Culture, Equity, and the Arts in Chicago (for organizations with budgets of $1 million and above)

Culture, Equity, and the Arts in Chicago is a multi-year general operating support grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for Chicago-based arts and culture organizations with annual expense budgets of $1 million and above.

Awards range from $55,000 to $80,000 per year, typically for three years, providing unrestricted flexible funding. Applications begin with a Letter of Inquiry accepted between February 1 and March 31 each year. Smaller organizations may apply through regranting partners such as the Field Foundation's ART initiative.

Eligible applicants must be Chicago-based 501(c)(3) arts organizations demonstrating equity, collaboration, and community relevance.

Culture, Equity, and the Arts in Chicago - MacArthur Foundation Login into your grantee account, reset your password, or submit an idea to the MacArthur Foundation. Culture, Equity, and the Arts in Chicago Reflecting diverse creative sector voices and sustaining the creative life of the city. Festival Performance at the 2017 Hyde Park Jazz Festival in Chicago.

In 2019, we announced a new approach to arts and culture grantmaking in the city of Chicago. The reimagined program, called Culture, Equity, and the Arts, was informed by conversations with leaders from arts organizations, artists, and creatives in nonprofit and for-profit spaces, and arts advocates and administrators.

It is also shaped by MacArthur’s participation in Enrich Chicago and a Foundation-wide effort to reflect on how our decisions and actions enhance the conditions in which justice can thrive .

We provide multi-year general operating support to organizations with a primary focus on arts and culture and also to organizations that are arts-centered, meaning that art is integral to executing an organization’s mission but may not be the organization’s primary goal.

Awards are given to organizations whose artistic and cultural work reflects a commitment to equity, to collaboration with other entities, to building relationships across communities with different perspectives, and is relevant to the issues facing Chicago.

In an effort to ensure more voices are included as part of our decision-making process, the applications are reviewed by a participatory grantmaking panel with eight to twelve members. The panel consists of community members who reflect the city’s wide array of arts and cultural offerings, related social interests, neighborhoods, and other aspects.

Ultimately, the panel recommends a slate of grantees and award amounts to MacArthur’s President and Board of Directors, which retain their approval authority.

Learn About Our Strategy View Arts & Culture Loan Fund Grant Guidelines We believe that the high level of cultural vitality in the Chicago region rests on a strong core of arts and culture organizations, large and small, that represent the diversity of artistic disciplines, artists within those disciplines, neighborhoods, and residents.

Through this program, MacArthur provides unrestricted general operating support, directly to large organizations and through a regranting partner to mid-sized and small organizations. These resources provide flexible, reliable funding that helps organizations maintain stability, plan ahead, pursue new ideas, and invest in new artistic directions.

These resources also complement targeted, capacity-building programs that strengthen the sector as a whole. Support for Organizations with Annual Budgets of $1 Million and Above Funding is in the form of multi-year, general operating support to Chicago-based arts and culture organizations. We make grants directly to organizations with budgets above $1 million.

Grant sizes range from $55,000 to $80,000 per year, typically for three years. In reviewing proposals, we consider the following qualities: Equity —the organization demonstrates a commitment to fair treatment, access and opportunity for all, and the elimination of barriers to participation. Collaboration —the organization actively works with external partners to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.

Connectivity —the organization uses its artistic and cultural practices and programming to inspire empathy, encourage individual empowerment, bridge divides between people and communities, and/or connect to other familiar or unfamiliar perspectives. Relevance —the organization’s creative work illuminates contemporary social inequities.

View Culture, Equity, and the Arts grant guidelines Support for Organizations with Annual Budgets up to $1 Million Our vision for Culture, Equity, and the Arts includes multi-year general operating support for small and mid-sized organizations. These awards are made through a regranting partnership. A Road Together (ART) is an initiative of the Field Foundation supported by the MacArthur Foundation.

While MacArthur makes grants directly to organizations with budgets of $1 million and above, the Field Foundation’s ART program regrants MacArthur funds to organizations with budgets up to $1 million. Both programs award multi-year general operating grants through a participatory grantmaking process.

View ART Funding Guidelines and Application Information Evaluation of our work is a critical tool for informing our decision-making, leading to better results and more effective stewardship of resources. We develop customized evaluation designs for each of our programs based on the context, problem, opportunity, and approach to the work. Evaluation is not a one-time event.

It is an ongoing process of collecting feedback and using that information to support our grantees and adjust our strategy. We aim to understand how the strategy contributes to a Chicago that is more equitable and where justice can thrive. Evaluations for the Arts & Culture Loan Fund Program and for the International Connections Fund have been completed.

Findings and analyses from evaluation activities are published as they become available. Latest News & Related Content Load More VIEW ALL LATEST NEWS Other Chicago Commitment Areas of Focus What is the Chicago Commitment? Partnerships to address critical challenges with the goal of building a more inclusive Chicago.

Investing targeted resources in a small number of place-based initiatives. Advancing diverse leaders whose influence will improve decision making. Focuses on strengthening local organizations including the creative sector, supporting civic partnerships on timely issues, investing in vital communities, and advancing diverse and influential leaders in Chicago.