Awards Categories and Bursaries
The Awards have 13 categories, including ten main categories and three financial awards/bursaries.
All of our awards recognise excellence in arts partnerships. Specifically, our awards seek nominations that highlight exceptional collaborations between a business or philanthropic partner and an arts partner (organisation, collective, or individual artist) that have taken place between January 2025 and April 2026.
This year’s shortlist represents a mix of new corporate entrants to arts sponsorship, as well as a strong show of continuing support from long-standing supporters of the arts in the business world.Click into the individual categories below for the nominees!
This award recognises outstanding large-scale partnerships between businesses and arts organisations or artists, with a value of €25,000 or more (cash or in-kind).
Winning collaborations will demonstrate ambition, strategic alignment, and meaningful impact for both partners, showing how significant investment can enable artistic excellence and deliver shared value.
Shortlisted 2026
- Diageo Ireland & The Liberties Festival
- Staycity & Throwing Shapes: Clay City
- KPMG Ireland & National Gallery of Ireland: Picasso From the Studio
- Kennedy Wilson & PhotoIreland: International Centre for the Image
This award recognises exceptional partnerships between businesses and arts organisations/artists where the sponsorship is less than €25k in value, cash or in-kind.
Winning collaborations will demonstrate creativity, strong alignment between partners, and meaningful impact, showing how partnerships of all scales can deliver significant artistic and business value.
- Peugeot Ireland & Irish Film Institute: The Lion Loves Cinema!
- basis.point & The Gate Theatre: Live Stream of POOR
- UCC & Cork International Film Festival: 70th Cork International Film Festival
- SIGMA Benelux & Photo Museum Ireland: Sigma Talents Scholarship Programme
This award recognises enduring and impactful partnerships that have been in place for three years or more and have demonstrated growth and evolution over time.
Winning collaborations will show how the partnership has deepened, expanded its reach, introduced new strands of activity, or developed innovative approaches to engagement and participation.
- SMBC Aviation Capital & National Gallery of Ireland: Nationwide Schools Programme
- Ecclesiastical Insurance & Wexford Festival Opera: Volunteer Programme
- ESB & National Concert Hall: Quavers to Quadratics
- Dublin City Council & St Patrick's Festival
This award recognises partnerships that work collaboratively with community groups to address specific social issues through creative projects and programmes.
Winning initiatives will demonstrate meaningful engagement, community voice, and clear social impact, using creativity as a tool to strengthen connection, wellbeing, and local resilience. Projects should align with the social impact strategies of both partners.
- Iarnród Éireann & Artur Oner: Welcome to Courtney Place
- The Digital Hub & HoloGen: Roblox Rising Producers
- Cuilcagh Lakelands Geopark & AlanJames Burns: Divergently Together
- IPUT Real Estate Dublin & National Concert Hall: Festival of Voice
This award celebrates an individual, foundation, trust, or corporate philanthropic organisation whose generosity and leadership have made a meaningful difference to the arts in Ireland.
Nominations must demonstrate how philanthropic support provided within the eligible period has enabled artistic ambition, strengthened organisations, or delivered measurable cultural or social impact. Submissions should reference a specific project, programme, or defined suite of arts funding active during that period.
Nominations may be submitted by the arts beneficiary, the philanthropic entity, or a third party with their knowledge and support.
The recipient of this Award will be announced at the Awards ceremony on 7th September.
This award recognises creative partnerships that explore and highlight environmental and climate issues through artistic programming and sustainable practice.
Winning initiatives may raise awareness, open public dialogue, or encourage positive change around issues such as climate action, biodiversity, or the circular economy. Projects may also demonstrate leadership in environmentally responsible production and delivery.
This award honours the power of arts and culture in shaping a greener future.
Shortlisted 2026
- Philip Lee & IMMA: The Court for Intergenerational Climate Crimes at Earth Rising 2025
- Irish Architecture Foundation, 12th Field & Offaly and Meath County Councils: Bog Bothy
- Clarendon Properties, BAM Ireland & Jools Gilson: Mapping Climate Change
- ACT Waterford, Calmast SETU & Sean Corcoran: Crockery Mountain
This award recognises partnerships that remove barriers and expand access to the arts for marginalised or underrepresented groups.
Winning initiatives will demonstrate a strong commitment to inclusion, representation, and equitable participation, whether through targeted programming, outreach, or practical supports that enable more people to engage fully in the arts.
- basis.point & The Gate Theatre: Live Stream of POOR
- Specsavers Limerick & University Concert Hall: Panto for All
- Clancourt & The Ark: Ark Access
- Ecclesiastical Insurance, Katharine Howard Foundation & Music Network: Lullaby Residency
This award is presented annually to a business or organisation that has demonstrated excellence in commissioning an artist in any artform.
Winning entries will evidence a transparent and well-managed commissioning process, clear communication, fair and appropriate remuneration, and meaningful engagement with the artist throughout. Successful collaborations will show genuine partnership from concept to completion, with a strong commitment to artistic integrity and the creation of a high-quality and engaging work.
Created in honour of Jim McNaughton, a tireless champion of the arts, the perpetual award is crafted by sculptor Jason Ellis.
Shortlisted 2026
- Sample-Studios, Fleetwood Paints & Cork Opera House: Illuminating the Archives
- Ipsos B&A & Graphic Studio Dublin: Ipsos B&A Art Collection
- Irish Life & James Earley: Life In Threes
This award celebrates partnerships that engage employees in the arts and embed creativity within company culture.
Winning initiatives may include artist residencies, commissions, workshops, performances, creative engagement programmes, or structured in-kind and pro bono collaborations involving staff. Successful entries will demonstrate how collaboration with the arts has strengthened employee engagement, fostered connection, and contributed to a more creative and inclusive organisational culture.
- Fitzgerald Power & The Walls Project: Signs of Power
- CJK & Five Lamps Arts Festival: Christmas Song Contest
- Connected Hubs & Contemporary Irish Art Society: Art in the Hubs
Selected at the discretion of the judging panel from submissions across the main award categories, this award cannot be applied for directly.
It recognises a partnership, organisation, or initiative whose work in the year under review merits special distinction. The award may honour exceptional collaboration, innovation, leadership, or impact that has made a significant contribution to arts and business engagement. The recipient of this Award will be announced at the Awards ceremony on 7th September.
Now in its 18th year, our longest-running bursary awards €10,000 to an emerging artist in any artform seeking to expand and develop their practice, whether through a specific project or broader professional development. The bursary supports artistic ambition, experimentation, and growth at a pivotal stage in an artist’s career. The recipient of this bursary will be announced at the Awards ceremony on 7th September.
In 2025, it was awarded to Manar Al Shouha, a Syrian-born painter based in Dublin. She plans to develop her first solo exhibition in Ireland, exploring new mediums such as printmaking, and expanding her international presence.
Recent winners have included actress and writer Lauren Larkin, actor and writer Thommas Kane Byrne, Afghani photographer Barialai Khoshhal, flautist Miriam Kaczor, artist Catherine Creaney, actor and playwright Aisling O’Mara, and more.
This bursary recognises artists whose work delivers on the promise of technology and human ingenuity. The €10,000 award supports artists who are exploring digital tools, platforms, or processes to expand creative practice and engage audiences in new ways.
The 2025 winner was Amanda Ralph, for her work in the digital space. She is working on setting up a digital ‘field station’ on a derelict farm to analyse wildlife using sensors, cameras, and audio data before biodiversity restoration begins. The bursary supports her return to full-time practice, skill development, and the creation of new work for an upcoming exhibition at Luan Gallery.
Previous winners include 1iing Heaney, AlanJames Burns and Nadia J. Armstrong.
This €5,000 cash prize recognises an arts organisation whose project distinguishes itself through artistic quality, ambition, and impact.
Chosen from entries across the main award categories, the award highlights outstanding work and provides additional support to further its development. This Award cannot be applied for directly. The recipient of this bursary will be announced at the Awards ceremony on 7th September.
In 2025, it was awarded to Fishamble, The New Play Company for ‘Who I Am and How I Am’. A project, celebrating ethnically diverse young voices in the D1 area over four months of workshops exploring themes of identity, racial equality, and community harmony
Previous winners in recent years include Sing Ireland, axis Ballymun, Dublin Dance Festival and That’s Life for Bounce Club Night, and Waterford Walls.
