The New York-based Wallace Foundation awarded $5.3 million to eight Twin Cites arts organizations and another $1.6 million to Minnesota Community Foundation to increase participation in the arts. The foundation chose Minneapolis-St. Paul as one of six communities because of the vibrant local arts scene: “Minneapolis Saint Paul stood out among others because of the robust collaboration among local funders and arts organizations around informing and supporting cultural participation.”
Eight organizations, including MacPhail Center for Music and the Minnesota Opera, will each receive four-year grants of at least $300,000 to increase arts attendance. Minnesota Community Foundation will partner with Arts Midwest over four years to create a network of resources about engaging audiences for all local arts organizations, in addition to providing project grant funds. The organizations will also receive technical assistance to help understand their audiences and evaluate project effectiveness.
“This is an exciting mix of arts organizations that enrich our region and state,” said Carleen Rhodes, Minnesota Community Foundation’s president and CEO. “We are pleased that The Wallace Foundation sought us out to play an organizing role that will enhance their individual and collective capacity.”
Building appreciation and demand for the arts is one of the Wallace Foundation’s three focus areas; find resources about this topic at wallacefoundation.org.
In the media:
