“Art is important because it expands how we look at and understand the world. It can make us think beyond our own experience, and often, in our appreciation, we find things that link us in a common humanity.”
—David Rockefeller
Priority
Cultivating, showcasing and disseminating the stories of innovative art for social change.
Description
The DR Fund’s Arts program supports arts and culture organizations that are using the arts to amplify social justice movements and/or progressive power-building efforts on a national level. We seek to fund exemplary and inspiring efforts that demonstrate how artistic practice can move beyond a single person or institution, affect much broader communities than a single audience, and advance social, economic, and ecological justice.
We are particularly interested in work that inspires civic engagement; ensures that political and social movements incorporate arts and culture into their strategy; and places the priorities and needs of those historically marginalized at the center of healing processes of communities impacted by environmental/climate injustice, mass incarceration, over-policing, and other forms of racial injustice.
Geographic Focus
National
2023 Grant Partners
| Brave New Films | Culver City, CA | $30,000 |
| Center for Artistic Activism | New York, NY | $200,000 over 3 years |
| Center for Cultural Power | Oakland, CA | $55,000 |
| Grantmakers in the Arts | Bronx, NY | $10,000 |
| Hi-ARTS | New York, NY | $55,000 |
| Hip Hop Caucus Education Fund | Washington, DC | $50,000 |
| New Venture Fund (for IllumiNative) | Washington, DC | $205,000 over 2 years |
2022 Grant Partners
| Brave New Films Action Fund | Culver City, CA | $25,000 |
| Brooklyn Arts Exchange | Brooklyn, NY | $100,000 over 2 years |
| Center for Artistic Activism | New York, NY | $70,000 |
| Grantmakers in the Arts | Bronx, NY | $5,000 |
| New York Foundation (for Youth Organizing & Culture Change Fund | New York, NY | $150,000 over 2 years |
| Urban Bush Women | Brooklyn, NY | $100,000 over 2 years |
2021 Grant Partners
| Americans for the Arts Action Fund | Washington, DC | $25,000 |
| Amplifier | Seattle, WA | $50,000 |
| Brooklyn Arts Exchange | Brooklyn, NY | $50,000 |
| Center for Cultural Power | Oakland, CA | $100,000 over 2 years |
| Hi-ARTS | New York, NY | $100,000 over 2 years |
| Hip Hop Caucus Action Fund | Washington, DC | $150,000 over 2 years |
| New Venture Fund (for IllumiNative) | Washington, DC | $200,000 over 2 years |
| Urban Bush Women | Brooklyn, NY | $50,000 |
2020 Grant Partners
| A Blade of Grass | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Americans for the Arts Action Fund | Washington, DC | $75,000 |
| Amplifier | Seattle, WA | $50,000 |
| Brave New Films Action Fund | Culver City, CA | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Community Funds (for Mosaic Network & Fund) | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Cultural Engagement Lab | Oakland, CA | $100,000 |
| Cultural Shed | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Fractured Atlas (for Scene City project) | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Gibney Dance | New York, NY | $120,000 |
| Girl Be Heard | Brooklyn, NY | $50,000 |
| Grantmakers In the Arts | Bronx, NY | $5,000 |
| Hi-ARTS | New York, NY | $75,000 |
| Hip Hop Caucus Action Fund | Washington, DC | $100,000 |
| Laundromat Project | Brooklyn, NY | $75,000 |
| National Black Theatre | Harlem, NY | $75,000 |
| New Venture Fund (for IllumiNative) | Washington, DC | $100,000 |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $100,000 |
| Swiss Institute | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Theatre of the Oppressed NYC | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| YEARS Project | New York, NY | $50,000 |
2019 Grant Partners
| Americans for the Arts Action Fund | Washington, DC | $38,000 |
| Amplifier | Seattle, WA | $15,000 |
| Brave New Films | Culver City, CA | $25,000 |
| Cultural Shed | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Fountain House | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Fractured Atlas (for Climate Chores project) | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Girl Be Heard | Brooklyn, NY | $20,000 |
| Grantmakers In the Arts | Bronx, NY | $27,000 |
| Hip Hop Caucus | Washington, DC | $20,000 |
| Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (for Upstart Co-Lab) | New York, NY | $75,000 over 3 years |
| Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey (for Rikers Public Memory Project) | Newark, NJ | $15,000 |
| Sheherazade Initiatives | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Tribeca Film Institute | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Victory Gardens Theater | Chicago, IL | $40,000 |
| YEARS Project | New York, NY | $25,000 |
2018 Grant Partners
| A Blade of Grass | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Amplifier | Seattle, WA | $25,000 |
| Brave New Films | Culver City, CA | $25,000 |
| Chashama | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Gibney Dance | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Grantmakers In the Arts | Bronx, NY | $1,000 |
| Hip Hop Caucus | Washington, DC | $20,000 |
| Just Detention International | Los Angeles, CA | $25,000 |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Theatre of the Oppressed NYC | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Tides Foundation (for YEARS Project) | San Francisco, CA | $25,000 |
| United Workers Association | Baltimore, MD | $20,000 |
| Victory Gardens Theater | Chicago, IL | $40,000 |
2017 Grant Partners
| Amplifier Foundation | Seattle, WA | $25,000 |
| Center for Artistic Activism | Beacon, NY | $25,000 |
| Fountain House | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Girl Be Heard | Brooklyn, NY | $60,000 over 2 years |
| Grantmakers In the Arts | New York, NY | $1,000 |
| John Howard Society (for Pros and Cons) | Kingston, ON | $50,000 over 2 years |
| The Listen Charity USA | Los Angeles, CA | $50,000 over 2 years |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Theatre of the Oppressed NYC | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| United Workers Association | Baltimore, MD | $30,000 |
| Victory Gardens Theater | Chicago, IL | $30,000 |
2016 Grant Partners
| A Blade of Grass | New York, NY | $150,000 over 3 years |
| chashama | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Fortune Society | Queens, NY | $20,000 |
| Girl Be Heard | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Issue One | Washington, DC | $12,500 |
| John Howard Society (for Pros and Cons) | Kingston, ON | $25,000 |
| MAPP International Productions | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Theatre of the Oppressed | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| United Workers Association | Baltimore, MD | $30,000 |
| The Watershed Center (for People's Collective Arts) | Millerton, NY | $17,500 |
2015 Grant Partners
| A Blade of Grass | New York, NY | $50,000 |
| Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Fortune Society | Queens, NY | $20,000 |
| Gibney Dance | New York, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Groundswell | Brooklyn, NY | $20,000 |
| Laundromat Project | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| MOCADA | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| New York City Cultural Agenda Fund | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Socrates Sculpture Park | Queens, NY | $50,000 |
| Schomburg Center | New York, NY | $25,000 |
2014 Grant Partners
| A Blade of Grass | New York, NY | $30,000 |
| Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Gibney Dance | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Groundswell | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Hive Digital Media Learning Fund | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Laundromat Project | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| MOCADA | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| New York City Cultural Agenda Fund | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Queens Museum of Art | Queens, NY | $25,000 |
| Schomburg Center | New York, NY | $25,000 |
2013 Grant Partners
| Bronx Museum Education Programs |
Bronx, NY | $25,000 |
| Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Fund for Public Schools Summer Arts Institute |
New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Laundromat Project | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) Youth Chorus |
New York, NY | $15,000 |
| New York Community Trust Hive Digital Media Learning Fund |
New York, NY | $25,000 |
| New York Public Library Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture |
New York, NY | $25,000 |
| The Public Theater | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Queens Museum of Art | Queens, NY | $25,000 |
2012 Grant Partners
| Apple Arts | New York NY | $15,000 |
| Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP) | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Bronx Museum of the Arts | Bronx NY | $25,000 |
| Brooklyn Academy of Music | Brooklyn, NY | $50,000 over 2 years |
| Carter Burden Center for the Aging | New York, NY | $10,000 |
| Fund for Public Schools Summer Arts Institute |
New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Groove With Me | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Groundswell Community Mural Project | Brooklyn, NY | $40,000 over 2 years |
| Hive Digital Media Learning Fund | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Laundromat Project | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Metropolis Ensemble | Brooklyn, NY | $20,000 over 2 years |
| New York City Housing Authority Youth Chorus | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Queens Museum of Art | Queens, NY | $30,000 |
2011 Grant Partners
| Apple Arts | New York NY | $15,000 |
| Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP) | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Bronx Museum of the Arts | Bronx, NY | $25,000 |
| Brooklyn Academy of Music | Brooklyn, NY | $25,000 |
| Fund for Public Schools Summer Arts Institute |
New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Groove With Me | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Groundswell | Brooklyn, NY | $40,000 |
| Laundromat Project | New York, NY | $10,000 |
| New York University Tisch School of the Arts Talent Identification Program | New York NY | $15,000 |
| Queens Museum of Art | Queens, NY | $40,000 |
| Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City Spaceworks |
New York, NY | $80,000 over 2 years |
| Studio Museum in | Harlem Bronx, NY | $25,000 |
2010 Grant Partners
| Apple Arts NYC | New York, NY | $10,000 |
| El Barrio's Artspace (PS109) | New York, NY | $25,000 |
| Casita Maria | Bronx, NY | $15,000 |
| Fund for Public Schools Summer Arts Institute |
New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Groove With Me | East Harlem, NY | $15,000 |
| Groundswell Community Mural Project | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Hip Hop Theater Festival | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Joyce Theater | New York, NY | $15,000 |
| Queens Museum of Art | Queens, NY | $40,000 |
| Studio Museum in Harlem | New York, NY | $20,000 |
| Tisch School of the Arts Talent Identification Program |
New York, NY | $15,000 |