Artist as Philanthropist V1 - Grantmakers in the Arts

PREFACEThis research and dissemination project, the first such effort to focus on private foundationscreated by visual artists in the US, was initiated in 2007 with the encouragement andsupport of a donor consortium led by Charles C. Bergman of the Pollock-KrasnerFoundation, Jack Cowart of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, and Joel Wachs of the AndyWarhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. The original 24-month project plan provedunrealistic as a time frame for ambitious primary research and of necessity was extended toaccommodate an enhanced research program with appropriate dissemination activities.The resulting comprehensive report encompasses three sections presenting the Study'sresearch findings. These include an overview of the artist-endowed foundation field and itsscale, scope, character, and history; discussions of considerations in foundation practice,both forming, sustaining, and terminating foundations, as well as conducting charitableprograms; and a collection of briefing papers authored by independent scholars writing onaspects of artist-endowed foundations and their formation, operation, and charitableactivities. The Study report and its materials are available online at the Aspen InstituteProgram on Philanthropy and Social Innovation (www.aspeninstitute.org/psi/a-ef-report).Project HistoryThe Study has its origins in the collegial advisory activities of established artist-endowedfoundation leaders. For many years, those who had pioneered the form consultedgenerously with artists and others considering creating foundations, as well as withdirectors leading new foundations. Leaders of the Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation,the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, andmore recently the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, were tapped frequently in this role. As thenumber and pace of these exchanges increased, the value of broader exchange becameevident to those in the expanding community.In 2002, the first gathering of an informal collegial network convened at the RoyLichtenstein Foundation with representatives of several dozen artist-endowed foundationsin attendance. Titled the Council of Artist Foundations, the network's formation signaledthat a critical mass, however modest, had been reached by this emerging field. A newdimension of cultural philanthropy would be increasingly visible, spurred by thephilanthropic resources of artists, their family members, and personal associates.Against this backdrop, the idea that a focused look at private foundations created by visualartists would be timely and useful took shape. Assembling information about this emergingfield and organizing a body of knowledge about its history, trends, and practices could helpto bolster ongoing collegial advising and peer exchange, as well as bring this newerPrefacei