What is the purpose of the grant programme?
A key objective of the New Carlsberg Foundation is to help ensure that Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese art can be experienced by a broad international audience and become part of new professional and cultural contexts.
When international art museums, kunsthalles and other exhibition venues create exhibitions, they make art widely accessible to the public and therefore play a crucial role in this regard.
The Foundation therefore supports art museums, kunsthalles and exhibition venues outside the Kingdom of Denmark in realizing original, professionally curated exhibitions featuring Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese artists, enabling their work to be presented to a broad contemporary audience.
The Foundation also recognizes that exhibitions outside the Kingdom of Denmark can help ensure that works by Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese artists are interpreted and situated within international art-historical and professional contexts. Such exhibitions can also strengthen the artists’ development, collaborations, visibility and recognition internationally.
In this context, the terms art and artist include visual art, craft and design. Accordingly, the programme is intended equally for exhibition venues dedicated to visual art, design and craft.
Who can apply?
- International exhibition venues for art, primarily recognized art museums, design museums, museums of craft and applied arts, kunsthalles, and non-commercial exhibition spaces with a significant profile and position within the international art world.
- Major biennials and similar exhibition formats held outside the Kingdom of Denmark.
Applications must be submitted by the exhibition venue itself, which is responsible for delivering the exhibition, administering any grant awarded, and completing the final reporting. Individual curators and artists are not eligible to apply.
Each institution may submit only one application per application deadline.
What is supported?
Funding may be used for expenses directly related to the realization of a specific exhibition, including:
- Research
- Travel and accommodation
- Transportation and insurance
- Exhibition design and scenography
- Installation
- Public engagement and communication
- Production of works by Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese artists
Where funding is requested for the production of new artworks, it must be clearly demonstrated that artists are paid fairly and provided with reasonable working conditions. Agreements regarding ownership, any future sale, and other relevant conditions for the work must also be established in advance.
What is not supported?
- Salaries for permanent staff and other operational costs associated with the venue’s regular activities
- Exhibition programmes or multiple exhibitions submitted within a single application
- Exhibitions opening before the relevant application deadline
- Publications: Exhibition catalogues and other publications, which must be applied for through the Foundation’s publication programme
- Open-call exhibitions
- Architecture exhibitions (publications on architecture and landscape architecture may be supported through the publications funding programme)
Financial framework
This programme forms part of a combined budget that supports exhibitions within the Kingdom of Denmark and international exhibitions of Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese art.
The Foundation determines the overall annual budget and allocates a portion specifically to international exhibitions of Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese art.
Total expenditure in recent years:
- 2025: DKK 38 million
- 2024: DKK 31 million
- 2023: DKK 24 million
The Foundation recognizes that funding structures, economic conditions and institutional circumstances vary between countries and regions and therefore assesses each application within its specific context.
Transparent budgets and financing plans are highly valued, demonstrating how the exhibition can be realized on a solid and realistic basis.
Co-financing is not required but is welcomed as an indication of the venue’s commitment and investment in the project.
Before you apply
Please note:
- Applications must be submitted by the exhibition venue; individual artists and curators are not eligible.
- Only one exhibition may be included per application.
- Each institution may submit only one application per deadline.
- Exhibitions opening before the application deadline are not eligible.
- Living artists must be compensated on fair terms.
- Applications that fail to meet the formal requirements or exceed the permitted scope will not be considered.
- Support for exhibition catalogues and other publications must be sought separately through the Foundation’s publication programme.
- For this programme, the terms art and artist include visual art, craft and design.
Assessment criteria
Applications are evaluated based on the following criteria:
- The exhibition venue has a recognized professional profile and position internationally.
- The exhibition demonstrates strong artistic and curatorial quality.
- The exhibition presents a compelling curatorial concept.
- The exhibition offers new and relevant perspectives on Danish, Greenlandic or Faroese art, design or craft.
- The exhibition engages with significant contemporary questions and developments.
- The exhibition positions Danish, Greenlandic or Faroese art, design or craft within an international context.
- The exhibition contributes to the visibility, development and international opportunities of the participating artists.
- The exhibition is supported by strong public engagement and communication efforts.
- Living artists receive fair remuneration.
- For historical exhibitions, particular emphasis is placed on whether the exhibition contributes new or significant perspectives on Danish, Greenlandic or Faroese art, design or craft within an international context.
Strategic considerations
The Foundation operates according to a philanthropic strategy that is reflected in practice through its support for grant applications. When assessing an application, the Foundation may therefore consider how a potential grant would support the strategy’s focus on:
DIVERSITY. The Foundation seeks broad representation within the arts. It may therefore be viewed positively if the exhibition highlights diverse artistic positions and practices, brings attention to underrepresented perspectives on Danish, Greenlandic, or Faroese art, represents different generations, media, geographies, and art histories, and contributes to a broader narrative of Danish, Greenlandic, or Faroese art in the world.
PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT. The Foundation focuses on making art accessible and meaningful to as many people as possible. It may therefore be viewed positively if the exhibition makes Danish, Greenlandic, or Faroese art relevant and engaging for local audiences, works consciously with interpretation and audience participation, creates new points of entry to the artists’ practices and works, contributes to dialogue between institution, artists, and audiences, and develops or challenges existing approaches to art mediation and presentation.
INTERNATIONALIZATION. The Foundation focuses on ensuring that the Danish art scene is part of the international art world. It may therefore be viewed positively if the exhibition strengthens the international visibility of Danish, Greenlandic, and Faroese artists, establishes new international collaborations and networks, promotes the exchange of artistic, curatorial, or institutional perspectives, and fosters dialogue between different artistic and cultural contexts.
EMERGING ARTISTS. The Foundation focuses on opportunities for the next generation in the art world. It may therefore be viewed positively if the exhibition provides significant international opportunities for Danish, Greenlandic, and Faroese artists early in their careers, introduces new Danish, Greenlandic, and Faroese artistic practices to international audiences, supports new curatorial collaborations, or creates long-term development opportunities for Danish, Greenlandic, and Faroese artists.
What must the application contain?
Information required for the application must be entered into the Foundation’s application system. Please therefore prepare the following materials:
- Project description, maximum 4,800 characters, addressing the programme’s assessment criteria and describing the exhibition concept, presenting the selection of artists and works, outlining audience engagement and interpretive strategies, and explaining the exhibition’s relationship to the institution’s profile, programme, and collection (where applicable).
- Budget and financing plan. The budget must be detailed and accompanied by a financing plan that corresponds to the budget and explains the exhibition’s overall financing, including any self-financing, named foundations, other grants, sponsors, and additional sources of income. The Foundation places particular emphasis on well-developed and transparent budgets and financing plans that provide a clear picture of the exhibition’s financial basis and demonstrate that the project can realistically be realized.
- CV or short biography for living artists. Maximum one page per artist. Where several artists are included, a prioritized selection should be provided.
- Illustrations. Visual material directly related to the exhibition, maximum five pages.
After submission
- Applicants can expect a decision approximately nine weeks after the application deadline.
- Applications are assessed against the programme requirements, criteria and strategic priorities.
- Projects that best meet these objectives may receive full or partial funding.
- Decisions are communicated through the online application system.
Reporting requirements
- Minor adjustments to the budget or exhibition format can generally be made without prior approval.
- Significant changes to the project’s content, scope or finances require approval from the Foundation before implementation.
- Upon completion of the exhibition, the venue must submit a final report including:
- A realized budget showing how the grant was spent.
- Documentation demonstrating that funds were used in accordance with the approved budget.
- A brief report describing how the exhibition was realized.
- An assessment of the extent to which the completed exhibition corresponded to the project description on which the funding decision was based.
Further inquiries, please contact:
Application consultant, Ane Bülow, anb@ncf.dk, (+45) 31 24 61 65
Application consultant, Klara Pagh, kpt@ncf.dk, (+45) 61 69 21 12
