image
1

Detail of the fountain in front of Hamburg Town Hall

Hamburg starts post-pandemic scholarship program for freelance artists

Hamburg starts post-pandemic scholarship program for freelance artists

City authorities will award 550 future scholarships in the fields of visual arts, literature and music to boost the recovering sector

Hamburg announced that they will offer 550 scholarships to freelance literature, music and visual artists. The city wants to support its creative industry, one of the sectors that were hit particularly hard by the pandemic. The programme should cost about 3.3 million euros, with support for artists coming through on a one-off basis.

In addition to the city’s cultural authorities, the Hamburg Cultural Foundation, the professional association of visual artists and the Hamburg State Music Council are also getting involved. The application period runs until 31 August 2021.

Speeding up a post-pandemic recovery

With the loosening of pandemic restrictions, many businesses are going back to normal and the economy in Europe as a whole is recovering quite quickly. At the same time, the cultural sector suffered a major blow and continues to struggle in the post-Covid months. This is partly because its main contributors are freelance artists, that have no social benefits to fall back on.

This is the main reason behind the city’s decision, with the focus being on speeding up the sector's recovery while investing in its future development. The 550 grants will be for 6,000 euros each, with 350 going for visual artists, 100 for literature and another 100 for music.

Senator for Culture Carsten Brosda was quoted in a press release, saying: “With our future scholarships, we would like to support artists in implementing new projects despite the difficult past few months. At the same time, we want to show them recognition and respect because they enrich our lives with their art.”

Gesa Engelschall, managing director of the Hamburg Cultural Foundation, added: "The future scholarships enable artists to work on their projects in a concentrated manner and without being forced to produce."

Newsletter

Back

Growing City

All

Smart City

All

Green City

All

Social City

All

New European Bauhaus

All

Interviews

All

ECP 2021 Winner TheMayorEU

Latest