Author Grants (Small)

Author Grants (Small) are intended to make possible short-form written pieces (e.g. articles, chapters, essays etc.) on the subject of British art and architecture which would otherwise not appear, or which would appear in reduced specification.

A maximum grant of £1,000 is available for a short-form written piece to be published online or in print by a scholarly journal or publication. This grant can go towards supporting the following costs:

• licensing of images, reproduction and copyright costs
• commissioning of new photography
• commissioning of graphics

A maximum of £1,000 will be paid as a lump sum directly to the individual. Only one grant application can be made per individual.

Our funding programme supports research, educational activities and the dissemination of knowledge in the fields of British art and architectural history, from the medieval period to the present day and across the spectrum of relevant geographical and cultural contexts. Our remit is broadly defined and adapts as the interests of those working in our field change. It encompasses art made in Britain or by British artists, but is not solely limited to art made, or artists from, within the geographical boundaries of the British Isles. Rather we understand the field of British art studies to encompass a broad range of subjects and topics related to the artistic and cultural histories of Britain, past and present.

We do not offer grants and fellowships in field archaeology, the current practice of architecture or the performing arts. Applications in the fields of photography, performance, film and digital media will need to demonstrate their relevance to British art studies.

Only applications from individuals concerning the publication of an article or short-form written piece on the subject of British art and architecture will be considered for this award. Institutional applicants looking for support for costs concerning exhibition catalogues can apply for the Exhibition Publication Grant and individual applicants seeking support for costs concerning long-form publications (e.g. monographs) can apply for the Author Grant (Large).

The written piece should be ready to publish within two years from January 2026. The PMC does not make any retrospective awards for pieces already published nor will it accept applications for funding for pieces due to be published before the end of 2025.

The Author Grants (Small) are intended to support individual image costs as listed in the Scope section of this guidance. New or revised editions, translations of works already published and costs relating to open access publications are not eligible under this programme of funding.

For further questions on eligibility please contact the Grants & Fellowships Manager at [email protected].

Author Grants are awarded in our autumn round of funding.

The next round of Author Grants (Small) will open for applications on Monday 4 August and close Tuesday 30 September.

To apply for an Author Grant (Small), you must use our online system at grants.paul-mellon-centre.ac.uk. Once registered you will be able to fill out the online application form (an example of which can be downloaded below) and provide the details of one referee. The option to provide the referee details will be available once the application is submitted. We will contact the nominated referee with details on how they can submit their reference which must be completed through our online system and must be no more than five-hundred words.

The referee should have first-hand knowledge of the author’s academic career or the subject area for which funding is being sought. The Advisory Council would like to be informed of the originality of the subject matter and the applicant’s suitability to pursue such research.

Applications and nominated referee details must be received by the application deadline; the referee has until Friday 10th October to complete their reference.

• • A copy of the publication in which the article or short-form piece will appear must be sent to the PMC on publication.
  • The PMC must be acknowledged within the published work and guidelines on this will be provided to all successful applicants.
  • The full terms and conditions of grant awards can be read here.