Fine Arts Venture Fund

Since 2014, The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts has supported students through the Fine Arts Venture Fund. The Fine Arts Venture Fund (FAVF) allows students to engage in a grant-seeking process, in which they develop a unique art project, write a grant proposal, and, for the semi-finalists in the process, present their work to funders.

PAFA is committed not only to teaching excellence in the studio but also the business practices to succeed professionally as an artist. This new Fine Arts Venture Fund trains our students to be intentional in developing their careers and to compete for opportunities while also helping fund their near-term goals. —David Brigham, Former PAFA President and CEO

Potential Venture Fund recipients submit proposals with a budget breakdown of their funding request, along with their resume and images of their work, which is then reviewed by the Venture Fund board.

Presenting to a panel of people who work in business and not the arts teaches students how to communicate differently.

Venture Fund recipients have used their award for various projects:

• SaraNoa Mark purchased woodcutting tools to create a large-scale book composed of carved paper.
• Caitlin Clements memorialized a poem in acid on sheets of copper that would gradually oxidize over time until the poem would disappear.
• A group of MFA students opened the artist gallery, AUTOMAT Collective.

PAFA has awarded students more than $148, 000 through the Fine Arts Venture Fund.