Most successful people have time to plan their estates, but the last months of Nancy Graves’ life were chaotic. In May 1995, the 55-year-old sculptor, painter and printmaker was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and five months later, she was dead. Since he had no heirs, he had to quickly decide what to do with his property and wealth. Like many other artists with tangible works of art and other assets, he created a non-profit foundation in his will to protect his estate from high death taxes. But what kind of foundation should this be? What would be its purpose?
Many artist foundations serve the interests of artists posthumously, as trustees and curators organize exhibitions of their work, prepare catalogs raisonné, creative works of art and make documents and archival materials available for study. The Henry Moore Foundation in England, for example, was founded in 1977 to “promote the education of the public by promoting its appreciation of fine art, especially the work of Henry Moore.” In more language, the foundation created by Salvador Dalí in 1983 in Spain aims to “develop, increase, expose, lend fame, protect and defend in Spain and any other country the art, culture and genius of the artist… and the universal recognition of culture, artistic thought and his contribution to the art of art.”
Contrast that with Graves, who modeled his foundation’s vision on those founded by Adolph Gottlieb and Lee Krasner, whose primary mission is to award grants to artists in need.
Fifty or 30 years ago, there were very few foundations for artists. However, “post-1960 artists have done much better than many artists of the past who often had no way to establish a foundation,” says Sanford Hirsch, executive director of the Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation, which has been providing individual assistance and emergency grants to artists since 1977, a year after the foundation began operations. “The Gottlieb Foundation Individual Support Grant program has been active every year since and provides awards of $25,000 each to 20 artists.” The emergency grant foundation program, which supports artists who have experienced a recent disaster and lack the resources to meet the resulting needs, provides one-time grants of $15,000.
Adolph Gottlieb’s will set up the creation of a foundation to help “mature, creative painters and sculptors… who should lack financial resources.” Other artists have noticed. Later in her life, Lee Krasner sought to create a foundation to protect her and her late husband Jackson Pollock’s art from being sold or donated to museums to avoid estate taxes, and to educate the public about their artistic achievements. However, it was when his lawyer, Jerry Dickler, reminded him that “but for the grace of God, he might have had to apply to the grant foundation, if there was such a foundation,” that he decided that the main work of the Pollock-Krasner Foundation should be supporting artists. Since 1985, more than 5,000 artists in 79 countries have received grants totaling $87 million.
Some families or artist foundation boards offer individual awards that work to organize the artist’s goals. The grant program at the George and Helen Segal Foundation was designed by the artist’s widow and daughter based on his “desire to be of service to artists,” said Rena Segal, the sculptor’s daughter and the organization’s vice president. Artist Joan Mitchell’s will reflected a desire to “support artists and sculptors,” according to Christa Blatchford, executive director of the New York City-based Joan Mitchell Foundation. However, the way to support artists—by appointment instead of applying—and the amount of support ($60,000 per artist over five years, for 15 artists annually), and a second program offering paid residencies ($600 per month for one to five months) at the Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans, were designed by the board.
Artists often have a specific idea about who they want to help. Judith Rothschild (1921-93), for example, was an obscure painter whose most acclaimed work came in the last six years of her life. The daughter of a wealthy furniture manufacturer, she inherited a collection of artists from the School of Paris from her parents. When he died, he established a foundation aimed at supporting the conservation, documentation, publishing, museum acquisitions and exhibitions of unknown artists—those he believed shared his fate.
Similarly, Nancy Graves wanted to help artists like her. Its grant program provides financial assistance to experimental artists, “who wish to have the opportunity to use a technique, medium or discipline different from that for which they are primarily recognized,” according to the organization’s website. Graves himself was often criticized for working in all disciplines—from the polychrome engravings to the brightly painted pieces for which he is best known, as well as photography, film, set and costume design, and painting, in which he earned an MFA. Through his foundation, he hoped to inspire others to do the same.
With little time left, Graves did everything he could to support his fellow artists. He donated his library of 5,000 books to the Millay Colony for the Arts in Austerlitz, New York, and his art materials to an art school in Santa Fe. Regarding his financial assets, he saw the need for direct grants to artists.
The Culture Wars—short for the deeply divided debate in the US between conservatives and progressives on social issues—led to a sharp drop in congressional support for the National Endowment for the Arts. This included the termination of many artist fellowships in the 1980s and ’90s, followed by cuts to many state-owned arts corporations. Most recently, in May 2025, the NEA abruptly cut hundreds of grants to arts organizations across the country.
In 2003, state arts agencies in 37 states offered fellowships to artists. That number dropped to 29 in 2014, according to a study by the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies. Total fellowships dropped from 1,300 in 1994 to 762 in 2007. Meanwhile, combined fellowship and project funding to individual artists from federal agencies dropped from $10.18 million in 2003 to $6.77 million in 2015. To date, 32 state arts agencies offer artist fellowships. Of these, 27 provide direct, unrestricted funding and five partner with external organizations to manage the relationship.
“These fellowships are an important source of funding for individual artists,” Eddie Torres, president and CEO of Grantmakers in the Arts, told the Observer. He noted that public arts institutions have significantly increased support over the past decade, investing $38.1 million by 2023. Fellowship awards now range from $250 to $50,000, with an average award of $5,000. “State arts agencies support individual artists through a broad portfolio of grants and services, amounting to $38 million annually, or nearly a quarter of all state arts agency awards,” said Kelly J. Barsdate, senior counsel to the National Council of State Arts Centers.
This is a significant development, but the need is still great. Over the past two decades, a growing number of artists have established foundations during their lifetime or as part of their estates, with the primary purpose of awarding grants or fellowships to individual artists.
Demand is always high. When the George and Helen Segal Foundation was established in 2000, its grant program was initially open to artists worldwide. “We were inundated with requests,” Rena Segal told the Observer. The foundation soon limited eligibility to New York and New Jersey residents, and eventually only to New Jersey artists. In recent years, it has ended the grant program entirely to focus on promoting George Segal’s legacy through research and exhibitions. “Most foundations given to artists have sunset provisions,” notes Blatchford, adding that the Joan Mitchell Foundation has established an endowment to maintain its grant program in perpetuity.
The Aspen Institute, a policy research organization in Washington, DC, has identified more than 500 artist-endowed foundations, which hold several billion dollars in combined assets, according to Christine J. Vincent, executive director of the Institute’s Artist-Endowed Foundations Initiative. Some of these foundations provide direct grants to artists or work with non-profit organizations to provide awards with foundation funds. Others write under artists’ residences. Their prices are increasing, Vincent told the Observer, some bases are “on the shelf, waiting for the artist to pass.” Among these are the (Judy) Chicago (Don) Woodman Foundation, the Janet Fish Foundation, the (Joyce Kozloff) Crossed Purposes Foundation and the Pat Steir Foundation.
