Golga Oscar (Yup’ik), Bag, 2022-2023.
From upcoming Seal in the Everchanging Circumpolar, RISD Museum, Providence.
Ethel Wallace (1886–1968), Velvet gown, ca. 1920. Collection of the late Kristina Barbara Johnson from Ethel Wallace: Modern Rebel, Michener Art Museum, Doylestown.
BOLD: Color from Test Tube to Textile, Science History Institute, Philadelphia.
The majority of the Coby Foundation’s support is directed towards exhibitions and programs that combine excellent scholarship and effective interpretation. The Foundation funds a wide range of historical and contemporary topics across the arts and humanities, all of them for public benefit. Projects may include research and documentation, conservation, publications, and associated digital projects. The guidelines for Exhibition Implementation and Exhibition Planning are below.
The Coby Foundation occasionally supports peer-reviewed fashion- and textile-related monographs and collections of essays from non-profit presses in our region. Please note requirements under “for catalogues” in the Exhibition Implementation guidelines.
In all cases, the Foundation funds only the direct costs of projects.
The Coby Foundation offers grants for exhibition implementation and exhibition planning.
If you plan to apply for exhibition implementation, please follow these instructions for the formal application:
The Foundation requires one printed paper copy and one e-mailed PDF, each including the Cover Sheet and the requested organizational information described here. Please note that applicants need to include an audited financial statement and IRS letter in only the printed copy of the application. Do not use a presentation binder or dividers; a binder clip is sufficient. The application narrative should use 12-point type size. Addresses for physical and email delivery are below.
Implementation applications must include:
- a description of the exhibition, its goals, the audience for whom the project is intended and interpretive strategies to be used;
- the dates (months and year(s)) of the proposed exhibition;
- an explanation of the structure of the exhibition, including sections and examples of objects for each;
- the exhibition team, for example, curator, scholarly consultants, exhibition designer and educator with one-paragraph bios for all;
- ten color visuals with captions;
- checklist of the works to be included;
- if funds are being requested for conservation by a contract conservator, a treatment proposal, estimate and illustration for each object;
- a description of exhibition-related programs and the audience for each;
- for catalogues: table of contents, specifications, number of copies, co-publisher or distribution plan. The Foundation also accepts plans for electronic publications;
- project budget, including income and expenses;
- other organizational information as detailed in the Common Application instructions.
Preliminary Inquiries
Prospective applicants should submit a preliminary inquiry to the Coby Foundation’s executive director, Margi Hofer, at margi@cobyfoundation.org. Please provide a two-page description and budget with income and expenses.
Please direct applications to: