The Visual Artist and Craft Makers Awards (VACMA) are a programme of small grants schemes delivered with a range of local authorities and art agencies across Scotland to support Scotland-based visual artists and craft makers in their creative development.
Established by Creative Scotland, these partnerships give support at a local level and work with local panels to offer funds to support practitioners at all stages of their career who have demonstrated a commitment to their work and in developing their practice through new work, new skills or new opportunities.
Applicants can apply for fixed bursaries of £500 and £750.
Applicants should apply to their local scheme using the application form for that area. Links to each scheme are provided below.
There are two deadlines:
Please check with your local scheme to see if they are running both deadlines.
We worked with partners in 24 local authorities across Scotland in 2020/21. We are always looking to expand our network of Local Authority partners. If you are interested in developing a local scheme please contact visualarts@creativescotland.com.
See the links below for further information about local schemes in your area. Please note, the dates you can apply from may vary across local authorities.
| Local Authority | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Aberdeen City | 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Aberdeenshire | 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Angus | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Argyll and Bute | 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Ayrshire | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Dundee | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| East Lothian | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Edinburgh | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Fife and Perth & Kinross | 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 | |
| Glasgow | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Highlands, Moray, and Western Isles | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| North Lanarkshire | 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Orkney | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Renfrewshire | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| Shetland Islands | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
| South of Scotland | 5pm, Tuesday 26 October 2021 5pm, Tuesday 1 February 2022 |
Whenever schemes are launched or deadlines are imminent, these will also be posted on Creative Scotland’s Opportunities website. Also follow the Twitter hashtag #VACMAScotland for the latest announcements.
These schemes run alongside our support for individual artists, available through the Open Fund for Individuals.
If you're interested in applying, make sure you download the Artist Checklist (opens a PDF).
We have also developed some FAQs for the VACMA scheme. If you have a question that isn’t covered in this document or the guidelines, please contact your local scheme directly.
In October 2020 we held two free online VACMA Information Sessions, hosted by local partner representatives and members of Creative Scotland’s Visual Arts Team. You can view a recording of the presentation section of the Information Session below.
