The Koestler Patrons are a unique group of people who understand the relevance of art and creativity in the criminal justice context and its impact on rehabilitative journeys. Although mostly hidden from the public eye, there are huge numbers of people affected by the prison system, from victims to prisoner’s family members, prison staff and many more. Ensuring that people have the hope, skills and confidence to succeed upon release has never been more important.
Support from our Patrons is critical to continue encouraging, rewarding, selling, and showcasing the creativity that springs from secure settings.
In return for their support, our Patrons are invited to choose the name (title) for an Award in their preferred art form and write feedback to the award-winner, a special opportunity to encourage someone in custody to keep creating. Check out our Patrons Brochure or read on to find out about the different Patronage opportunities and how you can get involved. If you have any questions please get in touch support-us@koestlerarts.org.uk
Scroll down or click here to view this year’s digital Patrons catalogue, featuring over 150 award-winning works supported by our Patrons.
Emerging Talent Patron
From £180 per year /£15 per month
Help us to manage the Awards and encourage participation. You will be invited to choose your preferred title for a Commended or Highly Commended Award.
In return for your support, you will also get:
- your Award included in our digital catalogue, available to download from our website
- the opportunity to write feedback to the award-winner
- first dibs to purchase the winning piece if it is for sale
- invites to supporter exhibition tours, art sales and Open House events
- quarterly updates on our programs and the impact of your support via our Friends e-newsletter
- discount opportunities on our online shop
Rising Star Patron
From £240 per year /£20 per month
Reward artistic potential in secure settings with monetary prizes, while inspiring more people to express themselves creatively. You will be invited to choose your preferred title for an Outstanding Debut, Bronze or Silver Award, which includes a monetary prize for the winner.
In return for your support, you will also get:
- all of the Emerging Talent Patron benefits outlined, PLUS
- prize money sent to your Award winner
- the opportunity to enter your name into ticket draws for limited capacity events
- early bird tickets for paid events
Young Promise Patron
From £480 per year /£40 per month
Nurture the next generation of budding talent and help us continue supporting young people in secure settings. You will be invited to choose your preferred title for an Award for an Under 25, which includes a monetary prize for the winner.
In return for your support, you will also get:
- all of the Emerging Talent and Rising Star Patron benefits outlined, PLUS
- a personalised certificate with more information about your winning piece
- opportunities to claim free tickets for paid events (available on a first come first served basis)
- priority booking for limited capacity events
Creative Genius Patron
From £1000 per year /£85 per month
Make a profound impact and enable us to continue delivering our work to receive, process, judge, reward and return thousands of artworks every year. You will be invited to choose the name for a top Gold or Platinum Award, which includes a monetary prize for the winner.
In return for your support, you will also get:
- all of the Emerging Talent, Rising Star and Young Promise Patron benefits outlined, PLUS
- first dibs on free tickets to paid events
- a free copy of our biennial Poetry Anthology
- an invitation for you and a friend to attend the Private View of our annual UK exhibition at Southbank Centre
Our 2024 Patrons Catalogue
To view a list of our Patrons and see all of this year’s ‘Named’ Awards, supported by our Patrons and Friends, check out our digital catalogue here featuring an incredible mix of visual art, music and writing pieces.
If you’d like to see past award-winners, why not check out our artwork galleries by clicking here.
Patron Scheme FAQ
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Our Patrons’ generosity impacts our participants in secure settings directly, through their chosen ‘named’ Award, enabling us to send certificates and motivational feedback to award-winners, and helping us to provide more opportunities for entrants to financially benefit, through cash prizes ranging from £20 to £100. For people who earn around £15 per week on average in prison, these monetary prizes can make a huge difference to their ability to pay for the things they need, or to save up ahead of release.
Collectively, our Patrons support other strands of our work such as prison visits, family engagement, commissions, regional exhibition opportunities, and more, all linked and critical to the success of the Koestler Awards each year. Taking part and winning a Koestler Award can provide our entrants with a boost in self-esteem, a sense of achievement, and improved mental wellbeing, all important factors in addressing barriers to learning, and stimulating positive engagement in secure settings and upon release.
Patrons will have the opportunity to sign up to receive e-updates from us four times a year, outlining in depth what their support has enabled us to achieve that quarter.
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All Patrons will be invited to sign up to our quarterly Friends e-newsletter list, which will look in depth at what their support has enabled us to achieve, as well as sharing behind the scenes information about our upcoming projects, volunteer opportunities throughout the year, and invites to exhibitions and events.
In September-October, all Patrons will be emailed our digital Award catalogue so they can see which piece of work was awarded their ‘Named Award’. In addition, Young Promise Patrons & Creative Genius Patrons will receive a bespoke digital Award certificate with more information about their winning piece, and artist comments if available.
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The Koestler Awards are the only UK-wide art prize for people in the criminal justice system.
Our Patrons have the opportunity to choose the title of an Award in their preferred artform. Supporting our work in this way establishes a special and inspirational link with our entrants, signalling that people ‘outside’ are supportive of their rehabiliation. When signing up, Patrons are asked to provide the title of an Award from one of the artforms below:
-Painting/Drawing
-Sculpture/Ceramics
-Craft/Design
-Writing/Poetry
-Audio/FilmEvery summer we invite over 100 expert judges from across the art and cultural landscape to join us to pick award winners in each of the 52 categories. Once the judges have chosen the winners, the Koestler team match all the Awards based on our Patrons’ preferences.
To see examples of past award-winners, check out our Artform Galleries
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Photos of all Award-winning pieces supported by Patrons will feature in our digital Awards catalogue, which will be emailed to all Patrons and made available to download from our website in the autumn. We invite all Patrons to write encouraging feedback to the winners of their ‘named’ Award piece, which we send directly to the entrant.
Young Promise Patrons and Creative Genius Patrons will also receive an additional ‘e-certificate’ with more photos and details about the artwork, and artist comments if available.
Some pieces may separately be picked by curators to feature in one of our exhibitions. If this is the case, we will be in touch to let you know where you can see it on display.
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The [Your Award Title] Award
Our existing Patron Award titles vary, from uplifting phrases, to inspirational famous people, to the names of pets! We recommend choosing something meaningful to you, or that might inspire the award-winner.
The Award title will be included in the above format on the certificate that goes to the entrant in prison, in the artwork caption if the piece is selected for exhibition, and in our digital Awards catalogue available to download from our website, so please do consider this when choosing your title.
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Yes, you can update, modify, or cancel your patronage at any time by contacting us directly at support-us@koestlerarts.org.uk. We understand that circumstances may change, and we are committed to accommodating your preferences and ensuring a positive experience.
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If you support an existing Award, or have supported in the past and want to learn more about our new Patrons scheme, please get in touch support-us@koestlerarts.org.uk
