Small Art Institutions Navigate Fundraising Compromises and Alternative Models
In her ArtReview article, Jenny Wu examines the fundraising challenges and artistic liberties of small nonprofit organizations. Times, an innovative venue launched in February by co-founders Summer Guthery and Francesca Sonara, showcases Asad Raza's Thigmotaxis (the rat show) until December, employing night-vision trail cameras to study rat behavior. Since its establishment in 2010, Triple Canopy, a 501(c)(3), has been functioning with an annual budget of approximately $1 million, with 80% derived from donations. Director Molly Kleiman highlights fundraising tactics and long-term grants, including support from the Lambent Foundation for artists like Jeremy Toussaint-Baptiste. In contrast, larger nonprofits such as Amant and CARA, created by Lonti Ebers and Jane Hait, encounter governance issues. Wu concludes that these smaller organizations warrant greater recognition.
Key facts
- Times opened in February in a rented gallery space between Chinatown and Tribeca.
- Asad Raza's Thigmotaxis (the rat show) is on view through December at Times.
- Times operates under a 'three-year obsolescence model' to self-liquidate.
- Triple Canopy became a 501(c)(3) in 2010 and operates on approximately $1 million per year.
- About 80 percent of Triple Canopy's income is contributed; 60 percent from private foundations, city and state, 20 percent from board members and individuals.
- CARA opened in 2022 and is governed by 13 independent voting members plus founder and board chair Jane Hait and executive and artistic director Manuela Moscoso.
- CARA's fellowship program offers two $75,000 awards every two years.
- Amant's founder and CEO Lonti Ebers spent $40m building a 1,950-square-metre campus in East Williamsburg.
Entities
Artists
- Jenny Wu
- Asad Raza
- Summer Guthery
- Francesca Sonara
- Jana Jacuka
- Nina Beier
- Bob Kil
- Calla Henkel
- Max Pitegoff
- Liv Schulman
- Louis Osmosis
- Molly Kleiman
- Jeremy Toussaint-Baptiste
- Alex Tatarsky
- New Red Order
- Michelle Coffey
- Lonti Ebers
- Bruce Flatt
- Jane Hait
- Howard Marks
- Mette Edvardsen
- Ligia Lewis
- Manuela Moscoso
- Steffani Jemison
- Sam Newsome
- Tyrone S. Palmer
- Édouard Glissant
Institutions
- Times
- Canal Projects
- Amant
- Center for Art Research and Alliances (CARA)
- Triple Canopy
- Whitney Biennial
- Momus
- Lambent Foundation
- ArtReview
- Hong Foundation
- Fundación Ama Amoedo
- Padimai Art & Tech Studio
- Amos Anderson Fund
- Amos Rex
- PARKSEOBO FOUNDATION
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Park Avenue
- Chinatown
- Tribeca
- East Williamsburg
- West Village
- Montreal
- Canada