Black Rock City Honoraria Program

The application process for our 2025 grant cycle is now CLOSED.

“Burden of the Beast” by Walker Babington, 2023 (Photo by Walker Babington)

Every year Burning Man Arts issues a small number of grants for the purpose of partially funding artworks for installation on the open playa at the Burning Man event in Black Rock City. We look for work that stands on its own as a physical, sculptural installation, independent of performances or activities.

If you’re interested in applying for funding for an art installation bound for the annual Burning Man event in Black Rock City, you must first submit a Letter of Intent (LOI).

It’s important to know that making artwork for Burning Man is very challenging, due to the difficulties inherent in creating anything in a harsh wilderness setting with unpredictable weather, high winds, and lots of playa dust. You’re definitely going to want to know what you’re getting into (and for this reason, we recommend that you attend Burning Man once before applying for funding). Read up on what it takes to attend and make art for Burning Man:

Being a Black Rock City Honorarium artist requires a significant time investment, including several mandatory meetings and the ability to adhere to firm deadlines. Please thoroughly read What to Expect before submitting a Letter of Intent.

General Grant Program FAQs

What is the process for applying for a grant?

The first step is to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI). Each year, the LOI opens for applications in mid-October and submissions are due mid-November. LOI notifications will be sent before the end of the calendar year and selected applicants will have until mid-January to submit a full proposal. Late submissions, or submissions that have not gone through the LOI process, will not be considered. We will only review one version of a proposal, so make sure it’s your final version. If you have more than one concept you’d like us to consider, you are welcome to submit more than one LOI, and then potentially submit more than one art grant proposal if your LOIs are accepted.

What are your criteria for awarding grants?

Our selection criteria include:

Interactivity with participants and the environment. Interactive art transforms participants into active contributors to the creative process. A truly interactive piece is completed by participants’ engagement with it. Interaction may be achieved in a variety of ways. The artwork may be activated by people or nature, may be physically entered, may impart a gift or receive a gift, or may act as a social environment or an environment for play. Be prepared for unexpected forms of interaction with your artwork. Occasionally, just encountering an artwork can be interactive, for instance if it’s spread out over a field of space to be explored. Some art objects are amazing enough on their own just to be perceived, and we’ve found that almost any artwork can incorporate an interactive aspect with some planning and creativity.
Visual appeal. We value visual impact and beauty. The installation must be an artwork in and of itself. If you are proposing to install an interactive concept or activity that will be housed within a larger structure, the structure itself must be visually appealing as well.
The impact of your art. We want as many participants to see and enjoy your art as possible. This does not mean we only fund large art–in fact, we seek to fund a wide range of scale, complexity, and creative expression. We encourage low-tech solutions and we delight in simple but clever concepts. We select installations that can have a large impact, regardless of their scale, and we prefer to fund installations that allow more than a few people at a time to interact, ideally during both day and night.
Diversity and sustainability. Burning Man Project cares deeply about Radical Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity (R.I.D.E.) and environmental sustainability. We are interested in supporting projects and teams that reflect these values.
The thoroughness of your proposal. We will not consider incomplete proposals. If you don’t submit detailed information, for example a thorough budget or descriptive images, it is difficult for the grant committee to fully understand or evaluate your project.

Who is eligible to apply to the grant program?

Individuals, artist collectives or groups, and established 501(c)(3) organizations are all eligible and welcome to apply.
We fund art installations from artists across the globe; there are no geographic restrictions on who can apply.
If you’ve applied for or received a Burning Man grant previously, you may apply again.
We recommend that you attend the Burning Man event at least once before applying, but it’s not required; we may fund artists who have not yet been to Black Rock City.

What kind of art does not get funded?

The following will not receive an honorarium:

Performances, activities or workshops
DJs and amplified sound
Domes, tents, teepees, stages or prefabricated commercial structures
Artwork containing beds or other sleeping spaces
Murals (that are not part of another sculptural artwork)
Food or drink-focused experiences
Art that incorporates trash cans
Mutant bikes
Mutant vehicles
Theme camps, or art installations placed in theme camps or theme camp frontage
Anything illegal in the state of Nevada or prohibited by federal law. While Burning Man is a private event, we are still governed by the laws of the state of Nevada and the event takes place on federal land.

Where can I find a full list of the questions on the LOI and full proposal, to understand what’s required in the application?

All of the questions on the BRC Honoraria LOI form are available in a preview document. The questions on the BRC Honoraria Full Proposal form are also available in a preview document, but only those invited from the LOI stage will be able to submit a full proposal. You can create your own copy of the preview document to draft your responses before entering them in the online form.

Grant Program Timing FAQs

LOI-specific FAQs

Do I need to have a Burner Profile to submit an LOI?

Yes. Our art grant application portal is accessed through Burner Profiles. If you don’t already have a Burner Profile, from the landing page please click “Login” and you’ll be brought to an option to register for a new account. Please note that we cannot accept grant applications via email; you must submit an LOI via Burner Profiles. If your LOI is accepted, you can then submit a full proposal via the custom link provided in your LOI acceptance email.

Will I have a chance to include images with my LOI?

Yes. In fact, we require you to submit at least one image which can be a drawing, sketch, photo, etc. You may also submit one video in addition to any images. Your images can be as simple or complex as you need them to be; the goal is to help the Grant Committee fully understand your proposed concept.

You will be asked to disclose if you’ve used AI to generate your image(s) or video. We don’t penalize artists for using AI to generate images, and we also encourage other methods as well to get a more personal representation of your concept and vision.

If you have a created a maquette or small model, please submit a photo or video of it since we no longer accept physical maquettes.

Can I start the LOI application and then come back to it later?

Yes. Once you log into your Burner Profile and start an application, you will have an opportunity to Save & Continue after filling out the preliminary info about your project. You’ll get an email with a unique link that will bring you back to your LOI where you left off so you can come back to your draft application anytime before the deadline to continue working on it. Note that incomplete or draft applications will not be accepted; you must submit the application for it to be considered complete.

Financial FAQs

How much money should I ask for?

Our annual budget for art grants on playa, including the Temple Grant, is $1.45 million. We typically fund approximately 75 honoraria art projects. Grants over $20,000 are rare. Due to the number of proposals we receive we are not able to negotiate potential changes for each application.

The full proposal form includes a link to a Budget Template which will help you articulate and calculate all the possible costs of creating your project, as well as provide you with a clear understanding of which expenses are eligible for Honoraria funding.

We strongly recommend that you request partial funding, since Burning Man typically funds 40-60% of the proposed total budget. You’ll have an opportunity on the application to specify the total budget and the amount requested. For example: tell us that your project will cost $40K and that you’re asking us for $20K, and that you’ll fundraise the balance.

Another option is to provide budget tiers on the full proposal. You can propose different tiers as a way to offer options for the percentage of funding for your project or to propose different scopes – for example, a small, medium, and large version of your project at corresponding funding levels. Please be clear what each tier would include. You can also use tiers if you have one version of your project and you’d like to present options for the percentage of funding for your request, for example 20%, 40% or 60% of your total budget.

If your funding request is $30K or higher, we strongly recommend that you provide budget tier options at a range of levels, including something at a lower threshold if possible.

What expenses are eligible for funding?

The Budget Template we provide explicitly lists which expense categories are eligible and ineligible. For quick reference, here are some general expense categories and their eligibility:

ELIGIBLE:

Materials and supplies, including tools, consumables, hardware, fuel, and Leave No Trace supplies
Transportation of your art installation to and from the playa
Speciality services such as welding, laser cutting, etc.
Build space rental

INELIGIBLE:

Burning Man tickets
Artist and crew travel
Crew food
Camp supplies
Artist fees
Ground anchors (we can provide these, but you are required to provide hardware and cabling to secure your piece to the ground anchors for stability)
Post-event expenses such as storage
Legal expenses such as LLC formation or insurance

What about including the cost of fuel for my flame effects and generators?

It’s very important that you include the estimated cost of fuel for any flame effects or generators used as a part of your installation, and the estimated number of gallons for these items should be part of your budget. Please use cost estimates for fuel that relate to rates normally experienced in the time of year that Burning Man occurs — for instance, the cost of gasoline typically increases in the month of August.

*Note that there is NOT a power grid available for honoraria artists to use; you must supply your own power source.

When and how will I receive money?

This will vary slightly from project to project, based on when each artist submits certain deliverables. You will be asked to sign a contract prior to receiving any funding. In general, artists receive an initial payment of 55% of the total award within 2 weeks of signing the contract, and a second payment of 30% of the grant 30 days after the first payment. We withhold a performance deposit (typically 15%) until after the event to ensure that you comply with Leaving No Trace and to serve as a credit account to cover the cost of certain resources you may purchase on playa, such as water or decomposed granite. Note that the funds you receive for your honorarium are taxable and require a 1099 tax form that we will provide to you.

Event FAQs

I want to burn my art piece at Burning Man. That’s guaranteed, right?

We know it’s Burning Man, but it is not guaranteed that you can burn your artwork at the event. There are a limited number of slots for Level 1 Open Fire (sculptures burned in place on playa) burn events, due to the environmental implications and the resources needed to manage each burn.

If you are interested in burning your project, you can indicate that on the full proposal and must also share alternate plans if you are not selected to burn the piece, including your plans for disassembly and removal from the playa post-event.

How does my art get placed on playa? How do I find my location?

We work with artists to identify where their art installation ideally should be placed on the open playa. We strive to support the artist’s goals and place their artwork where it best serves their artistic vision, while also taking into consideration the landscape and the full experience of participants. Ultimately placement is at the discretion of the Art Department. Once you arrive on playa, our volunteer staff will let you know your placement and take you to its assigned location.

Other FAQs

What other benefits or help can I receive from Burning Man?

Aside from the essential personal satisfaction gained from creating your work, as well as showing it and sharing it with tens of thousands of very enthusiastic people, Burning Man can also furnish you with other opportunities. Art installations, funded or not, will be featured on our website and other social media and in our Black Rock City publications, including the WhatWhereWhen guide. And when you receive an Honorarium, you join a thriving community of artists who share resources, guidance, and advice.

Can I use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to generate my LOI or full proposal images?

Yes, we accept AI-generated images. We also encourage the use of other methods because they tend to reflect a more personal vision. We love images that convey your personality and unique self-expression, and there are a variety of tools you might use to create such images, from hand-drawn sketches to 3D renderings. What is most important is that the images you provide give a clear sense of your concept and vision.

Please note that you will be asked to disclose if AI was used to generate any of your image(s) or video. For the full proposal, if you choose to submit an AI-generated image, we recommend you submit additional image(s) created via other methods to offer more visual diversity.

If you are interested in applying for a grant, please see our Letter of Intent submission guidelines.