Despite the giving spirit of young tech philanthropists, the arts are largely forgotten
This article has been making the rounds in my social media circles and I thought it merited a larger audience. The influx of wealth to millennials in the tech world is a boon for philanthropic giving to some organizations, but the arts are largely being forgotten.
Why?
Because it’s hard to quantify the value of arts and culture. Sure, there are metrics like number of audience members or museum visitors, or the number of discounted tickets for students or low-income attendees, or even the number of school groups or kids served. But to what end?
If you are basing your philanthropy on lowest-cost-to-save-a-life, where does a child experiencing her first Beethoven symphony fit in? Or the teen seeing Jackson Pollack up close for the first time? Or the stressed-out family getting a moment of respite with 120 glorious minutes of the Nutcracker at tickets that won’t break their budget? Or the truly magical moment when a cathedral joins the choir with ringing overtones and the entire audience experiences a moment of bliss, together.
Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts. — William Bruce Cameron
The arts cannot sustain themselves on ticket sales alone. Most organizations, large or small, cover less than half of their operating expenses with ticket sales. Why? Because they want to keep tickets affordable. But this means they require support through charitable donations to keep doors open. Corporate donations to the arts took a huge hit in the 2008 financial crisis and public funding is minuscule compared to Europe, which means individual giving is more important than ever.
So as you consider your end-of-year giving, please include arts organizations in your philanthropic portfolio.
If you aren’t sure where to give, you can start by looking at any nonprofit cultural organization you bought a ticket from this year. Symphonies, museums, ballets, opera companies, choirs, theaters — any (non-commercial) company you’ve liked enough to patronize is worth supporting with a donation.
Or, if you’d like suggestions, here are my favorites:
Ensemble Companio: small chamber choir in the northeast that travels — and supports members with child-friendly rehearsal policies and a member experience fund to offset rehearsal and performance costs for its largely 20/30-something members. (Full disclosure: I sing with this choir… and I support it philanthropically)
Interlochen Center for the Arts: a world-renowned arts camp and boarding school in Northern Michigan that trains the next generation of musicians, dancers, theater artists, writers, visual artists, filmmakers, and more. (Full disclosure: I went to this school, sit on the alumni board… and support it philanthropically)
Merrimack Repertory Theatre: regional theater company in Massachusetts that produces innovative work, including one of the highest rates of producing female playwrights in the country (this is a big deal), as well as providing child care during performances and offering discounted tickets to keep productions accessible. (I have no disclosure on this one — I love their work and their Artistic Director is a mensch.)
New York Philharmonic: world-class orchestras don’t just persist, they are carefully cultivated and supported day in and day out. If you want this one to continue to exist, give it your money. Also they do amazing outreach with schools all around NYC, ensuring kids from all backgrounds get top notch music education.
