Organizer Information
The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit service organization established in 1971 by the New York State Council on the Arts as an independent organization to support artists throughout New York State. Its mission is to empower artists in all disciplines, as well as cultural workers, to achieve success on their own terms by providing critical support, resources, and opportunities. Since extending its programs internationally in 2009, NYFA has grown into a organization that reaches approximately 1 million constituents annually through four flagship program areas: Learning, Awards & Grants, Fiscal Sponsorship, and Online Resources. The Rauschenberg Medical Emergency Grants program is one of NYFA's Awards & Grants offerings, made possible through the support of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation; Rauschenberg himself was committed to assisting fellow artists in need of emergency aid, ultimately establishing the nonprofit foundation Change, Inc. in 1970.
Title & Description
Rauschenberg Medical Emergency Grants (Cycle 38)
This program provides one-time grants of up to $5,000 for recent, unexpected medical, dental, and mental health emergencies to artists in financial need who are creating work in the visual arts, digital/electronic arts, video/film, and choreography disciplines. Grants are intended to serve artists in financial need who might otherwise delay critical treatment or incur substantial, potentially overwhelming debt. In each cycle, NYFA distributes approximately $148,000 in total funding; the need for emergency funding far outpaces available funds, and an application is not a guarantee of an award. Cycle 38 covers emergencies occurring February 1, 2026, and later.
Categories
- Visual Arts
- Digital/Electronic Arts
- Video/Film
- Choreography
- Grant
Eligibility
Applicants must meet all three of the following eligibility areas as of the cycle's deadline:
Individual Eligibility
- Must be a generative artist creating work in Choreography, Digital/Electronic Arts, Video/Film, or Visual Arts
- Must be 21 years or older on the cycle's deadline
- Must reside in the United States, the District of Columbia, a Tribal Nation, or a U.S. Territory
- Must be an artist in need, with an adjusted gross income of $80,000 or lower for an individual, or $160,000 or lower for joint filers, averaged over the last two federal tax returns (exceptions possible for Medicare/Medicaid recipients)
- Must not have received a Rauschenberg Medical or Dancer Emergency Grant within the last five years (since the original grant award date)
- Must not be enrolled in any degree-seeking program
- Must demonstrate current and ongoing activity in their artistic discipline
Artistic Eligibility
- Must create original work in at least one eligible discipline, with recent and sustained artistic activity — defined as at least one public-facing opportunity annually over the past five years (2021 to present) — in that discipline; tangential, incidental, or infrequent work does not qualify
- Eligible public-facing activity includes exhibitions, presentations, installations, screenings, performances, public/community art projects, and residencies with public-facing components; works-in-progress showings and acquisitions into public permanent collections also count
- Ineligible activity includes student exhibits/performances while enrolled in a degree-seeking program, publications/papers/interviews, work intended for commercial/mass production or work-for-hire (e.g. television, webcasts, podcasts, graphic/fashion design, commissions, industrial films), and lectures/workshops that don't include an opportunity to view the applicant's actual work
- Reduced activity for up to 12 months due to medical or personal reasons is acceptable if public activity prior to 2022 can be demonstrated
- Online-distributed work is eligible only if it is a creative work actively marketed to the public for a specific showing date and time; work whose sole platform is self-produced online presentation (e.g. Instagram, YouTube) or that is only available on-demand is not eligible
- Portfolios/work samples are not considered or requested
- Applicant must be the primary maker of the creative work — the individual with final creative control
Emergency Eligibility
- The emergency must be a one-time, unexpected, non-chronic condition resulting from illness, violence, an accident, a triggering event, or a sudden medical event, requiring treatment to ensure health or life, and which, without treatment, has an extreme impact on daily life and the ability to carry out or return to creative practice
- Exceptions for chronic conditions: a recent diagnosis of a condition requiring long-term treatment (e.g. cancer, multiple sclerosis), covering expenses for initial exams/diagnosis, emergency surgery, and other urgently needed stabilizing treatment; or extenuating circumstances causing an unexpected, severe worsening of an existing condition
- Each cycle considers emergencies occurring within approximately the last six months (Cycle 38 covers emergencies from February 1, 2026 onward)
- Eligible medical emergencies may occur anywhere in the world, but treatment is only eligible for coverage if it occurs within the U.S. (including D.C., Tribal Nations, and U.S. Territories), within two weeks of the incident/injury/onset
Program Benefits & Awards
- One-time grant of up to $5,000 for recent, unexpected medical, dental, and mental health emergencies
- Grants are not intended for lost wages, living expenses, or medical care for individuals other than the artist
- Approximately $148,000 in total funding is distributed per cycle
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 15 September 2026
- Applicants Notified: 9 November 2026
- Eligible emergencies: occurring on or after February 1, 2026
Location
United States
Additional Details
- An application to this grant program is not a guarantee of an award, as need for emergency funding far outpaces available funds
- This program operates alongside NYFA's related Rauschenberg Dancer Emergency Grants program
- NYFA maintains a separate, regularly updated Emergency Resources page for artists seeking other forms of emergency support