Who do Arts Funders Exist to Serve?

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By TAHLIB

Who do arts funders exist to serve? Who should decide where the money goes? Do historic processes serve current needs and goals? These are some of the questions explored during the 2013 Grantmakers In Arts conference in Philadelphia this year. Today, we are experiencing a shifting, or realigning of priorities and assumptions. Borrowing a concept from the for-profit sector, panelists asked "what does grantmaking look like if we try to think about those we serve as constituents?" I reflected back on whether we were a business-to-business model such as a Chamber of Commerce? Or are we in a business-to-customer model, serving constituents directly such as the United Way? They are all amazing questions, and explorations---no answers though and that's what made the conference exciting.