The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation awards three types of grants: Grants for Arts and Arts Education, Arts Education Schools Choose Grants, and Arts Education Impact Grants. All grants reflect a commitment to engage diverse communities and audiences in the arts. The program emphasizes accessibility to institutions and art practices as a means to promote identity, creativity and cultural literacy.
Grants for Arts and Arts Education are awarded to organizations committed to making the arts a solid and significant part of the education process. Grantees have a history of providing arts education services to children and youth in local underserved public schools and community settings. They offer students the opportunity to explore the language of the arts through a variety of disciplines. Grants are also awarded to organizations and institutions that provide the public with valuable cultural experiences.
By invitation only.
The Foundation initiated the Schools Choose grant program in 2012 to help New York City public middle and high schools counter diminished funding for arts education programs. The objectives of the grant are twofold: to support initiatives by underfunded public school principals to integrate the arts into regular student curriculum, and to give these principals an extended window to measure the effects of their arts programs on their school’s population. The Schools Choose Grant is distributed annually and continuously over a five year period.
By invitation only.
Impact Grants are awarded to organizations that help develop and implement arts education programs in New York City schools and communities. Impact Grants are given on a competitive basis and are offered for a maximum of five years. In this time period, the organization establishes art education curriculum that makes a significant impact on young people’s lives. Organizations are expected to conduct rigorous assessment to ensure that successful programming continues as a regular part of the organization’s operations at the end of the grant period.