Oregon Media Arts Fellowship 2026: Two $5,000 Grants for Oregon Digital Artists
The Oregon Media Arts Fellowship is accepting applications from media artists who are legally domiciled in Oregon, United States. The award is provided by the Oregon Arts Commission and overseen by the Portland Art Museum's Center for an Untold Tomorrow (PAM CUT). It supports outstanding media artists in creating or completing new work or work already in progress.
Two $5,000 fellowships for media artists
Two fellowships of $5,000 each will be awarded. No matching funds are required. Funding is competitive, and the organiser notes that not every eligible applicant will receive support. The official guidance says awards are paid within two months of award notification.
This opportunity concerns artistic practice using moving images, sound, digital technologies and time-based or interactive media. The programme explicitly welcomes animation, experimental and documentary film, video art, sound and audio work, web-based art, digital works, immersive and interactive media, and augmented, virtual and mixed reality. Digital artists should choose work samples that clearly demonstrate an original artistic practice rather than assuming a particular technology alone establishes suitability.
Who is eligible? Oregon residence matters
Applicants must be at least 18 years old. They must currently reside in Oregon and have been legally domiciled in the state for at least one year when applying. This is a local US opportunity for Oregon artists, not an international open call. Citizenship is not identified as the deciding criterion on the published eligibility page; the explicit geographical test is current Oregon residency and domicile.
Applicants must not be enrolled, full time or part time, in a creative degree-bearing programme. They also must not have received this Media Arts Fellowship or any Oregon Arts Commission Fellowship within the preceding five years. Only one fellowship application may be submitted per year.
Joint applications are allowed, but one joint application counts as a single award: a successful team would split the $5,000 among its members. Artists working collaboratively should review how each collaborator meets the programme's rules before submitting.
Application materials and work samples
The online application asks for three short written responses: an artistic statement describing your media-arts practice; your intent, motivation or core themes; and the directions you hope to explore in future work. The guidelines specify a maximum of 1,500 characters for each response.
Submit an artist resume as a PDF of no more than two pages, together with up to ten work samples. The artist resume and samples must be accessible through one publicly viewable URL, such as a shared Dropbox or Google Drive folder or Vimeo album. For audio and video material combined, the recommended submissions must not exceed 20 minutes in total. Ensure that reviewers can access any password-protected files and understand your role in collaborative productions.
The fellowship review considers artistic and aesthetic quality, sustained professional achievement, and the potential for future contributions to media art. Samples of completed and in-progress artistic work should be clearly described and presented for assessment.
Application deadline: November 15, 2026
The organiser's application form specifies a deadline of November 15, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. Applicants submitting from outside Oregon should confirm the relevant time zone on the official application page and avoid filing at the last minute. The application is available directly on the Portland Art Museum website.
Official information and submission
This article provides a summary. To avoid misunderstandings, please be sure to check the official page for full details.
Information verified: October 12, 2026. Eligibility jurisdiction: Oregon, United States. Publication language: English.
A related competition for digital artists
Aion Laboratory separately organises the Aion Digital Art Prize for digital and media art. Its eligibility, submission calendar and entry terms are independent of the Oregon Media Arts Fellowship and must be checked separately.
Publish an arts opportunity
Paid submissions of arts calls and opportunities can be requested via Ise-Shima Art, the company behind Aion Laboratory. The enquiry form is on the company's English-language Ise-Shima Art site.