profile and markets.
• Additional access funding: The funding requested is clearly aligned to project impacts, and the targeted artists, participants and audiences.

Sustainable value

• The project budget is viable and realistic, including contingency and appropriate fees for the professionals involved.
• The project has a strong and achievable delivery plan including understanding potential risks and their management.
• The project planning and budget demonstrates best practice and appropriate cultural competencies in working with diverse communities.

Support material helps to build your case for funding and provides evidence that your application meets the funding criteria. If you don’t supply all the compulsory support material, your application will not be assessed. If you don’t supply recommended support material relevant to your project, it is unlikely that your application will be recommended for funding.

Compulsory support material – both streams

You must include all the support material below to be eligible:

• CVs for key artists and arts workers (max 5 pages).
• Up to three examples of your work (if using video footage, no more than 3 minutes per video).
• Letters from financial, in-kind, presenting or community partners confirming involvement and reasons for supporting the project.
• Evaluation plan: how you are going to measure the success of your project.

Compulsory support material – Performing Arts stream

For creative developments without public presentations:

• Evidence of potential presenters’ and/or producers’ interest in the work being developed.

For projects with public presentations and applications to the Larger Projects stream:

• Letter of confirmation from presenting partner, including any fees that will be paid to you and/or details of any costs being covered by the presenting partner and their value.
• A marketing plan outlining how you are going to maximise reach to your audience and any participants.

Compulsory support material – Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream

• A networking and engagement plan that includes a list of contacts to be targeted through the activity and evidence of introduction.
• Market development strategy outlining how the activity will help achieve growth of national or international audiences and/or markets.
• An invitation from the host organisation (i.e. gallery, museum or market) or evidence you have been selected via a competitive process. This should include any fees that will be paid to you and/or detail any costs being covered by the host organisation and their value.

For Visual Arts, Fashion and Textiles Market Development stream applicants travelling internationally, it will be a condition of funding that you secure travel insurance.

Other support material that is compulsory for both streams if it is relevant to your application:

• Evidence of consultation with, and support from, communities or groups you are working with or telling the stories of. This is particularly relevant for projects working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, people with disability, or from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. It could also apply to working with young people, older people or LGBTQIA+ peoples. Please review the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Development Fund FAQs for practical examples.
• Appropriate consent and permissions if your work will involve other people’s Intellectual Property (IP) or Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP). Examples of IP could be sampling music or speech in the creation of new music work or adapting a novel into a play. If other IP or ICIP is not known at the application stage (e.g. you will be doing a call out for submissions for an exhibition or a festival) you must include information about how you will manage IP and ICIP in the future.
• If you are an employee of any the following organisations you will need to provide a letter from an authorised officer in your organisation stating that the funded activity is outside your role and giving details of any financial or in-kind support the project will receive from the organisation:
  • Aboriginal Centre for Performing Arts, Brisbane Festival, Department of Education, QAGOMA, QMF, Queensland Museum, QPAC, Queensland Theatre, State Library of Queensland.
• If you are an education institution, you must provide a letter from an authorised officer in your organisation stating that the funded activity is outside core business.
• If you are an auspice body, provide evidence the application content, budget, and the auspice services have been approved by the artist/organisation on whose behalf the application has been submitted.

Recommended support material

• Letters of support from individuals and organisations who can speak to your skills and experience and/or the value of your proposed project.
• Supporting budget information showing any important calculations such as valuing in-kind support, breaking down artists fees or providing evidence of income estimation.
• Quotes for single project costs over $10,000.
• A Child Safety policy or framework if working with children or young people.

Still not sure what support material you need? Please contact Arts Queensland to discuss.

Step 1: Read key documents and information

This includes:

• These guidelines.
• General funding guidelines.
• Frequently asked questions.
• Queensland’s Time to Shine strategy.
• The application form.

Step 2: Check eligibility

• Eligibility criteria will guide you on whether you are eligible to apply.
• If you are in any doubt about whether you or your project are eligible, contact Arts Queensland.

Step 3: Apply for an Arts Queensland SmartyGrants applicant account (if you don’t have one already)

• You won’t be able to view or fill in the online Application form until you have an account. It’s a quick and simple process.
• If applying via SmartyGrants doesn’t meet your access needs, contact Arts Queensland to discuss other ways to apply.

Step 4: Prepare your application

• Gather your support material.
• Demonstrate how your project meets the purpose of this Fund.
• Only request funding for activity or expenses that will occur after the activity start date and that directly relate to your project.
• If working with diverse communities, ensure your application outlines how you will address the needs of the community and how you will follow appropriate protocols when working with them.

Step 5: Submit your application by the due date

• Include all the compulsory support material (see compulsory support material section for details).

Tips

• Give yourself plenty of time to gather your compulsory support material.
• If you don't receive an email confirming your application has been received, please contact Arts Queensland.

Arts Queensland’s website provides resources for developing grant applications. We recommend you check these out if you are applying to the Fund for the first time.

While Arts Queensland staff can give you general advice about making an application, including types of projects eligible for funding as well as technical advice on the application process, staff cannot help you develop the content of your application.  Staff cannot edit or correct applications or assist with the decisions you might need to make in developing your application.

The Regional Arts Services Network (RASN), funded through Arts Queensland, provides support for artists and arts organisations. Applicants outside the Brisbane Local Government Area requiring additional support to make an application should contact the services at https://rasn.au/