Foundation News

The James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation opened applications for the Spark Award for Oregon Artists today. The Award will grant $25,000 each to 20 visual artists in 2026. Detailed information about who is eligible to apply, the application process and available resources can be found at www.millerfound.org/spark and if you are, or know, an artist who is ready to apply now, the application is live here. The Spark Award is currently a three-year pilot program that provides direct support to midcareer artists. Through this program, the Foundation is awarding grants of $25,000 each to 60 individual artists in total (20 grants per year) across artistic disciplines. The Foundation begins accepting applications today, and artists can apply until 5pm PDT on June 3rd.

In 2024, the Spark Award was granted to 20 performing artists, and you can read more about them here. In 2025, the Spark Award was granted to 20 media and literary artists, and you can read more about them here. The Miller Foundation provides application support for visual artists here with grant writing tips, guidance on selecting work samples, and more.

An open Info Session will take place on April 22 at 4:30pm PDT, and registration is here. This session will be posted within a week to our website for later viewing. In addition, Foundation staff will host an Open Support Session on May 27 at 4pm PDT; please register here.  Foundation staff will also offer 1:1 Spark Support via 15-minute meetings by phone or Zoom for active applicants, to provide individualized application support. Advance sign-up is requested here.

Get in touch with us at artists@millerfound.org with any questions about the application process!