Opportunity Fund
A member of Grantmakers in the Arts since 2017, Opportunity Fund is a Pittsburgh-based foundation that supports small and midsize arts organizations and organizations advancing social and economic justice.
Earlier this year, we welcomed Ian-Julian Williams, formerly of the National Endowment for the Arts, as our first Program Officer/Arts. Ian is prioritizing engaging with Pittsburgh's arts community, while exploring how gathering Pittsburgh’s arts funders could create opportunities for collective action. We’ll soon share our Why We Fund the Arts essay, outlining the goals that will guide our work with artists, arts organizations, and arts-goers in the years ahead.
We’ve continued awarding multi-year and general operating expenses grants, a practice we expanded significantly in 2021. The accompanying photographs feature several of our current arts grant partners, all of whom have received flexible, multi-year general operating support. We’ve also continued participating in pooled funding efforts, including the Minnesota Arts Rise & Remember Fund, The Collaborative for Immigrant Impact, and the Meeting the Moment rapid response grant program developed in partnership with United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
This year we’ll launch the Respite for Black Womxn initiative, the culmination of four years of learning with partners how philanthropy can help restore the right to rest through direct cash and other resources.
As we look ahead we hope to better understand the impact of longer-term, flexible support offered in various forms, and to continue participating in collaborative funding efforts. We look forward to sharing what we learn with our colleagues across the GIA community.