Sardine Consulting offers grant writing and fundraising services to artists and arts organizations, especially those practicing experimental, interdisciplinary, and difficult-to-define approaches.

I’m Deidre Huckabay. I’m a Chicago-based artist and a grant writer working in arts and culture.

So—what are the tricks, the secrets, the strategies for winning proposals?

My experience has taught me: there are none.* Sometimes good proposals get funded. Sometimes they don’t. Sometimes bad ones do. It’s rough out there—distressingly, unfairly so.**

It’s hard to let go of the hope for a magical solution. When we do, we expose the parts of ourselves that are eager to undermine us. These inner voices say, “I don’t deserve this.” Or, “I lack something others have.” Or, “I’ll do whatever it takes to get the money.” Facing these usurpers, and defeating them, is the artist’s lifelong responsibility.

At its best, my work at Sardine Consulting affords me the privilege of thinking deeply with clients about what we are doing, and why. It connects me to artists in moments of germination, transformation, and vulnerability. And, when the money does come in, it is a cause for shared celebration.

* OK, there is one: follow instructions.

** I could go on. If you have experience or knowledge to share about the industry, the history of U.S. philanthropy, Neoliberalism, or adjacent topics, I hope you will reach out. ;-)