MAP Fund Receives $3.6 Million in Support of its Programs

The MAP Fund has received two major grants in support of its mission to advance the field of contemporary live performance. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, which has been MAP’s primary funder since 2008, renewed their support for MAP with a grant of $2,630,000 over two years. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, a new funding partner, also approved a $1 million grant for use in all aspects of MAP programming for the next two years.

Ben Cameron, Senior Program Officer for the Arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF), stated: “We are delighted to continue our support for the MAP Fund. MAP plays a critical role in the vitality of the field of contemporary performance and continues to prove its value through its exemplary roster of new grantees each year. We are particularly pleased that DDCF’s support has allowed MAP to expand its programs to include the Creative Exploration Fund and grants for general operating costs.”

“The Doris Duke and Andrew W. Mellon foundations are rare, visionary leaders in arts funding,” added Ruby Lerner, President and Executive Director of Creative Capital, a national nonprofit organization which administers the MAP fund. “Their trustees and program officers deeply understand the importance of supporting the most daring creative minds of our day, and their consistency of purpose in doing so is truly inspirational. MAP could not be more thrilled to partner with them both at this exciting, expansive time for this venerable program.”

Since 1989, the MAP fund has supported approximately 40 projects a year, with grants ranging from $10,000 to $45,000. To date, MAP has distributed over $20 million in 34 states to more than 800 projects in theater, dance, and music with the majority of projects employing multiple disciplines. With the exception of the National Endowment for the Arts, MAP is the largest annual open-submission grant for contemporary performance in the United States in both applications reviewed and dollars awarded.

(—condensed from the press release)