New foundations are always being born, but rarely on the scale of the Ruth Arts Foundation, which was established this year and announces its first grant this week.
Funded by a $ 440 million bequest from Ruth Deyoung Caller IIThe Foundation will soon enter the highest stages of artistic philanthropy. Kohler, Those who died in 2020 After a career in raising self-taught artists, he was a descendant of Wisconsin’s bathroom fixtures as a member of the founding family bearing the name of Kohler.
The Milwaukee-based foundation plans to donate $ 17 to $ 20 million annually. Joel Wax, Chairman of the Andy Warhol Visual Arts Foundation, said: He said his foundation donates about $ 17 million annually.
The Ruth Foundation’s first donation was $ 1.25 million to 78 different nonprofits in visual and performing arts. We plan to make another donation this fall and spring 2023.
Grants range from well-known to lesser-known, including celebrities in Maine. Skowhegan School of Painting & SculptureAlternative art space White pillar In New York; Art Center Appal shop Whitesburg, Kentucky; and that Griot Black History Museum In St. Louis.
Two groups of Milwaukee are receiving grants. Milwaukee movie When Arts in generalSupports fair access to art education.
Karen Patterson, executive director of the Ruth Foundation, said the scope of philanthropy could evolve.
“I’m still not that fast to define it,” said Patterson, one of only two full-time employees. “We are building as we go.”
Operated with approximately $ 500 million in funding, it has the potential to provide a safety net to many small arts organizations.
“I’m crazy about the impact we can have,” said Patterson, who previously worked as a curator. John Michael Caller Arts Center In Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
There, Patterson became acquainted with Ruth Kohler, who ran the center from 1972 to 2016. Founded in 1967, it is named after its grandfather and founder. Kohler Company..
The center gained a reputation for focusing on the folk art and works of self-taught artists of particular interest to Ruth Kohler. The center will be in 2021 Art reserve, An experimental space for an artist-built environment, one of her passionate projects.
Margaret Andera, a contemporary art curator at the Milwaukee Art Museum, said: “We’re used to it now, but many institutions were lagging behind the game. She was an innovator.”
Approximately half of the Foundation’s grants are quietly donated by Kohler throughout his life through the RDK Foundation, the predecessor of the Ruth Foundation. The other half was nominated by a group of nearly 50 artists.
Like much about Caller, her donations were modest. For one thing, she didn’t like being photographed, said Patterson, who worked closely with Caller for seven years.
“Honestly, I didn’t know about it,” Patterson said of Caller’s previous donation. “It was under the radar.”
Beyond the parameters of visual arts, performing arts, and art education, Kohler’s vision for the Ruth Foundation is not specific about where the money should go, giving Patterson and the three councils a lot of room. rice field.
“Ruth was never normative,” Patterson said. “She once said,’All art for all.'”
Patterson added that callers have their own way of working. “She was always there to focus on ideas and make things happen. Ruth followed the artist’s lead.” She always said that the staff was creatively pushing herself. I wanted to confirm.
In addition to creating his own art, Michelle Grabner has taught at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has supported the Foundation by appointing recipients, but has known Caller for decades. rice field.
“She was a formidable woman,” Grabner said. “She had her opinion, she was strong. The good thing about the Midwest, she didn’t have time for it.”
The money was a surprise to many organizations, as none of the organizations that received the grant applied for the grant.
The Women’s studio workshop In Rosendale, NY, you will receive $ 10,000 in the first round of grants.
Lauren Walling, Executive Director of the Workshop, said: “I was thinking.” Are they trying to get bank information from me? Is this a scam? “
Founded in 1974 as a residency program for female artists, this workshop specializes in prints, paper works and handmade artist books. It has evolved to include queer, transgender and non-binary artists.
“As a person who is constantly collecting money, you are always pushing rocks up the hill,” Walling said. “When someone says,’I have some money here,’ you want to fall.”
Walling added that the workshop was nominated for a grant by artist Andrea Chung. That made it even more meaningful.
“What’s special is that this foundation goes to artists first,” she said. “They are asking,’Who moved you, who changed your life?'”
The First People’s FundHeadquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, you will receive $ 20,000. The fund’s chairman, Lori Pourier, described the organization as dedicated to supporting “indigenous artists, cultural bearers, and traditional caretakers of tribal communities.”
Pourier had never heard of Kohler until he was contacted by the Ruth Foundation.
“It was very exciting,” she said. “That means more support for the isolated tribal communities in the countryside, where most of our work is done.”
The grant also “helps to be recognized by a larger philanthropic community,” Pourier added. Prior to this grant, we also received support from the Ford Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Fund received unexpectedly in 2021 $ 6 million From MacKenzie Scott, a millionaire philanthropist who has been willing to donate property from his investment in Amazon.
Not fully equipped with Scott’s fame and philanthropic resources, Patterson is preparing for demand. But she didn’t seem to be afraid of it.
“I’m always thinking about it,” Patterson said of the possible influx. “I hope people will see our list of grantees. We are artist-centric and moving the community forward. If you see yourself on that list, let us know. prize.”
