Grantmakers in the Arts

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Grantmakers in the Arts

Grantmakers in the Arts is a national association of public and private arts funders – providing members with resources and leadership to support the arts.

10/21/2026

Thank you, Memphis, for welcoming us with open arms, and thank you to our 600+ attendees, speakers, organizers, performers, funders, volunteers, sponsors, artists, and cultural leaders for making GIA26, AS THE SOUTH GOES: BLUEPRINTS FOR CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE & COLLECTIVE POWER, such a meaningful gathering. Memphis was more than our host city; its people, culture, and history reminded us of the power of community, the importance of place, and the need to invest in the people and stories that shape our cultural future.

At Grantmakers in the Arts, our mission is to advance philanthropic and governmental support for arts and culture, and this convening brought that work to life through shared learning, honest conversations, and a collective commitment to more equitable funding and stronger cultural infrastructure. As we leave Memphis, we carry forward new connections, bold ideas, and a shared responsibility to turn these conversations into action.

Thank you for being part of this work. The power is collective, and the work continues.

Comment below your favorite moments from our gathering and enjoy a sneak peek of some of our favorite photos from the past several days (more to come, we promise)!

“Research shows that peak experiences accelerate the process of falling in love. When you experience emotionally profound situations with someone, it acts as a psychological catalyst, forging a deep bond that might otherwise take months or years to build.” - Eddie Torres, President & CEO

📸: Andre Winrow + Eighty7 Media

10/19/2026

**GIACON26**

🎨✨ Make time for a little local creativity at !

Stop by the Orpheum Theatre lobby throughout the conference to explore our Artist Market, featuring arts, crafts, and more from talented local Memphis artists and vendors! 🛍️❤️

Shop local, discover unique finds, and support the creatives who make Memphis special. 🎭🎨

📲 Be sure to check the Whova app for Artist Market hours and what vendors will be present so you don’t miss out!

10/16/2026

**ORGANIZATION NEWS**

Los Angeles Performance Practice is thrilled to announce the 101 awardees of the California Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowships for Los Angeles County! It is our honor to distribute a total of $800,000 in unrestricted funding directly to artists and culture bearers across the region in this, our second cycle serving as the program’s Administering Organization for Los Angeles County.

Spanning Emerging, Established, and Legacy Artist tiers, this year’s Fellows reflect the extraordinary breadth of artistic practices and communities that make up Los Angeles County’s cultural landscape. The California Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowships program uplifts and celebrates California artists across all disciplines and traditions, highlights their excellence, and acknowledges their leadership in shaping traditional and contemporary cultures.
We welcome your support in sharing this information via news outlets and on social media. Don’t hesitate to reach out should we be able to provide additional information, social media graphics, or anything further.

You can view the full press release and meet this year’s cohort here:
https://performancepractice.la/cac-iaf-2026-2027

10/15/2026

GIACON26 | As the South Goes: Blueprints for Cultural Infrastructure & Collective Power is here! We are beyond excited to congregate in Memphis: The Home of the Blues for our annual convening! To all of our attendees, speakers, artists, and community leaders -- we encourage you to show up as yourselves AND leave room for the magic, knowledge, and growth that Memphis has to offer.

Check out our conference website to learn more about our keynote speakers and performers, tap into what's happening around the city, and lock in your favorite sessions in the Whova app. We have a lot to discuss. See you there 👋

10/09/2026

**NEWS FROM THE FIELD**

The University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice lecturer and donor advisor Jessyca Dudley on why philanthropic norms are neither timeless nor inevitable.

"We start by acknowledging that Big Philanthropy is an outcome of extraction. It’s the tail end of an economic system that has decided it wants profit, whether that's through paying people less than the value they create or through externalizing costs onto the environment. That's a different starting point than most philanthropy strategists take."

Read the full article here: https://bit.ly/4rWH4ne

10/07/2026

**GIACON26**

Time to think ahead! While some folks plan to leave early on the last day of conferences, we're offering a heightened incentive to stay for an unforgettable keynote from . Tressie McMillan Cottom. We are closing the conference by moving from memory into responsibility, with the Blues as cultural form and final charge. This plenary does not repeat the movement assembly harvest; it begins ceremonially and moves toward release.

Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom is a professor and faculty director with the Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, NY Times Opinion Columnist, and 2020 MacArthur Fellow. Her work has earned national and international recognition for the urgency and depth of its incisive critical analysis of technology, higher education, culture, media, class, race, and gender. Recent accolades include being named the 2023 winner of the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize by Brandeis University for her “critical perspective and analysis to some of the greatest social challenges we face today,” the recipient of the 2025 Thomas Wolfe Prize, and a 2025-26 National Humanities Center Fellow. Her most recent book, THICK: And Other Essays was just listed as one the 30 best nonfiction books of the last 30 years by the L.A. Times Festival of Books. Two books are forthcoming with Random House Books. She produced and co-directed the short documentary, “Power to the People, Y’all”, in 2026.

Join us on Wednesday, October 21 for this dynamic plenary presentation. You won't want to miss it.

Learn more about the conference here: https://www.gia-conference.org/

10/05/2026

**GIA CALL TO ACTION**

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has proposed significant revisions to the Head Start Program Performance Standards. The proposed changes affect staffing and professional development, classroom size and staff-child ratios, multilingual instruction, transportation, health and mental health services, program length, and administrative costs.

GIA encourages members of the arts and cultural community, particularly those working with children, families, early childhood programs, and Head Start organizations, to review the proposed changes and consider submitting comments about their potential impact on the communities they serve.

Public comments are open through October 6, 2026.

Learn more and submit your comment here: https://reader.giarts.org/read/advocacy-weighing

10/01/2026

**GIA JOB NOTICE**

Grantmakers in the Arts (GIA) is seeking a Director of Finance and Operations to join its team. This position will report directly to the President & CEO, and work collaboratively with other members of the GIA team, including development, membership and program staff.

The Director of Finance and Operations is primarily responsible for financial and legal reporting, and administrative, technical, and physical systems that support GIA’s activities, including human resources and consultant relationships and contracts including for GIA’s IT, website, and Customer Relations Management systems, among others.

Review of applications will begin in September 2026. We anticipate conducting interviews between September 2026 and January 2027 with an offer made in February 2027. We anticipate the selected candidate starting in May 2027.

View the full job description at https://www.giarts.org/jobs

09/23/2026

**GIA READER**

Grantmakers in the Arts is calling on arts and culture funders and others working with children, families, and early childhood programs to weigh in on proposed federal changes to Head Start. The proposed rule would significantly scale back federal standards around classroom sizes, staffing, professional development, transportation, language access, mental health services, and other areas, potentially leading to less consistent services for children and families across states. Public comments are open through October 6, 2026, and GIA encourages members to review the proposed changes and consider sharing how they could affect the communities they serve.

Learn more and take action here: https://bit.ly/4yiJKOM

09/22/2026

**GIA MEMBER DISCUSSION**

Transform Finance: Grantmakers and Investment Teams

Julie Menter, Program Director at Transform Finance, will join GIA’s members to discuss how to get grantmakers and investment teams speaking the same language on impact investing. GIA members welcome!

Join us this Thursday, September 24 at 1pm PT/4pm ET.

Register here: https://bit.ly/4yL13HQ

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New York, NY

Telephone

+19294523740

Website

http://www.giarts.org/

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