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Apply for an interest-free loan to develop, create, and present new work or projects such as exhibitions, residencies, publications, prototypes, websites, or equipment purchases.
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Get matched →Fonds Kwadraat supports talented artists through interest-free loans as a revolving fund. Money is loaned out and repaid in monthly installments over three years, then lent to another artist. The program has historically supported notable artists including Ed van der Elsken, Claudy Jongstra, Fiona Tan, Geert Mul, and Ratri Notosudirdjo. Since 2014, CBK Rotterdam has partnered with Fonds Kwadraat to offer Rotterdam-based visual artists additional financial space for developing new work.
Rotterdam-based artists registered with CBK Rotterdam and Rotterdam-based artist initiatives.
Loans support developing, creating, and presenting new work or projects, including exhibitions or presentations (domestic or international), residencies, photobooks or artist books, prototypes, websites, or equipment purchases.
Maximum loan is €6,000. Loans of €3,000 or more require collateral equal to 50% of the requested amount (e.g., €2,000 collateral for a €4,000 loan; €3,000 for the €6,000 maximum). Final-year students of art and design academies may request loans up to €800. All loans are repaid within a maximum of three years.
Apply digitally via the Fonds Kwadraat website, specifying that you are using the CBK Rotterdam x Fonds Kwadraat scheme. A committee evaluates applications based on professionalism (curriculum vitae), quality of work, and project quality (artistic merit, feasibility, financial justification). After approval, you sign an agreement for monthly automatic payments.
Artists who received a Development & Research (O&O) or Impulse & Deepening (I&V) subsidy in the past three years can apply year-round for an interest-free loan without additional committee review; approval is automatic if you meet the fund's content and financial requirements. Recipients gain access to the Fonds Kwadraat community and active support including social media promotion, studio visits, and networking dinners for donors (by invitation), plus events for artists wanting to learn how an interest-free loan can support their practice.
Every listing links to the organizer's official page. Always confirm deadlines, fees, and entry rules there before you apply.