MacArthur will continue its support for more than 200 Chicago-area arts and culture groups for five more years through renewed partnerships with the Prince Charitable Trusts and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.
MacArthur provides more than $8 million annually in general operating support to theaters, dance groups, music organizations, visual arts programs, film and media groups, museums, zoos, and conservatories. All of the organizations MacArthur supports are engaged in some combination of performance, exhibition, community building, and education.
The Foundation’s support is an expression of its civic commitment to the community where it is headquartered and where John and Catherine made their home. Grants are designed to help sustain the cultural vitality of the city and the region by supporting professionally run non-profit arts groups.
“As public funding for the arts has decreased, MacArthur’s role as a consistent and steady supporter of Chicago arts and culture has become even more critical,” said MacArthur President Robert Gallucci. “We are pleased to continue and to increase our role in sustaining the city’s cultural vitality.”
As public funding for the arts has decreased, MacArthur’s role as a consistent and steady supporter of Chicago arts and culture has become even more critical.
Annual MacArthur arts grants provide general operating support and range from $3,000 to $100,000 per recipient. MacArthur makes grants directly to the largest arts and culture organizations, while support for small and mid-sized organizations is provided through partnerships with the Prince Charitable Trusts and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.
In addition to its ongoing general operating support, the Foundation continues to support specific projects that will strengthen the arts sector in Chicago. For example, MacArthur previously announced the $1 million expansion of its International Connections Fund, which supports collaborations between Chicago arts and culture organizations and arts groups in other countries. Applications for the latest round of funding are due on July 1, 2012. More information is available on MacArthur's International Connections Fund page.
MacArthur is also launching a new, year-long program of workshops that will be conducted by national arts expert EmcArts, which helps nonprofit arts organizations flourish in today's economic and cultural environment. The program begins on June 26.
MacArthur has supported arts organizations in Chicago since 1979, awarding $180 million through more than 1700 grants. In Chicago, the arts generated $1 billion in spending by organizations and audiences, supported 30,000 jobs, and resulted in $105 million in state and local revenue in 2005, the most recent year for which data are available.
