Image: Mary Payton in her studio fusing plastic during her Thematic Grant project.

Discover how ArtLifting’s Thematic Grant program supports artists in building unified collections from the ground up, resulting in artwork that delivers stronger visual storytelling and more thoughtful, market-ready solutions for clients.

• Learn how ArtLifting’s 1% Community Impact Fund provides Thematic Grants to artists with disabilities to create cohesive, concept-driven art collections from the ground up.
• Understand how a series of thematic original artworks creates stronger visual storytelling and impact in corporate spaces.
• Experience the impact of investing in the creativity and potential of artists with disabilities, which leads to thoughtful, market-ready artwork for clients.

ArtLifting’s first-ever Thematic Grant, launched in 2025, introduces a new approach to building art collections by investing directly in ArtLifting artists with disabilities to create cohesive, concept-driven bodies of work. The program expands our collection with series that are not only visually compelling but intentionally developed to resonate with today’s spaces, trends, and audiences.

This approach builds on ArtLifting’s long-standing commitment to expanding access to the corporate art market for talented disabled artists. As artists grow in confidence and momentum, resources become essential — not only for income, but for experimentation, skill-building, and long-term creative development.

Through the Thematic Grant, artists receive funding, structure, and coaching to explore new ideas and develop unified collections. For clients, the result is artwork that does more than fill a wall. These collections bring narrative, cohesion, and a strong sense of purpose, making them especially impactful in large-scale installations and design-driven environments.

Image 1: All Those Surprise Pink Trees! by Mary Payton
Image 2: Transformation and Transmutation 25 by Elizabeth Gauss
Image 3: Transformation and Transmutation 24 by Elizabeth Gauss
Image 4: Transformation and Transmutation 29: Stillness by Elizabeth Gauss
Image 5: Transformation and Transmutation 28: Stillness by Elizabeth Gauss
Image 6: Serenity by Quána Madison
Image 7: Dreamy Jazz by Quána Madison
Image 8: Sunny Day by Quána Madison
Image 9: Love, Compassion, and Empathy by Quána Madison

Rather than commissioning popular styles of artwork, the Thematic Grant begins with an idea.

For the inaugural 2025 grant, ArtLifting artists were invited to propose a cohesive body of work shaped by a creative prompt:

• Consider the Impact: Exploring sustainability through concept, material, or both
• Of Land and Longing: Examining relationships to nature and place

These prompts served as creative catalysts, encouraging artists to explore new materials, processes, and perspectives while developing collections designed to function as both individual works and unified series.

Selected artists received a materials stipend to begin their work and a completion award upon final submission. Each artist created a collection of 4 – 10 original artworks with an emphasis on creativity, innovation, and the ability to translate artwork into high-quality print reproductions.

From these proposals, three artists were selected, each demonstrating how a single concept can evolve into a compelling, collection-ready body of work.

Image: From left to right, Mary Payton, Elizabeth Gauss, and Quána Madison in their studios.

The inaugural cohort reflects a wide range of artistic approaches exploring sustainability through material, process, and perspective.

Mary Payton reimagines post-consumer sheet plastic as a fine art medium, transforming discarded material into layered, large-scale paintings rich in color, texture, and depth. Rooted in a personal commitment to stewardship and care for the land, her work explores sustainability not only as a theme, but as a practice embedded directly into process and material choice.

Elizabeth Gauss approaches sustainability through transformation, repurposing cardboard and craft paper into abstract works that reflect both environmental consciousness and her own recovery journey. Her work connects material reuse with personal renewal, inviting viewers to consider how what is broken down can be re-formed into something powerful, imperfect, and deeply human.

Quána Madison's collection, Reducing, Recycling & Reusing Fashion/Textile Waste through Expressive Art-Making, examines the environmental impact of textile waste through vibrant mixed media painting. Drawing from her connection to New York's fashion ecosystem and her current life in Denver, Quána combines recycled fabric scraps, paint, and stitched mark-making to create works that are visually dynamic, materially thoughtful, and rooted in sustainability.

Videos: From left to right, Mary Payton, Elizabeth Gauss, and Quána Madison working in their studios.

Beyond the artwork itself, the Thematic Grant is shaping how artists expand their practice, explore new mediums, and develop cohesive collections.

“I am overflowing with gratitude for all that you do… hearing my proposal was accepted today moved me to tears. I am overwhelmed with gratitude to have such a partnership with ArtLifting where I can truly create within my truth and not only be accepted, but celebrated. I am excited to see what wonderful new work I can create with this grant.”

- Elizabeth Gauss

“I created my first thematic collection of art via the ArtLifting Thematic Grant. I have been inspired to try more mixed media art, and to keep learning how to use Adobe and digital tools that can support me with creating art. ArtLifting inspired me to learn how to use a sewing machine, so it can be an additional tool that supports me with creating mixed media art.”

- Quána Madison

Images: From left to right, Mary Payton, Elizabeth Gauss, and Quána Madison working in their studios.

The Thematic Grant is supported by ArtLifting’s Community Impact Fund, which provides professional development and career opportunities for artists. The ArtLifting Community Impact Fund is directly funded by art sales through ArtLifting’s social impact model — 1% of profits from all sales are directed to the fund. 

In 2025, 46 ArtLifting artists received support from the fund, and as of 2026, the fund has provided over $525,000 to artists and community partners.

By sourcing artwork through ArtLifting, clients are investing in artists’ long-term growth, access to resources, and future opportunity.

As our grant program evolves, new themes will continue to challenge artists, reflect the moment, and expand what ArtLifting can offer.

For clients, this means access to artwork that is not only visually compelling but also thoughtfully developed, cohesive, and aligned with the needs of contemporary spaces.

This first year set the foundation for a new model that brings together artistic exploration, professional development, and collection-ready work.

Contact us today to explore how ArtLifting can help bring cohesive, story-driven artwork into your next space.