Funding Research

The NEA has been mired in controversy for most of the past decade, during which time it has lost much of its appropriation and even more of its autonomy, as Congress has directed larger chunks of its annual appropriation to the states, earmarked other moneys for special purposes, and effectively placed off limits NEA fellowships for most kinds of artists.

1997, 24 pages (executive summary), The Getty Education Institute for the Arts, 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 600, Los Angeles, California 90049-1683

1997, 114 pages, Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, Publishing Center, 919 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55104-2198, 1-800-274-6024

Landscape dominates Oregon. Its beaches, mountains, and rivers beckon Oregonians to spend their leisure time hiking, skiing, and fishing. Many Portland residents routinely exit the city on weekends, choosing outdoors over urban culture. It is within this enticing natural environment that Portland's arts and cultural institutions must engage their audiences and make their way as financially viable institutions.

104 pages, October 2006. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, 130 Humphrey School, 301 19th Ave. S, Minneapolis, MN 55455. http://www.hhh.umn.edu

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2006, 27 pages. Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, 2324 University Avenue West, Suite 114, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55114, 651-645-0402, www.mrac.org

Download pdf at The Bush Foundation website

"Harmony is not an arts destination. We seek the arts at the core of everyday lives. We simply want a more solid community, a well-rounded community, beauty in our lives." — Paula Michel, Harmony Arts Council

In the tradition of Dana, an ancient Pali word meaning generosity or giving, the Dana Foundation funded the Dana Arts and Cognition Consortium in July 2004, to study the effect of the arts on learning. At the GIA conference in Los Angeles, October 2005, Michael Gazzaniga, director of the Consortium1, described a three-year study being undertaken by the Con-sortium as "the first extensive scientific attempt to provide a comprehensive picture of the role of arts education in changing the brain."

Grantmakers in the Arts has been in existence for a brief two decades, and yet even within the ranks of long-time GIA conference attendees and the veterans who are among GIA's leaders today, there is no common recollection of the organization's prehistory and the moment of its founding. History generally belongs to the domain of the humanities rather than the arts, but nonetheless it is slightly embarrassing that a professional arts philanthropy organization, which has come to exercise substantial influence it its field, has no record of its founding.

As arts funders, we often perceive our capacity to direct financial resources to worthy arts organizations as the most valuable tool at our disposal. That's probably correct and, indeed, as it should be. After all, most of our institutions have been established by donors for the core purpose of grantmaking, and the law mandates that we award grants for public benefit.

Background
The cultural sector does not exist in a vacuum. It is being challenged by major demographic, economic, technological, and social factors outside its immediate control. While the commercial arts and individual artists are also struggling to adapt to these changes, for a variety of reasons the nonprofit arts sector has been particularly slow to respond effectively.