Instant Grants: Just Add Funding and Stir

Recently, a group of 10 people under the moniker The Federation of Students and Nominally or Unemployed Artists (FSNUA) raised $1,000 and then gave it away—instantly.

Setting themselves up in a park with a typewriter, the group distributed unsecured nanogrants of $10-$60 each, seeking to “re-inspire creative thinking and action in everyday people by removing a small barrier and providing encouragement.”

As an art project, it’s brilliant. It is itself creative while simultaneously inspiring others toward creativity.


Instant Grant Program from Steve Lambert on Vimeo.

“Beyond the small amount of money, the project encourages people to see themselves as something other than workers or consumers even if it just for the length of time required to apply for the FSNUA grant.”

The very concept of instant grants—intentionally or unintentionally—also critiques grantmakers’ sometimes confusing, even burdensome, application procedures.

Obviously, as they are stewards of the funds they distribute, grantmakers need to have policies in place to make effective donations. There are issues of competition, accountability, monitoring, and sustainability inherent in grant giving, none of which are simple to address.

Yet maybe this public art project will inspire some funders to reexamine their policies and streamline their application procedures in order to get funding where it's needed the most.