The Luminous Endowment Offers Financial Grants To Pursue Photographic Goals

Widely known among photographers for his role as founder and publisher of The Luminous Landscape, Michael Reichmann has been heading “LuLa” since 1999. After a decade and a half of writing, running workshops, and creating premium video content for photographers worldwide, Mr. Reichmann admits, “LuLa has grown up. And like any fifteen year old, it wants to start a new life.” Today marks the beginning of that new life with the official launch of The Luminous Endowment for Photographers, a not-for-profit charitable organization providing financial grants to aspiring photo projects.

The Luminous Endowment will provide funding towards “non-commercial photographic projects such as fine art landscape photography, documentary photography, publishing photographic work, and travel related to photographic projects,” according to today’s press release. The application process for these grants seems remarkably frictionless, as there is no tricky questionnaire or fee to apply. You simply choose a grant that fits with your project, write a little bit about you and your proposal, and submit a selection of images from previous work.

While many will naturally be excited about the prospect of having their work funded, some among us are in a position to contribute to the Luminous Endowment and pay it forward to budding photographers. To those financial backers who give a helping hand, the Endowment is gifting one of Michael Reichmann’s new books.

Michael Reichmann: A 20 Year Photography Retrospective

Donating $100, the Luminous Endowment will gift you with Mexico: The Light and The Warmth, which is a 72-page softcover book first published by Lenswork in May, 2014. At the $350 and $500 level, the reward is Michael Reichmann: A 20 Year Photography Retrospective. This expansive large-format book clocks in at 400 pages and contains an astounding 380 images. Crafted by Arturo Chapa, whom Mr. Reichmann refers to as one of the world’s top book designers, the hard-cover book is only available through donations to the charity. 

https://vimeo.com/100560394

You can get the full details about the Luminous Endowment by visiting their website and keep up to date through their Facebook page. Below is text from the full press release issued today:

MICHAEL REICHMANN, FOUNDER OF THE LUMINOUS LANDSCAPE, 
CREATES THE LUMINOUS ENDOWMENT FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

Endowment Will Offer Grants to Support Photography Projects Worldwide

INDIANAPOLIS, August 1, 2014 -- Michael Reichmann, founder of The Luminous Landscape, Inc., the world's largest web site devoted to the fine art and craft of photography, today formally announced The Luminous Endowment for Photographers. Its mission is to support photography projects worldwide through merit-based grants.

“In creating the Luminous Endowment, I was inspired by a ‘Pay it Forward’ philosophy,” said Michael Reichmann. “While we may not be able to repay those who’ve helped us to achieve personal and professional success, we can find a way to share our good fortune with those who need help both now and in the future.”

The Endowment, a USA-based not-for-profit charitable organization, will provide a variety of specific grants to support non-commercial photographic projects such as: fine art landscape photography; documentary photography; publishing photographic work; travel related to a photographic project; and others. Also there are plans to publish an annual book of grantees’ work, plus possible traveling exhibitions of that work. Applications for a limited number of grants are now open for submission via the Endowment web site at www.luminous-endowment.org.

A panel of judges, including some of the world’s leading photographers and educators, will review all project proposals. The panel includes John Paul  Caponigro, Joe Cornish, Eric Meola, Peter Cox, Mikkel Aaland, Ctein, Katrin Eismann, Alain Briot, Tim Wolcott, Sean Reid, William Neill, Andy Biggs, Nick Rains and Ken Duncan. 

The Luminous Endowment for Photographers’ Board of Directors comprises respected individuals with backgrounds in business, law, and academia, including Michael Reichmann, David Vaskevitch, Brooks Jensen, Dr. Arye Carmon, Nick Devlin, Kevin Raber, Chris Sanderson and Jonathan Wolch. Their responsibilities include guidance to assure that the Endowment adheres to its philanthropic goals as well as fiduciary oversight.

Donations to the Endowment are a way to “pay it forward.” Plans are now underway to raise one million dollars in the first year. Michael is donating to the Endowment all proceeds from his new limited edition book, Michael Reichmann – a 20-Year Photography Retrospective. This masterful collaboration between Michael and Arturo Chapa, one of the world’s top book designers, has produced a 400-page large-format book that is available only through donations to The Luminous Endowment. 

All contributions can be made via the Endowment’s web site www.luminous-endowment.org. In addition, individuals and corporations who donate $35,000 or more may create “named” grants which will be administered by the Endowment.

About the Luminous Endowment for Photographers

The Luminous Endowment for Photographers has been created as a 501(c)(3) USA-based not-for-profit charitable organization. It was established in 2014 by Michael Reichmann, the founder of The Luminous Landscape, Inc., the world’s oldest and largest web site devoted to the fine art and craft of photography. The Endowment’s mission is to provide financial support through outright financial grants to photographers for merit-based projects. The Endowment is guided by a ‘Pay it Forward’ philosophy; namely, that while we may not be able to repay those who’ve helped us to achieve personal and professional success, we can find a way to share our good fortune with those who need help both now and in the future.

All images used with permission.