The first of its kind in the field, the AAA Research Grant (formerly AAA Martell Contemporary Asian Art Research Grant) was established in 2005 by Asia Art Archive to make available scarce resources to individuals wishing to carry out focused research in the region, and at the same time address gaps within AAA's collection by bringing in new material to include primary and secondary documents.

In supporting new research about the field, this grant aims to contribute to the reading of contemporary art developments in the 21st century through the publication of a research paper on AAA's website and by making new material collected during the research process available to the public for further research through from AAA.

The US$10,000 grant is offered every two years.

Judges for AAA Research grant 2011 include:
Jane DeBevoise, Chair, Board of Directors, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong
Ranjit Hoskote, Independent Curator and Cultural Theorist, Bombay, India
Claire Hsu, Executive Director, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong
Eileen Legaspi-Ramirez, Faculty Member, Department of Art Studies, University of the Philippines; Contributing Editor, Pananaw: Philippine Journal of Visual Arts, Manila, the Philippines