New Publication!

Change Capital in Action: Lessons from Leading Arts Organizations
Change Capital in Action: Lessons from Leading Arts Organizations shares the results of Leading for the Future (LFF), a five-year program that has invested change capital in ten leading performing arts organizations' to support and sustain their business and artistic adaptation. It features principles of the LFF initiative, profiles of individual change efforts, participants' financial and program outcomes, and lessons relevant for arts organizations and funders alike.

Arts and Culture

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For over 30 years, NFF has been helping arts and cultural organizations solve their financial challenges and plan for a more vibrant, healthy future. We have worked with more than 1,300 arts organizations across the country, from small neighborhood-based community centers to large performing arts organizations and museums.

What We Do

Our team of arts experts assist organizations facing a range of artistic and business opportunities, from change, to growth, to collaboration, customizing our approach to individual circumstances and organizational sizes. For nonprofits, we provide sector-specific financial consulting services and access to capital, both loans and grants. NFF also provides funder services to support effective grantmaking in the arts. We advocate for improved funding and financing practices and better dialogue between arts organizations and their supporters.

On the Boards

Strategic Partnerships & Initiatives

We work with foundations and nonprofits to delve into specific financial issues relevant to a cohort of organizations. In addition to testing innovative shared approaches and examining sector trends, we focus on each nonprofit's unique financial situation.

Boston Center for the Arts

NFF Research & Reports

Read our reports specific to Arts and Culture
See a full list of NFF research across sectors

 

Social Currency Blog

Essays and Commentary

Blogs dedicated to arts and culture
NFF's Social Currency Blog 
NFF's Money & Mission on The Chronicle of Philanthropy

 

Jose MateoClient Stories

NFF has worked with more than 1,300 arts and culture organizations, from grassroots art studios to large renowned theaters, partnering with funders with varying grantmaking budgets, interests, and needs. Our understanding of the sector is bolstered by this breadth and depth in service. Check out our client features for On the Boards, ArtsQuest, and Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation.

201w Arts Survey Results2013 Arts Survey Results

For arts organizations, a declaration that economic ‘hard times’ have ended is premature. The more than 900 arts organizations who responded to NFF’s annual survey report that their crisis isn’t over. While they’ve largely been able to meet demand, even as it continues to grow, they have done so by steadily exhausting the available strategies for cutting costs. This presentation highlights these and other stories from arts organizations across the country.

Areas of Focus

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Supporting Arts & Culture

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Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre

"When Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre started to work with NFF seventeen years ago, the organization had posted operating deficits for many years in a row, audits were issued with ongoing concerns, and the future looked shaky at best. Seventeen years later, the organization is consistently posting operating surpluses and working to build a robust balance sheet. I cannot speak highly enough about NFF. NFF staff are true capacity builders and leave organizations with an enhanced understanding of the role of finance in service to mission."

Scott Fraser Managing Director, JMBT

Read more about JMBT!

 

Case for Change Capital in the Arts

Case for Change Capital in the Arts

Building Vibrant and Viable
Cultural Organizations

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