Introducing Made by Many: a new pilot initiative from the Village of Industry & Art, supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

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We are inviting Philadelphia artists and arts organizations to submit ideas for commissioned projects throughout the Village of Industry & Art's spaces, ranging from public programs to exhibitions to site-specific works.


Submissions due on November 30, 2026 at 11:59pm.

WHAT

$50,000 in total funding for individual artists, artist collectives, organizations, companies, and small businesses.


WHO

Open to a wide range of creatives, including Philadelphia artists & organizations with no connection to the space, current Village of Industry & Art tenants, and former University of the Arts students and faculty.


HOW

Submit a short description of your idea (500 words or less or video/audio submission) – no detailed budget or full application required. Submissions will be reviewed by a jury of local artists. Semi-finalists will be asked for additional detail.

Reference Materials for Application

Sites for Activation Guide | How Ideas Are Reviewed | Submission Questions Preview

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FAQ

The call for ideas closes on Monday, November 30, 2026.  Please read before you send questions to madebymany@viaphl.com

About the Program + Eligibility

  • Made by Many is a pilot initiative of the Village of Industry & Art (VIA), supported by the Knight Foundation. It is a call for ideas inviting artists, artist collectives, and arts organizations from across Philadelphia to submit ideas for commissioned projects throughout VIA’s spaces on the Avenue of the Arts, ranging from public programs to exhibitions to site-specific works. Made by Many puts into practice the idea that the Village of Industry & Art was built on: its buildings are a platform for Philadelphia’s entire creative community. Through Made by Many, we’re building lasting cultural infrastructure for Philadelphia and economic opportunity for working artists.

  • Made by Many is a pilot, and we’re using it to open conversations and find a process that works well for the community. The goal is not to create a lot of work for those submitting ideas, but instead to support more access and impact.  We want a process that lets us select the best ideas and develop them together. Instead of a full application with detailed budgets and long narratives, we’re starting with the idea stage: a short description of your idea (500 words or less) plus a few additional non-narrative questions. If you would rather not write, you can submit your idea as a voice note or video instead. We’re not asking for a finished plan - we’re asking what you would do with the space, and why. If your idea is selected, the Village of Industry & Art will invite you to an interview to further develop it. A copy of the submission questions is located on the Made by Many web page.

  • In this first year, the Village of Industry & Art is allocating up to $50,000 in total funding for commissions selected through the call. Funding covers artist fees, production, materials, and equipment that enable new public programming.

  • January 2027

  • You must be at least ONE of the following:

    • An artist or artist collective (two or more artists working together without a formal organization) living in the City of Philadelphia

    • An organization, company, or business with an arts & culture mission or an established arts program located within the City of Philadelphia

    • A current tenant of Village of Industry & Art

    • A former University of the Arts (or PCA / PCPA / PMSIA) student, faculty member, staff member, or alumnus/alumna

  • We’re looking for artists and organizations with a genuine, demonstrable creative practice and point of view. The quality and distinctiveness of your work matters more than how many years you’ve been doing it. Emerging artists with a clear artistic voice are welcome to apply. However, the ability to execute your proposed vision does matter, as we are most interested in bringing projects to life!

  • Students who are also working artists with an established practice may apply. You must be 18 or older to submit an idea.

  • Yes

  • Yes, if you or your projects are represented by a fiscal sponsor, the idea should be submitted through the fiscal sponsor.  If selected, this will allow us to send funds to your fiscal sponsor on your behalf.  If you apply directly, the funds will go to you as an individual. 

  • Yes, but each person or entity may submit only one idea  per round.

  • Your organization’s primary mission is arts or cultural programming, or you have an established and substantive arts program. This is not for organizations and businesses that are trying to establish arts programming for the first time.

Your Idea

  • We’re looking for interesting creative ideas or commissioned projects that activate the Village of Industry & Art as a public resource. That includes performances, concerts, and live events; visual art installations and exhibitions; site-specific works, art-making classes and workshops; film screenings, readings, and media programming; residencies or rehearsal programs with a public component; equipment purchases that enable new programming; and other ideas that make Village of Industry & Art a civic and cultural destination. 

    Ideas will be selected based on public access, their use of Village of Industry & Art’s buildings and spaces, and their capacity to build lasting cultural infrastructure or economic opportunity for the artists involved.

  • No. The idea is meant to capture the core of what you’re imagining, not a full production plan. You don’t need a finalized schedule, a budget, or every detail worked out for the idea. If your idea is selected, the Village of Industry & Art staff will work with you during an interview to help you refine it. You should, however, include in your idea description some information about your capacity to make the idea into a reality.

  • Yes, as long as the version you’re proposing at Village of Industry & Art is genuine and specifically designed for the space and its audiences. We’re interested in what you want to make happen and why at the Village of Industry & Art.

  • If your idea is focused on a specific, but large group of people in Philadelphia - for example: kids under 18, emerging artists, adults who want to learn how to paint, your idea will be eligible for consideration.   

  • Yes, if your idea warrants an entry fee, you can charge a fee as long as there is also a no fee or low fee option available to the public (suggested $25 or less).  You can also make your idea as accessible as possible by making it completely free of charge.  

  • Ideas that take place entirely outside of the Village of Industry & Art space, have no public-facing component, are members-only or closed to the general public, or are primarily for general operating support (rent, utilities, overhead) are not eligible. Idea that are ticketed at high price points with no free or low-cost access option are unlikely to score well on accessibility.

  • You do. Submitting an idea does not transfer any rights to your concept, your work, or your intellectual property to Village of Industry & Art or to the Knight Foundation. Your concept belongs to you.

Submitting Your Idea

  • On the submission platform (Submittable), you will be asked some basic questions about yourself and your work and have up to 500 words to describe your project. Instead of submitting a written description, you can instead submit a video or audio submission. You should also have a sense of when it should take place between March 2027 and March 2028 and the general cost to bring the idea to fruition. It is a short submission by design. The submission questions can be found in the Reference Links at the top of this page.

  • No, but we will need a general range of how much the idea might cost to produce. It’s just an estimate. A budget is not required at the initial idea stage. If you are selected for an interview, you will be asked to submit a budget, additional logistics, and production details. Keep in mind that budget estimates should not include operating expenses, rent, or utilities.

  • Work samples and references are not required with the project description. 

  • No. Each artist, collective, organization, or business may submit only one idea per round. 

  • We ask that you write your idea description in your own voice. The Philadelphia Artist Council (our selection committee) is looking for the genuine creative perspective and personality behind your idea, and that the submission comes through in your own words. AI-generated text tends to flatten individual voices in ways that can actually work against you in the review process. You may use AI tools for grammar checking and sentence-level editing: fixing typos, smoothing awkward phrasing, improving clarity. What we ask you not to do is use AI to generate, substantially rewrite, or stand in for your own thinking and voice.

  • Please review the Sites for Activation guide in the Reference Links at the top of this page. We strongly encourage you to review this before submitting your idea. Tours of the space will not be given at the idea phase.

  • Contact madebymany@viaphl.com to discuss language accessibility options.

Selection Process

  • Village of Industry & Art will review ideas for eligibility, then pass eligible ideas to the Philadelphia Artist Council - an external cohort of Philadelphia-based artists from a range of disciplines, convened to represent the diverse creative community Made by Many is meant to serve. If your idea advances, the Village of Industry & Art will contact you to schedule an interview. If your idea is not selected, you will receive a brief note via email.

  • All eligible ideas are reviewed by the Philadelphia Artist Council. Each council member reads and scores a batch of ideas against the published Review Criteria. Those ideas that score above a certain threshold will be recommended to Village of Industry & Art leadership, who will then select the artists and organizations with the top ideas to invite for interviews. The Review Criteria are posted above.

  • No. Your idea is kept strictly confidential. It will be read only by the Philadelphia Artist Council assigned to review it, and by Village of Industry & Art’s leadership team if your idea is recommended by the Council. The Philadelphia Artist Council is required to keep all idea content confidential and may not share, discuss, or use the ideas they review outside of the selection process.

  • All council members are required to disclose conflicts of interest before reviewing. If a committee member has a personal or professional relationship with an applicant, they are recused from reviewing that idea. 

  • The interview is a conversation — not a formal presentation. Village of Industry & Art staff want to better understand your idea, make sure it’s feasible in Village of Industry & Art’s spaces, and work with you to fit it into the Village of Industry & Art programming schedule.  You will also be asked to complete a questionnaire after the interview to provide additional information, such as a budget and production requirements.

  • Because this is a pilot and we expect a high volume of ideas, we will not provide feedback to applicants who are not selected.

  • It’s likely that there will be additional rounds and we hope to learn from this pilot how best to roll those out. Timing of those additional rounds is yet to be determined.

After You’re Selected

  • Village of Industry & Art provides the funds, the space, facility guidance, and scheduling coordination. VIA’s onsite team may also provide technical and onsite assistance. Village of Industry & Art will give you all the information you need to bring your idea to life, but they will not act as the co-producer or co-creative on your project.

  • Details will be confirmed in the interview and in the commission agreement, but broadly: deliver the idea you proposed within the agreed timeline and budget at the Village of Industry & Art. You’ll also be asked to provide basic impact and expense information after your project is complete.

  • Village of Industry & Art plans to document and share the work happening through Made by Many. Details on marketing support and media will be part of your commission agreement.

  • Yes. Insurance requirements will be confirmed as part of the interview and commission agreement process.

Contact & Resources

  • Through Village of Industry & Art’s online submission portal. 

  • By reviewing the Sites for Activation guide above. Tours will not be provided at the idea phase.

  • Contact the Village of Industry & Art’s program team at madebymany@viaphl.com

  • The Review Criteria, full eligibility rules, and submission questions are posted in the Reference Links at the top of this page.

Made by Many: Apply Now