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Barbara Bluhm-Kaul Foundation (F/K/A Mayfair Foundation) at a glance

· Private foundation

Barbara Bluhm-Kaul Foundation (F/K/A Mayfair Foundation)

Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$1.0M
Granted FY2024still arriving
16
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$537k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Arts & Culture$2.4MCivil Rights$199kCommunity Improvement$135kPhilanthropy$117kReligion$115kInternational$113kHealth$47kEducation$18kOther$0
02FY2024 · 16 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k6 grants · $13k
  • $10k–50k5 grants · $104k
  • $50k–250k4 grants · $375k
  • $250k+1 grant · $537k
$24,390
Median grant
5
States reached
$23k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ASPEN ART MUSEUM$537,300
ORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART$185,000
ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO$90,000
RELIGIOUS ACTION CENTER OF REFORM JUDAISM$50,000
JEWISH UNITED FUND$50,000
THE WASHINGTON INSTITUE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY$25,000
PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY FOUNDATION$25,000
SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS$24,390
CHICAGO CARES$20,000
ASPEN MUSIC FESTIVAL & SCHOOL$10,000
ANDERSON RANCH ARTS CENTER$5,000
CHICAGO SINAI CONGREGATION$3,875
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF ISRAEL PHILHARMONIC$2,000
ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC$1,000
CHICAGO BOTANICAL GARDENS$600
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY17–19, $7k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%WISE PLACE: $5k → 10%HUMAN OPTIONS: $2k → 10%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

WA
IL
WI
NY
MA
CA
CO
VA
MD
DC
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

92%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.9M · 26 repeat orgs$267k to everyone else

26 repeat relationships: 12 still active in FY2024, 14 since wound down; 4 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

26
39

Total granted

$2.9M
$239k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+32%
+35%

Still filing today

65%
64%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 97% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $28k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEducationHealthPhilanthropyInternationalHuman ServicesOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • TA
    THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO
    8× · 2017–2024 · $383k · revenue +45%
  • MO
    MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
    6× · 2017–2023 · $155k · revenue +0%
  • JU
    JEWISH UNITED FUND OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO
    2× · 2023–2024 · $100k · revenue +32%

Funded once

  • SK
    STORM KING ART CENTERgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $50k · revenue +75%
  • CA
    Chicago Architecture Foundation
    one grant, 2023 · $50k · revenue -10%
  • CF
    Central Fund of Israelgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $35k · revenue +31%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Lyric Opera of Chicago

We believe in the life-changing, transformational, revelatory power of great art and opera. Lyric Opera of Chicago exists to provide a broad, deep, and relevant cultural service to the Chicago region and the nation, and to advance the…

Arts & Culture
2
Museum of Arts and Design

To collect, display and interpret objects in craft art and design.

Arts & Culture
3
Chicago Opera Theater

Chicago opera theater expands the tradition of opera as a living art form by engaging lovers of music and storytelling through innovative experiences, predominantly of new and rarely performed works.

Arts & Culture
4
Music and Dance Theater Chicago Inc
Arts & Culture
5
Columbia College Chicago

The organization's mission is to educate students for creative occupations in diverse fields of arts and media.

Education
6
Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art is a private, non-profit institution chartered by the State of New York Department of Education in 1929 to foster public awareness of modern and contemporary art. (Continued in Schedule O)

Arts & Culture
7
Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University Inc

The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University ("The Auditorium"), an Illinois not-for-profit corporation, is committed to presenting the finest in international, cultural, community and educational programming to Chicago and to the…

Arts & Culture
8
Music Institute of Chicago

The music institute of chicago ("music institute") leads people toward a lifelong engagement with music, by providing widely accessible resources for high quality music teaching, performing, and service activities.

Arts & Culture
9
Chicago Theatre Group Inc

The chicago theatre group is committed to producing both classic and contemporary works giving full voice to a wide range of artists and visions. by dedicating itself to three guiding principles - quality, equity, and community - the…

Arts & Culture
10
The Arts Club of Chicago

The arts club of chicago was formed as a means to encourage, foster, and develop higher standards of arts craftsmanship, and to maintain the city of chicago facility for the housing of galleries and exhibitions open to the public and free…

Arts & Culture
11
Chicago Historical Society

The Chicago History Museum strives to be a destination for learning, inspiration, and civic engagement. Through dynamic exhibitions, tours, programs, digital resources, and special events, the Museum connects people to Chicago's history…

Arts & Culture
12
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Museum of Contemporary Art; the most unlike its peers is Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

47 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 47 of the 71 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
47/47
Grantees still filing
34/47
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ASPEN ART MUSEUM: $833,441 · Arts & CultureASPEN ART MUSEUMORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART: $715,974 · Arts & CultureORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ARTMUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART: $154,503 · Arts & CultureMUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART+16 more: $264,535 · Arts & Culture+16 moreTHE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO: $383,001 · EducationTHE ART INSTI…+2 more: $6,000 · EducationUNION FOR REFORM JUDAISM: $90,000 · OtherUNION FOR …ANDERSON RANCH ARTS: $44,850 · OtherANDERSON R…MASS GENERAL BRIGHAM INCORPORATED: $29,849 · OtherMASS GENER…CHICAGO SINAI CONGREGATION: $25,375 · OtherCHICAGO SI…WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: $14,560 · OtherIIT COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE: $10,800 · Other+34 more: $87,303 · Other+34 morePEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY FOUNDATION: $186,292 · Civil RightsCHICAGO CARES INC: $135,000 · Community ImprovementJEWISH UNITED FUND OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $100,000 · PhilanthropyASPEN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $12,500 · Philanthropy+2 more: $1,500 · PhilanthropyWASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: $77,576 · InternationalCentral Fund of Israel: $35,000 · International+1 more: $476 · International
Arts & Culture$1,968,453Education$389,001Other$302,737Civil Rights$186,292Community Improvement$135,000Philanthropy$114,000International$113,052

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetASPEN ART MUSEUM: $833,441 over 8y, 3.2% of budgetORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART: $715,974 over 4y, 2.4% of budgetTHE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO: $383,001 over 8y, 0.0% of budgetPEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY FOUNDATION: $186,292 over 8y, 0.9% of budgetMUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART: $154,503 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetCHICAGO CARES INC: $135,000 over 8y, 0.9% of budgetJEWISH UNITED FUND OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $100,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: $77,576 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetSTORM KING ART CENTER: $50,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetChicago Architecture Foundation: $50,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetCentral Fund of Israel: $35,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE STUDIO MUSEUM IN HARLEM: $30,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetChicago Symphony Orchestra: $30,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetSegerstrom Center for the Arts: $24,390 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMUSIC ASSOCIATES OF ASPEN INC: $21,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetPacific Symphony: $14,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetASPEN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $12,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetTHE JOFFREY BALLET: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetANDERSON RANCH ARTS CENTER: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetNORTH SUBURBAN LEGAL AID CLINIC: $5,250 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetGRANT PARK ORCHESTRAL ASSOCIATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF THE ISRAEL MUSEUM: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWriters Theatre Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetILLINOIS NETWORK OF CHARTER SCHOOLS: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPlanned Parenthood of Illinois: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHOLOCAUST MEMORIAL FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWISEPLACE: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPAWS CHICAGO: $4,700 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCHICAGO FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN: $2,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetHuman Options Inc: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetISRAEL CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetNorthwestern University: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetEnglish in Action: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGLOBAL PHILANTHROPY PARTNERSHIP: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE THRESHOLDS: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetASPEN CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES: $600 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF ORANGE COUNTY AND THE INLAND EMPIRE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSCLERODERMA FOUNDATION OF GREATER CHICAGO: $500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBENTON INSTITUTE FOR BROADBAND & SOCIETY: $500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetASPEN SANTA FE BALLET: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF MAGEN DAVID ADOM: $476 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE JEWISH MUSEUM: $145 over 1y, 0.0% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

The Chicago Community…Jewish Federation of …National Philanthropi…American Endowment Fo…Donor Advised Charita…Morgan Stanley Global…The Bank of America C…Vanguard Charitable E…Network for GoodFidelity Investments …American Online Givin…Amazonsmile Foundation
The Chicago Community TrustIL14.8× affinity6 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Chicago Community Trust · Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago · National Philanthropic Trust · American Endowment Foundation · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Network for Good · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Amazonsmile Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Barbara Bluhm-Kaul Foundation (F/K/A Mayfair Foundation) funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Barbara Bluhm-Kaul Foundation (F/K/A Mayfair Foundation). Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    10report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 71 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Barbara Bluhm-Kaul Foundation (F/K/A Mayfair Foundation)’s filings →

    More from the funding graph

    The unnamed billions
    grants reported with no recipient in the public record
    The regranting layer
    51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
    The DAF merry-go-round
    $9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
    The endowment market
    who holds foundation money, and what just moved
    The camps
    funders cluster by geography, not ideology
    By state
    where grant money is based, and what stays home