The Foundation for the Contemporary Arts offers individual "Grants to Artists" in the fields of dance, music or sound, theater or performance art, poetry and the visual arts. A $25,000 unrestricted award is presented to individuals selected by their peers in a formal two-stage process. In 2010, the foundation awarded ten grants. Most recipients reside in the United States, although international applicants are not prohibited. According to the foundation, the grants are intended "to provide recipients with the financial means to engage in whatever artistic endeavors they wish to pursue, to research and develop ideas, embark on projects, and complete projects already under way." Recipients report on their experience at the end of the grant year.
The National Endowment for the Arts limits direct grants to individuals to specific categories, like literature and folk art. It also offers some individual grants for artists through the U.S. government grant sitem Grants.gov. This site, which acts as a clearinghouse for all U.S. government grants, allows artists to search for federal grants beyond those awarded by the NEA, some of which may include opportunities for individual artists. New grant opportunities are updated weekly.
A Room of Her Own (AROHO), a foundation for women writers and artists, offers a grant of $50,000 to one individual every two years. On its website, AROHO says that the award was, "Created according to Virginia Woolf’s tenet that a woman must have a room of her own if she is to write." Talent and motivation are key requirements for applicants. The award was on hiatus in 2010, but other, smaller prizes remained active, including the $1,000 Orlando Prizes for writers and $1,000 To the Lighthouse Poetry Prize.
The Foundation Center is a non-profit organization that lists and manages grants for more than 550 foundations across the United States. Grants for individuals--including individual artists--are listed in the organization's "Foundation Grants to Individuals Online" database. Database access requires a $19.95 membership fee, but is available free at many public libraries. It adds new opportunities daily.