Small Grants, Big Ideas: ARTiUM is a funding platform that allows users to directly support the next wave of arts and humanities research through donations to fund innovative academic projects.
Durham University has launched a pilot of the digital platform to gauge interest and demonstrate proof of concept.
Artium is set to revolutionise how foundational research in the arts, humanities and culture is supported.
Led by Professor Sara L. Uckelman in the Department of Philosophy at Durham University, the platform will create a more equitable and sustainable research funding environment.
The platform aims to disrupt traditional, prestige-driven models by connecting donors, scholars, and early-career researchers in a unique, shared ecosystem.
A new model for research funding
Artium addresses a long-standing challenge within the arts and humanities: ensuring essential but often underfunded areas of research receive the support they need to thrive.
With decreasing government funding available, research councils and large charities focus on funding big projects, with many people and involving many disciplines.
In contrast, Artium supports exploratory research and projects in their initial stages. In its current pilot phase, Artium introduces a model where donors, instead of selecting individual projects to fund, pool contributions to support a broad portfolio of “fundamentally important” research for the purpose of equitable distribution.
Artium also provides vital career experience by offering paid roles to students and recent graduates. In strengthening the academic research pipeline, it encourages interdisciplinary, exploratory and unconventional research that holds long-term societal value but may struggle to secure traditional grants.
Professor Sara L. Uckelman, Founder of Artium
With more than twenty years research experience in the arts and humanities, across four countries, Professor Uckelman knows first-hand the importance of small-scale funding at the very start of research projects.
“Too often, traditional grant opportunities seem to want you to know what you will find in your research before you’ve even undertaken it
“There is no resource for funding small-scale, foundational, exploratory research. Artium was born out of a very real need that I and my colleagues face: brilliant ideas in the humanities are constrained by funding models that favour prestige over potential.
“By building a community where donors can be confident their support is making a real difference across the field, and where early-career researchers can secure fair pay for meaningful work, we are creating a better future for how we support and sustain our shared culture.”
Research commercialisation and support from Northern Accelerator
Upon a successful pilot phase, Artium aims to establish itself as a spinout company of Durham University, providing a flexible structure for growth and aligning with the university’s ambition to translate academic innovation into real-world impact.
Following a recent drive at Durham to encourage more academics from non-STEM subjects to explore research commercialisation, Professor Uckelman has benefitted from support from Northern Accelerator to navigate the journey to making Artium a reality. This included Future Founders training, proof of concept funding and most recently an enterprise fellowship award.
