Donations Allow Arts Organizations To Thrive

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Arts organizations need philanthropy.

To continue entertaining and educating their communities, these organizations need money beyond what governments supply. Fundraising and gifts support arts institutions, according to Rebecca Gruss, executive director of Valley Art Center in Chagrin Falls, and Annaliese Johns, director of stewardship and donor relations at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Fundraising is essential for the arts, Gruss remarked.

“Government support is never enough to sustain an artistic organization.” She said Valley Art Center relies on the Ohio Arts Council and Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, but they don't provide enough cash. “We fundraise in several ways,” she stated.

“We have general fundraisers, individual donors, and corporate donors and supporters.” Gruss stated Valley Art Center holds a basket raffle fundraiser annually. “We have a raffle fundraiser with 21 fantastic prize baskets,” she said.

“It's a February-long digital fundraiser.” She stated the fundraiser should raise at least $25,000.

The center receives $25,000–$30,000 in annual appeals.

These funds maintain the facility. She added these funds are needed to maintain Valley Art Center programming free and open to the public. “We're the visual hub in our community, in the Chagrin Valley; and so, through our educational art classes, we create a little community within the community where people come and have amazing experiences both through art education (and) connecting with like-minded people, enjoying the art and learning together,” Gruss said. Johns said the arts unite people more effectively than dialogue. “The arts help people recuperate physically, mentally, and emotionally,” she remarked.

Museums are safe and soothing. She said arts boost the economy.

Artists have revitalized neighborhoods and provided jobs. Members and contributors attend almost 100 Cleveland Museum of Art events annually.

She said these activities connect students to the museum's “world-renowned” collection, “internationally acclaimed” exhibitions, and “remarkable” curators. Johns said these activities include thought-provoking talks, intimate tours, behind-the-scenes investigations of rare places like our cutting-edge conservation labs, and social events like exhibition openings, lavish feasts, and cocktail receptions. She added the museum released a revamped strategic plan in 2022 with five-year goals. “Contributed revenue will focus on plan commitments,” she said.

“Guided by the CMA's traditional dedication to artistic excellence, we will magnify the effect of our permanent collection and create new models for the acquisition, exhibition, and interpretation of remarkable works.” She added the museum's fundraising aims are to support this plan and its goals by securing long-term financial resources. “Another significant priority is exhibition funding, both annual and endowed,” Johns noted.

“We also intend to greatly expand membership, which supports everything we do at the CMA, including free entry, and energizes our arts community.”

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