About Us
Talent Norway was initiated by the Norwegian ministry of Culture and Equality, and founded in 2015 in a partnership with independent philanthropic foundations, aiming at world class talent development within the art field. Furthermore, we push for structural changes needed to ensure a better framework for artists aiming at professional careers.
Talent Norge is aiming at world-class talent development within the arts. Together with institutions and cultural actors across the country, we support talented artists on their way to a professional career. At the same time, we work to improve the framework conditions for performers who want to pursue their career.
Who we are
Talent Norge is a private limited company with a non-profit purpose that funds talent programs in the arts and culture, in collaboration with private partners. We also work to establish a strong interdisciplinary competence environment focused on talent development within the arts. Talent Norge AS was founded on January 21, 2015, and is currently owned by the Ministry of Culture and Equality, the Sparebankstiftelsen DNB, and the Cultiva Foundation.
What we do
The core of Talent Norge's philosophy is to contribute to growth and mastery through a long-term and holistic approach to performers and their careers. We emphasize coaching, mentorship, health services, and cross-disciplinary competence development.
In addition to financial support, Talent Norge builds a knowledge and expertise network around talent development in the arts. We are here to help young people who are on the threshold of a professional career, and our ambition is to be the Olympiatoppen for the arts and culture sector. We collaborate with leading organizations in Norway, including in theater, dance, music, film, and visual arts, to support performers who are recognized as having exceptional potential that deserves further development.
Why we do it
Why should we help those who are already very talented, even exceptional? Because the professional arts world is characterized by a competitive job market and increasing internationalization. For Norway to succeed in this field, we need to build bridges between professional practice and our top artistic talents.
If we are to ensure consistent recruitment into top-level artistic practice, we must strengthen the framework surrounding the best talents. There is untapped potential in Norway’s cultural scene when it comes to facilitating talent development. This is about giving young people with exceptional potential the support and guidance they need, so that a career as a professional artist becomes a real option. Talent Norge aims to create strong connections between our top performers and the country’s cultural and educational institutions, opening doors into the professional art world.
How we do it
In collaboration with private funding partners, we secure significant resources for long-term talent programs, which are conducted in partnership with institutions, organizations, and cultural actors across the country. Our goal is to unite resources for world-class talent development.
Both the board and administration at Talent Norge possess significant expertise in the cultural and artistic fields, and they thoroughly evaluate the programs that apply for support, before making funding decisions and following up. This ensures that talent programs are of the highest quality, and we are committed to ensuring that the projects provide specialized, genre-specific expertise to the talents. Additionally, we ensure that talents receive the opportunities and support they need to develop fully. Talent Norge also closely monitors the progress of talent programs in our portfolio, typically over a project period of three to four years. Currently, Talent Norway has more than 700 talented performes in over 50 talent programs in our network.
For all the programs we support, it is a requirement that private contributions must match or exceed Talent Norge's funding. We do not provide direct funding to individual young talents, or newly graduated artists.
Our work is adjusted to following values:
Progressive Excellence
We work with the best talent programs and the most talented and ambitious performers—our goal is world-class talent development.
Long-term
We build lasting programs, networks, and platforms for sharing knowledge and experiences across genres. All collaboration is based on trust and a shared goal of creating added value for the talents, contributors, and Norwegian cultural life.
Unafraid
We champion the talents, daring to think differently about talent development, and highlighting new art forms and voices. In this way, we pave the way for great art experiences and a richer cultural life.
Passionate
The unique talents are driven by a passion for art. We value individuality and are committed to creating communities where this passion can continue to flourish, elevate others, and inspire more people.
Our owners:
Talent Norway is a stock company with a non-profit purpose that was founded on January 21, 2015. Our owners are the State, represented by the Ministry of Culture and Equality, the Sparebankstiftelsen DNB, and Cultiva.
For more information about our owners, click here:
https://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/kud/id545/