2026 FAQs FOR APPLICANTS

Deadline for applications: 11:59pm CST – July 24, 2025

We’re excited for winter and we hope you are too!

JOIN US FOR THE ARTIST FORUM on July 9 at 6pm for an opportunity to hear from our staff and ask questions! This forum is IN PERSON at the Avalon Theater / In the Heart of the Beast, 1500 E Lake Street, MPLS, MN 55407.

We hope to proactively answer questions you may have here — but if new ones come up, please message program@artshantyprojects.org. Thanks!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

We’ve compiled a list of general FAQs for all applicants, as well as some specific to shanties and to performances + art actions.

GENERAL FAQS

Where and when will ASP 2026 happen?

We will once again be on Bdé Umáŋ (Lake Harriet) in South Minneapolis. The event will run from 10am-4pm on Saturdays and Sundays, January 17 – February 8, 2026. Installation weekend will be January 10-11, and deinstallation will happen February 14-15.

What’s the difference between the ‘shanty’ application and the ‘performance and art action’ application?

We’re glad you asked! Shanties are physical installations that remain throughout the month and are activated during all public festival hours by the artist team. Shanties can be the classic interior version (fully enclosed, visitors come inside) or can be an entirely exterior experience (as developed during the pandemic). Performances and art actions are projects with shorter durations (an hour, a day, a few days, etc). They may or may not have physical structures. Our definition of ‘performance’ and ‘art action’ is broad.

Winter is cold! What does Art Shanty Projects do to keep artists warm and happy?

We’re glad you asked! We will continue to have a back of house space where we offer HOT food and drinks to artists during the program as well as hand and toe warmers. We will once again have a TOASTY wood-fired warming shanty. All of this is on shore (not on the ice / in the village).

Hey, you mentioned cultural appropriation in the open call. What’s that? How do I make sure I’m not doing it???

We’re so glad you asked. Here are some resources that enthusiastically answer this question: https://libraryguides.saic.edu/learn_unlearn/culturalcompetence2

Who selects the artists?

Proposals will be juried by a panel led by the Artistic Director which consists of an Art Shanty Projects board member representative, local artists, curators, and past participants using the artistic criteria listed in the open call. You can see the 2025 jurors for reference (the 2026 jurors will be announced after artists have been selected). Jurors receive an honorarium for their work. More info here on how to become a juror!

I’m from out of town! Can I still apply? Can you help me get to you?

We welcome artists from anywhere – and have had groups from Duluth, Iowa, Wisconsin, Kansas and even California and New York! We do not have additional travel or lodging stipends to offer out-of-town artists.

How important are the supporting materials in my application?

VERY IMPORTANT! This is your chance to demonstrate your vision and aesthetic to the jury, as well as your capacity to build and do this thing! You can offer a mix of supporting materials: give a visual representation of what your project will look like (renderings), work you’ve done in the past that proves you’re up to the task (work samples), and places you’re drawing inspiration from (source images).

OH NO! My dream project costs more than the stipend. What should I do?

We strongly suggest scaling your project to fit within the resources we can offer. That said, artists are of course welcome to raise money and source in-kind goods through their own efforts to support the project of their dreams. When applying, please be real about your budget and how you might achieve anything beyond what ASP offers.

Sometimes the simple ideas are the best and have the biggest impact!

I have a project idea – can someone review it in advance and give advice?

We do not have staff capacity to review or advise on proposal ideas in advance. But we look forward to reading your application, and we encourage you to submit it. We think the application is in an approachable format, we hope you do too.

Can we sell things at our shanty, collect money, or promote our business?

No. This is an immersive public arts program, not an art fair. We provide a stipend for participation, which is the artist compensation. We do love our artists, and want people to know about you! And will include team credits on signage near your project and on your project page on our website.

How will 2026 be accessible to people?

We will offer our fleet of kicksleds and ramps to the surface of the lake. We provide ASL interpretation and audio description once per weekend. Artists are asked to apply with projects that consider accessibility goals, and shanties that have elevated platforms are required to have ramps. Interior shanties have additional accessibility requirements (door size, room to move around, etc). Our website has been redesigned with enhanced accessibility features for people who use screen readers. Our social media includes alt text on all images.

SHANTY SPECIFIC Qs:

Can visitors go inside shanties? What’s the dealio?

Artists can choose their own adventure: a CLASSIC SHANTY (invite people inside) or EXTERIOR ONLY SHANTY (no sharing air). PLEASE NOTE: ALL SHANTIES must also be meaningfully activated in some way on the exterior, including those that also have an interior experience.

Can I heat my classic shanty?
Yes! Wood burning stoves and portable propane heaters are welcome. If you choose to include a wood burning stove we will work with the Fire Inspector to gain permission, and there will be some safety requirements (don’t worry about that until you’re accepted…). Passive solar is also a great option – meaning, having a clear roof or windows facing south to let the sun heat the shanty (does not work as well on cloudy days of course).

What about electricity?
Most shanties do not use electricity – but those that do often use marine / deep cycle batteries, solar power, or incorporate people power into the design (ex. bike generated). Accepted artists receive advice on how to utilize these options. We don’t allow generators for environmental reasons.

Materials are SO EXPENSIVE! How can I make an affordable shanty project?!
Ugh, we know. Especially if you buy them NEW!

Shanty builders are historically very good at being resourceful, using repurposed materials whenever possible to reduce costs, and in alignment with our community’s sustainability values. Some artists have built entire shanties out of pallets!

There are many local resources for purchasing repurposed materials. Check out Better Futures, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, LumberStash, the University of Minnesota ReUse Program, even thrift shops. We’ve had artists build amazing creations using a large percentage of FREE materials such as: pallets, discarded fences, decommissioned shanties, disassembled art shipping crates, cardboard, bubble wrap, and more! Good places to start for this include neighborhood Buy Nothing groups, local stores (for pallets especially), etc. Occasionally Art Shanty Projects gets offers of free materials, which we pass along to artists.

What’s up with the shanty stipends?
Shanty stipends have increased significantly over the last 6 years. We made adjustments for returning shanties in 2025, and are sticking with those stipend rates for now:

2016, 2017, 2018: $1500
2020, 2022: $2400
2023, 2024: $2500
2025, 2026: $2500 for new shanties, $2000 for remounts

The arts are still severely underfunded in general, and the financial repercussions of the pandemic are still lingering. You may have noticed in recent years that other public art programs have canceled and organizations have closed…we are doing everything we can to stay alive and maintain a robust program!

The climate chaos winters of 2023 and 2024 have been an additional stressor. You may also be familiar with the recent grant chaos from the current administration…

This year (as last year) there is a difference in stipends awarded to new shanties ($2500) and the remounting of returning shanties ($2000). If you’re remounting a shanty, you have already invested in the materials, thus the lessened stipend. This helps us maintain a full program while grappling with the current financial stressors in the arts sector (and everywhere).

Note: returning teams with new shanty ideas would receive a $2500 stipend.

We hope and plan to increase shanty stipends more in the future. In the meantime this is where we’re at.

How many shanties will there be?

We will have a maximum of 20 shanties, including up to 17 shanties that are selected through the open call. Additional shanties that are curated outside the open call include our Welcome Shanty, the Performance Stage, and the Free Store Shanty, and the potential for 1-2 shanties through outreach efforts. This is the same total number of shanties since the onset of the pandemic.

I’m a rad artist. I fly solo. Why don’t you accept shanty teams of one?

From past experience, ‘teams’ of one end up needing a lot of help! We have also learned that it is unreasonable for a single artist to manage by themself. Even a duo can easily get overwhelmed. Building and moving the shanty requires multiple people, and artists need breaks from both engaging with crowds and sometimes unpredictable weather conditions. Also, it’s important to have a backup staffing plan in case someone on your shanty team gets sick.

It’s OK to have a lead artist and a group of people who support them. It’s not OK to think you’ll do it alone. It’s also OK if you don’t have your full team assembled at the point of application, as long as you’re confident you’ll find the support you need once accepted.

(This does not relate to performers).

Do I really need to be there the whole time?

Yes! A key component of our programming is direct engagement and participation with the public. We are not a sculpture park on ice! We recommend a larger team so you can take shifts and remain open during all public hours.

What if I still have questions?!

Please email program@artshantyprojects.org with any questions related to the process, guidelines, support, timeline, etc.

PERFORMER SPECIFIC Qs

What’s up with the performer stipends?

We have increased the maximum performance stipend to $1000 this year (up from $800 in 2024 and $900 in 2025).

How many performances + art actions will there be?

Stipends for these projects are scalable, so It depends on how much money the applicants request for their activities. The jury ranks performance applications in order from highest to lowest scores, and then they go down the list in order to accept projects until the open call performance budget ($9000) has been spent. We estimate about 12 performance groups through the open call process, depending on stipend requests. We will also present additional projects through partner organizations and our outreach efforts (which also has a $9000 budget). This is similar to the past few seasons, and more performance groups than in earlier years.

What kinds of performances and art actions have happened at the shanties?

We are VERY OPEN to the idea of what constitutes a performance or art action!

We’ve had dancers, giant roving puppets, taiko drumming, short theatre shows, parades, art bike activities, plein air painters, opera, live bands, artsy sports and games, song circles, folk dancing, one-day installations, performative ‘tv reporters,’ fashion shows, and more…