Flexible support for Axis Professional Members
Small bursaries to support research, development and materials for your practice.
Bursaries
Axis Bursaries support Professional Members with research, professional development and materials for their artistic practice.
Since 2023, Axis has awarded 20 bursaries of £500 to help artists take the next step in their practice.
Bursaries are one of the ways we support Professional Members directly. They can help artists test ideas, develop projects, buy materials, access specialist support, or build towards a larger body of work.
We keep the process light and responsive because we know that small amounts of funding can make a real difference.
(Image Credit: Artwork by Laura Lulika)
Why we offer bursaries
Artists often need support at moments that do not fit neatly into larger funding schemes.
A small amount of funding can help an artist test an idea, buy materials, access specialist support, undertake research, or move a project forward.
Axis Bursaries are designed to be light, flexible and responsive. They are one of the ways we use membership income to support artists directly.
They reflect a simple belief: small gestures can make a big difference.
Who can apply
Axis Bursaries are open to Professional Members.
Professional Membership is for artists with an active, developed practice. It is by application or invitation.
As a Professional Member, you can access opportunities for funding, visibility, connection and practical help, including bursaries, Fellowship eligibility, in-kind support and member-only development opportunities.
- Axis Professional Members
Read more about bursaries here >.
- Interested in becoming a Professional Member?
You can apply here >.
What bursaries support
“In October 2025, following my Axis Critical Friend Conversation with digital artist Antonio Roberts who curated Patterns & Process, I started using a free visual programming tool that he recommended.
I have since reached a technical limit with my programming skills, so I applied for the Axis Bursary to fund the support of a specialist—musician and creative coder Charlie Hooper-Williams—who can help me devise a technical specification for a potential prototype—a future audiovisual immersive work.”
Michelle Marie Forrest, Bursary Recipient, 2026
“I will use the bursary to further my research into transcendental experiences relating to disability, sickness and m/otherhood, isolation, inherited illnesses, and ancient folkloric practices of healing in nature. I am going to use the bursary to buy some books I want to read and attend a quantum hypnosis session to better understand spiritual and haunted experiences of sickness and m/otherhood. The research will inform some new work I am making. "
Laura Lulika, Bursary Recipient, 2026
We are Axis
An independent charity supporting contemporary visual artists. We work with artists, supporting their practice through funding, visibility, connection and practical help.
As a charity led by artists and funded by our members, everything we do goes back into supporting artists.