Q: What is The Fern Coppedge Art Scholarship Fund?

A: It is a non-profit program giving young women artists of limited means a way to learn the skills needed to create oil paintings and other art forms at the highest level.

 

Q: Who is eligible to apply for a grant? (Women: Ages 17 to 35.)

A: Applicants will be selected on the basis of art talent, creativity, originality and a genuine need for financial assistance and personal guidance. You will be evaluated on the quality of your work, your recognition as a dedicated artist (including education, exhibitions and prizes) and whether we believe that your art can be acknowledged as an important contribution to the national and global body of art. We sincerely hope to sponsor artists who are capable of being represented in museums and other public spaces.

 

Q: Which art schools are included in our program?

A: The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA), The Art Students League and The Chicago Art Institute are among the many art schools the Art Scholarship Fund will finance for worthy participants.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CLICK ON IMAGES ABOVE TO READ SCHOLARSHIP REQUIREMENTS

(The Fern Coppedge Art Scholarship Fund will provide financing to students we choose.)

 

Q: Why are the three art schools above singled out?

A: These three great art schools were attended from 1908 to 1919 by Fern Coppedge, a middle class farm girl from Kansas who did not have a wealthy or influential sponsor to help her work her way up to the highest echelons of creative art and personal achievement. Complete details of Fern’s challenging road to success are found in the Biography and Catalogue Raisonne published by Les and Sue Fox in 2021.

 

Q: How much money will The Fund provide?

A: When fully developed, we will grant $5,000 to $100,000 annually to each applicant selected to receive the finest quality art education available. The Fund hopes to create an endowment of $5,000,000 which will be replenished as it is distributed. We are currently in the process of seeking sponsors.

 

Q: How much tuition do top art schools charge?

A: The PAFA charges $66,000 annually, including dorm accommodations. Tuition at The Art Students League and The Chicago Art Institute are also in the $65,000 to $70,000 range.

 

Q: How much money are we asking Art Fund Sponsors to contribute?

A: There is no minimum. Please do not send us any money at this time. If you are interested in being a Founding Sponsor, please contact us for more information.

 

Q: What is a “Founding Sponsor” of The Fern Coppedge Art Scholarship Fund?

A: You can choose to be a Contributing Sponsor, a Primary Sponsor or a Gold Brush Sponsor of the fund. In order to get this program off the ground, we are looking for generous “art angels” who truly love art, and can afford to sponsor aspiring young artists with a contribution of $5,000 (or less) to $500,000.

 

PLEASE EMAIL US IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BEING A SPONSOR
OF THIS IMPORTANT ART PROGRAM.

 

Q: Who will manage The Art Scholarship Fund?

A: The Fern Coppedge Art Scholarship Fund will be managed by Les and Sue Fox, an Art Evaluation Committee / Jury, the Fern Kuns/Coppedge family, and a law firm with experience in Art and Education programs. With your permission, we may share your personal information with reputable art dealers, top auction houses and staff members at various art schools.

 

Q: How do I apply for a Fern Coppedge educational grant?

A: Feel free to email us your name, background information and a small sample of your work. We will interpret this as a request to receive complete details and an Official Application Package as soon as the program is in place. We hope to begin considering grants in 2022 or 2023.

 

Q: What other goals does the Art Scholarship Fund support?

A: In addition to our quest to help create "future Fern Coppedges" and change the lives of deserving young women artists, we will strongly encourage museums and public institutions to include paintings by Fern Isabel Coppedge in their collections and exhibitions. We will assist such organizations in how to select and finance appropriate paintings. We will also arrange for exhibitions and loans. Les and Sue Fox are currently having a large Gloucester Harbor masterpiece by Fern Coppedge restored. After restoration, this magnificent work will be loaned to art museums. The Foxes are avid collectors of the work of Fern Coppedge including winter landscapes, Gloucester scenes and Seasonal landscapes of Spring, Summer and Fall.

 

Inquiries, please contact: Les and Sue Fox, Executive Directors

The Fern Coppedge Art Scholarship Fund

P.O. Box 15276 • Sarasota, FL 34277

 

201-264-7450 • email: lesfoxnj@yahoo.com