How do I find funders for a arts and culture nonprofit in Wisconsin?

Start with the funders already giving to arts and culture in Wisconsin, currently Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc, United Performing Arts Fund Inc, Kohler Trust for the Arts and Education. Then look at who funds the arts and culture organizations on this page that resemble yours, and add the national funders reaching into Wisconsin from out of state.

How much grant money goes to arts and culture in Wisconsin?

$305M reached 536 arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin, from 1,081 funders. 75% came from funders also based in Wisconsin.

How recent is this data?

It is read from IRS Form 990 and 990-PF e-file filings for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the two years with complete coverage. US charity filings lag 12 to 24 months.

Funding · Wisconsin · Arts and culture

Who funds arts and culture in Wisconsin

Arts and culture funding in Wisconsin is unusually spread out: no single organization draws even 12%, though Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Inc leads, and the money reaches 536 groups.

$305M

granted

536

organizations

75%

from in-state

The short version

1,081 funders gave $305M to 536 arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin across the FY2022 and FY2023 IRS filings.
75% of that came from funders also based in Wisconsin; the rest reached in from out of state.
The largest funder of arts and culture in Wisconsin is Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc, at $23M.
The arts and culture organization drawing the most is Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Inc, at $24M.

Largest funders of arts and culture in Wisconsin

The funders giving the most to arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin, in-state and out. Pick one for its dossier.

1Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc$23M 2United Performing Arts Fund Inc$20M 3Kohler Trust for the Arts and Education$18M 4Madison Children's Museum Foundation$16M 5Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund$13M 6Community Foundation for the Fox Valley$11M 7Madison Community Foundation$9M 8The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation Inc$9M 9Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc$7M 10HF Foundation Inc$6M

Arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin that draw the most

Sized by grant dollars received. Pick one to see exactly who funds it.

526 other arts and culture organizations$173M

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Inc$24M Milwaukee Repertory Theater Inc$21M Madison Children's Museum Inc$17M John Michael Kohler Arts Center Inc$15M

How to find arts and culture funders in Wisconsin

1
Start with the funders already active in Wisconsin
The funders giving the most to arts and culture in Wisconsin are Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc, United Performing Arts Fund Inc, Kohler Trust for the Arts and Education. A funder already writing arts and culture checks in your state is the warmest place to begin.
2
See who funds organizations like yours
Open the arts and culture organizations on this page that resemble yours in size or work, and look at who funds them. Shared funders are the strongest signal of fit.
3
Add the out-of-state funders reaching in
25% of arts and culture money in Wisconsin comes from funders elsewhere, so national arts and culture funders are worth approaching even if they are not based in Wisconsin.

Questions and answers

How do I find funders for a arts and culture nonprofit in Wisconsin?: Start with the funders already giving to arts and culture in Wisconsin, currently Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc, United Performing Arts Fund Inc, Kohler Trust for the Arts and Education. Then look at who funds the arts and culture organizations on this page that resemble yours, and add the national funders reaching into Wisconsin from out of state.
Who is the largest arts and culture funder in Wisconsin?: Greater Milwaukee Foundation Inc gives the most to arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin, $23M across the 2022 and 2023 filings.
How much grant money goes to arts and culture in Wisconsin?: $305M reached 536 arts and culture organizations in Wisconsin, from 1,081 funders. 75% came from funders also based in Wisconsin.
How recent is this data?: It is read from IRS Form 990 and 990-PF e-file filings for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the two years with complete coverage. US charity filings lag 12 to 24 months.

More from the funding graph

The regranting layer

51% of grant dollars pass through an intermediary

The DAF merry-go-round

$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds

Strange bedfellows

the named clusters of US funding

The camps

funders cluster by geography, not ideology

State money flows

the interactive map of money crossing state lines

Giving abroad

which US foundations fund each country

Cause is the recipient's NTEE classification in the IRS Business Master File; location is the recipient's state on its most recent filing. Grant figures are read from IRS Form 990 and 990-PF e-file XML for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, among recipients resolved by EIN. Source: IRS Form 990 downloads.