About
The Artists’ Bond is a collective venture for UK-based artists looking for a lucky break, managed by the Agent Ellie Harrison.
It currently has 160 artist members across the UK. Together we have £4,800 invested in Premium Bonds. At the start of each month we stand a chance of winning an equal share of the £1,000,000 jackpot prize. Follow our fate in the news section.
History
The Artists’ Bond was established in 2011 by the forty members of the Artists’ Lottery Syndicate (which ran from 1 July 2010 – 1 July 2011). Together we chose to re-invest our annual winnings in a new long-term collective venture which would create a bond between us over the course of our careers.
In 2012 and 2013 ‘open calls’ invited more artists to join The Artists’ Bond, bringing the membership to a total of 120. After two ‘fallow years’ allowing the Agent to recover from all the paperwork, another ‘open call’ was issued in 2016, focussing on expanding our membership in Scotland.
This website was developed and funded as part of Ellie Harrison’s The Glasgow Effect and launched in September 2016 to welcome our forty new artist members. Designed and built by Glasgow-based web designer Neil Scott, it features a map showing the distribution of our membership around the UK.
Get Involved
The Artists’ Bond may expand up to a maximum of 1,000 members. ‘Open calls’ are issued between 1 April – 1 July some years. To qualify to join you must be a visual artist based in the UK and be prepared to make an initial investment of £30 (equivalent to that made by each of the founding members in 2011).
Once a member of The Artists’ Bond, you are not permitted to withdraw from the scheme. Instead you become eligible for an ‘annual payout’ for the rest of your life. This is an equal share of our total annual winnings, transferred to you each August by BACs.
Apply to join
How Does It Work?
To qualify to join The Artists’ Bond you must be a visual artist based in the UK (with a permanent postal address, email address and UK bank / building society account) and be prepared to make an initial investment of £30 (equivalent to that made by each of the founding members in 2011).
- 100% of the money invested by our members is used to purchase National Savings & Investments Premium Bonds on behalf of The Artists’ Bond.
- For each £1 invested in Premium Bonds, we have a 1-in-30,000 chance of winning a cash prize. Prizes are drawn on the first of each month and so we have twelve attempts at winning the £1,000,000 jackpot annually.
- All prize money won by The Artists’ Bond is left to accumulate (and accrue interest if applicable) in The Artists’ Bond‘s bank account over the course of each year.
- Following the final draw of each year on 1 August, the Agent with issue an Annual Report and all current members of The Artists’ Bond will receive their share of the prize fund in their ‘annual payout’. This is transferred by BACs during August and equal to: [total annual prize money + interest + residual balances from previous years (if applicable)] / total current number of living members.
- From 1 April – 1 July some years, The Artists’ Bond may issue an ‘open call’ for up to forty new artists to join. To qualify, new members must be a visual artist based in the UK (with a permanent postal address, email address and UK bank / building society account) and be prepared to make an initial investment of £30.
- Each member’s initial investment (£30) will remain invested in The Artists’ Bond indefinitely (as per the conditions below).
- Once you join The Artists’ Bond, you are not permitted to withdraw from the scheme and must remain a member over the course of your life. The Artists’ Bond may expand annually up to a maximum of 1,000 members (£30,000 worth of Premium Bonds).
- When a member of The Artists’ Bond dies, they become an ‘honorary member’ at which point they / their relatives will no longer be eligible to receive ‘annual payouts’.
- As more members of The Artists’ Bond die, the annual share of payouts for living members will increase.
- Following the death of our last remaining member, the funds invested in The Artists’ Bond (up to a total £30,000) will be used to establish a new national endowment trust for the arts.
Annual Schedule
- 1 April – 1 July: ‘Open call’ for new members some years
- 1 July: deadline for new applications / receipt of new investments
- 1 – 31 July: new applications / investments processed by the Agent
- 31 July: deadline for the Agent to purchase new Premium Bonds on behalf of The Artists’ Bond
- 1 August: final Premium Bonds draw of previous year
- 1 – 30 August: Annual Report issued by the Agent and ‘annual payouts’ processed by BACs to all previous year’s members
- 1 September: first Premium Bonds draw of next year for which all new members become eligible
Apply to join
Banking
Ellie Harrison is the current Agent for The Artists’ Bond. Working in a voluntary capacity, she takes full responsibility for coordinating the group, collecting investments from members and purchasing Premium Bonds in time to meet the annual schedule above. The Artists’ Bond‘s banking is done via our Community Directplus account with The Co-operative Bank. This account requires the signatures of the two registered signatories (Ellie Harrison and James Hutchinson of The Salford Restoration Office) for the withdrawal of any funds.
