Art Commission

Would you like to commission a work of art that is accessible to the public, but are not familiar with the ins and outs of commissioning art? Potential clients who are not situated in the museum or professional art platform circuit can first apply for funding to help develop their project. This will help you gain professional expertise for the creation of a plan or for covering the costs of the study or sketch phase of the commission.

• Information from the commissioning party concerning your own profile.
• The plan, including a motivation for the choice of the artist and the commissioned work, the way in which the collaboration offers added value for both artist and commissioning party, a study sketch of the work, and a presentation plan that explains how a suitable audience will be reached.
• Explanation of the work of the artist.
• Curriculum vitae of the artist.
• Visual documentation of the work of the artist, including a plan or study sketch.
• (General) budget with financing plan, including an explanation of financial agreements made between the client and the artist, with a realistic artist fee made available by the commissioning party.
• Where applicable: long-term plans for the work, such as a possible purchase after a longer working relationship between a museum and an artist.

In the case of a one-off commission or long-term collaboration:

• Your own role and qualities as a commissioning party
  

  • Do you inspire sufficient confidence that as a commissioning party, you are able to realise successful, publicly accessible art? Consider e.g. your vision regarding commissions, your organisational qualities, expertise and the fulfilment of your role as commissioning party.
  • In the case that you have previously been a commissioning party: Were earlier commissions for artists and/or collaborations positively received? If so, this will be considered favourably.
  • If this is your first commission, this will be considered favourably.

• The quality of the artist’s/artists’ work to date*

  • Does the artist/do the artists have a distinctive artistic vision and is this convincingly conveyed in previous work?
  • What is the quality of the oeuvres? Consider e.g. the significance of the oeuvre, the inherent imaginative strength, the command of the selected mediums and/or techniques and the work’s power of expression.
  • Do the oeuvres show development appropriate to the phase of the professional practice?

• The quality of the artist’s cultural entrepreneurship*

  • Is the artist actively focused on developing their practice, entering into collaborations, entering into the public eye and finding an audience for their work?

• The significance of the commission

  • Is the commission significant in relation to the context within which the work will be presented? Consider e.g. the local and regional context or a topical, social context.

• The quality of the commission

  • Are the artistic principles of the plan of an appropriate quality and are they convincingly conveyed in the planned work?
  • Is the plan of an appropriate quality? Consider e.g. the significance of the plan, the inherent imaginative strength, the command of the selected mediums and/or techniques and the plan’s power of expression.
  • Is the plan realistic?

• Visibility of the work and the quality of the presentation plan

  • Is the work sufficiently visible to the audience?
  • Does the plan include a convincing strategy to reach a relevant audience?

*The background and context of the professional practice will be taken into consideration during the assessment, e.g. schooling, cultural context and the nature and duration of the professional practice.

In the case of development:

• Your own role and qualities as a commissioning party

  • Do you inspire sufficient confidence that as a commissioning party, you are able to realise successful, publicly accessible art? Consider e.g. your vision regarding commissions, your organisational qualities, expertise and the fulfilment of your role as commissioning party.
  • In the case that you have previously been a commissioning party: Were earlier commissions for artists and/or collaborations positively received? If so, this will be considered favourably.
  • If this is your first commission, this will be considered favourably.

• The significance of the commission

  • Is the plan significant in relation to the context of the project? Consider e.g. the local and regional context or a topical, social context.

• The quality of the plan for the commission

  • Are the artistic principles in the plan of an appropriate quality and does this inspire confidence that it will result in a good commission?
  • If applicable: is there sufficient confidence in the expertise of the involved professionals?

Information about the commissioning party (individual max. 2 pages / organisation max. 5 pages)

• Describe your own profile as the person or organization offering the commission. Give an explanation of the organization, the institution or the initiative. Also describe any commissions already given to artists and/or possible collaborations with cultural institutions ( for example art platforms or museums). Outline how the organisation works towards the production of publicly accessible art. Consider e.g. your vision regarding commissions, your organisational qualities, expertise and the fulfilment of your role as a commissioning party.
• If you are applying on behalf of a cultural institution, briefly describe the mission, vision and objective of the organization, its programme of activities and/or collection. Provide insight into the public reach and visibility of the activities and, if applicable, the collection.

Plan (15 pages maximum)

• The development stage of a project on commission

  Describe and motivate:

  • The priniples and objective of the commission or long-term collaboration.
  • What you want to develop or research.
  • The context of the project.
  • What kind of expertise you are engaging to achieve this.

• A commissioned work of art or long-term collaboration

  Describe and motivate:

  • The substance of the concept and the objective of the commission.
  • How the collaboration brings added value for the oeuvre of the artist and for yourself as the commissioning party.
  • The selection of the artist and the commission.
  • The context of the project.
  • The study sketch.
  • Long-term plans for the work, including potential purchase.
  • Your own contribution to both content and financing.
  • Financial and business agreements with the artist about fee, ownership, legal rights and other relevant issues.
  • The visibility of the work and the presentation plan outlining how the public will be reached.

Applying codes

All cultural organizations in the Netherlands subscribe to the Dutch Fair Practice Code, the Governance Code Cultuur (Governance Code for Culture) and the Code Diversiteit & Inclusie (Code on Diversity & Inclusion), which automatically means that the institution or organization applies the guideline for artists’ fees.

Explanation of the work (1 page maximum per artist)

Describe the artistic vision, how this is expressed in the work, and the selected mediums and/or techniques. How has the work developed, and what has been done to achieve this development? Also state how the entrepreneurship is furthered, such as through entering into collaborations, entering into the public eye and finding an audience for the work. Mention any possible collaborative connections.

Curriculum Vitae (2 pages maximum)

Submit a brief curriculum vitae with the most important information about the professional practice, notably focused on the last 1 to 4 years, such as exhibitions (indicate solo or group), commissions, awards and publications, indicating the year of each. Also mention associated activities, such as teaching, advisory or jury positions. Include all of these documents in a single PDF.

Visual documentation

Create a single PDF including visual documentation of work from the last 1 to 4 years, in no more than 20 digital images (total maximum of 100 MB). It is important here that the documentation is representative of the work and relevant to the application. Ensure that the materials used are well distinguished. You can also upload sound, video or film fragments. In that case, the total size and duration of the submitted documentation, including both the visual presentation and separate fragments, can be no more than 300 MB and no more than 15 minutes in duration. Click here for technical specifications for your uploaded documentation.

Please note: In the case of new work, the (visual) documentation material is a mandatory part of your application. If you don’t upload any documentation material, your application cannot be processed.

Documentation list (2 pages maximum)

Include a numbered documentation list (in PDF) that corresponds with your visual documentation, with descriptions or captions for the relevant images, sound, video or film clips. (For example: 01, Title, 2020, loop 2 min.)

Please note: do not use hyperlinks in the PDF with (visual) documentation material and in the documentation list. We cannot accept hyperlinks (to web pages for example) because the supplied image material may not be adjusted during the processing of the application.

Where applicable:

Statement from the participating artist or artists

This must include permission for the application, including mention that the artist is aware of and in agreement with the financial structure of the commission. Include all of these declarations in a single PDF.

A recent (less than 1 year old) and valid registration with the Kamer van Koophandel (KvK, Chamber of Commerce)

Bank details

If your application is approved, we need your bank account number in order to transfer funds. If the organisation has not previously submitted an application to the Mondriaan Fund or if the account number has changed since the previous application, please upload a recent bank statement clearly stating the name of the account holder and IBAN/bank account number of the applying institution. Applicants established in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom can provide a bank statement or other document from the bank stating the name of the account holder and bank account number.

If you have a business bank account for your one-person business, include a recent (less than 3 months old) copy of your registration with the Kamer van Koophandel (KvK, Chamber of Commerce), showing that you are the sole proprietor of the account.

Personal Records Database (BRP) extract

If the artist or artists do not have Dutch nationality, include a recent extract, no more than 1 year old, from the Basisregistratie Personen (BRP) where they live, showing that they reside in the Netherlands.

Diploma, degree or school deregistration

If the artist or artists have been working professionally for less than 3 years, we need a copy of their diploma or degree from the arts educational institution, or else a statement from the art school indicating that the artist left before graduating. Include these in a single PDF.

Global budget

If the application concerns a long-term collaboration, a global budget and financing plan is required. It must include a realistic honorarium for the artist, to be paid by the client giving the commission, along with production costs and expenses, for example for transport, travel, lodging, etc. It should also include a declaration that the project could not be realized without assistance from the Mondriaan Fund. Guidelines for artists’ fees must be adhered to.

Specified budget with financing plan

Click here for an explanation of budgets for institutions or organizations (in Dutch).

If the application concerns a concrete commission or a development stipend, we request a specified budget and financing plan that covers the total, and not just the segment for which you are applying for assistance from the Mondriaan Fund. This also needs to include a realistic fee for the artist, along with production costs and expenses, in which the guidelines of the Dutch Rijksgebouwendienst (Government Buildings Agency) or guidelines for artists’ fees are respected. Arts and heritage institutes may not apply for the artists’ fees.

Letters confirming contributions from third parties

Include all letters in a single PDF.

Price estimates covering crucial entries in the budget

Include all cost estimates in a single PDF.

An explanation of the long-term plans for the work, including possible purchase