Philanthropy in Art: Locality, Donor Retention, and Prestige

Abstract

A considerable portion of the funds in art come from foundations, representing a key revenue stream for many art organizations. Here we use the IRS e-file dataset to identify $36B in grants from 46,643 foundations to 48,766 art recipients between 2010-2019. We find that philanthropic giving is broadly distributed, indicating that some institutions give or receive considerably more than others. Giving is highly localized, with 60% of grants and funds going in the same state as the donor. Furthermore, donors often support multiple local art organizations that offer distinct experiences, rather than advancing a particular subarea within art. Donor retention is strong with nearly 70% of relationships continuing the next year. Finally, we explored the role of institutional prestige in foundation giving, finding that while funding generally correlates with prestige, exceptions exist. Our results present the largest and most comprehensive data-driven exploration of giving by foundations to art to date.

Advancing arts philanthropy practices for well‐being

“…These contributions support various art forms and exhibit a noteworthy level of donor retention (Shekhtman & Barabási, 2023).…”

“…Presently, foundations' contributions to the arts exhibit a widespread and localized distribution, conforming to a stable power‐law distribution pattern. These contributions support various art forms and exhibit a noteworthy level of donor retention (Shekhtman & Barabási, 2023).…”

Towards an open innovation ecosystem in the cultural industry: The bright side of trust and the dark side of measurement

“…Understanding how innovative cultural initiatives can lead to the emergence of nascent ecosystems can prove valuable to cultural institutions and cultural industry leaders. Such insight is deemed particularly relevant given recent trends of generous philanthropic donations in support of cultural institutions (Foster et al, 2016;Rockerfeller Philanthropy Advisors, 2021), making private donations an important source of funds for many cultural organizations and initiatives (Mukai, 2018;Shekhtman & Barabasi, 2022), and acknowledging the essential positive social impact created by cultural industries (Block et al, 2022;Broadhead et al, 2022;Garnham, 2005;Scott et al, 2018;Stuckey & Nobel, 2010;Throsby, 2001;Wang et al, 2020;World Health Organization, 2022).…”