Mellon welcomes inquiries from organizations whose work aligns with our current strategies

We are able to collectively get all this history together and make context out of it, but we rely on our community for its history.

In centering voices that have often been sidelined and silenced, we challenge the status quo.

The Legacy of Black Life on the North Shore

Father and Son Banquet at the Emerson YMCA, circa 1917. Photo: courtesy of Helen Cromer Cooper

A gathering of African American men and boys seated at a formal dinner in the early 20th century

The Nation’s First Municipal Reparations Program, Grounded in Black History

What happens when you try something outside of what is supposed to be business or nonprofit work? I think crossing those imaginary boundaries can lead to something generative.

​​​​​​​​​For the sake of the neighborhood, the W.O.W. Project is blurring the lines between storefront and arts center in Manhattan’s Chinatown. Performer Tuxedo Masc stands outside Wing on Wo.

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The Hard-Won Beauty of Staying Put 

Samip Mallick, executive director of SAADA with colleagues.

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Sharing Personal Stories from South Asian Communities 

It marks the second phase of interactive public artworks for Harlem Grow’s Culture, Creativity, and Care Initiative—a program funded by the Mellon Foundation.

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A new pavilion by Jerome Haferd Studio opens in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park

The story of Los Angeles, like many great cities, begins on the banks of its river.

Artist Judy Baca standing in her studio in white paint splattered overalls

An essay from the artist Judy Baca, originally published on the Mellon Foundation website in 2021. She is the artistic director of SPARC and led the effort to create The Great Wall of Los Angeles. 

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Artist and CEO & Artistic Director

Judy Baca

Painting in the River of Angels

A $750,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation made possible a fresh approach to presenting Lewis Howard Latimer’s legacy.

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Reopening for Juneteenth, a Museum Celebrating a Black Inventor

“Written on Skin,” by Charo Oquet, 2019. Courtesy of US Latinx Art Forum. Oquet is part of the 2024 cohort of Latinx Artist Fellows. 

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The 2024 Latinx Artist Fellowships provide $50,000 in unrestricted funding and a year-long program of professional engagement opportunities


US Latinx Art Forum Announces New Latinx Artist Fellows

While many prison education programs focus on preparing incarcerated individuals for life after release, one program is actually tapping the expertise and experience of people behind bars.

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How A Colorado University Is Changing Prison Education

The Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH) is thrilled to announce its receipt of a $1 million grant from the prestigious Mellon Foundation.

Media HarlemWorld

Classical Theatre Of Harlem Awarded $1 Million Grant From Mellon Foundation

A project that uses humanities methods to document and explore pandemic backlash and the experiences of public health officials has received $1.25 million in funding from the Mellon Foundation.

Media Syracuse

Mellon Grant Supports Humanities-Oriented Project Focused on Public Health

The Asheville City Council authorized 180 thousand dollars to fund the “Boosting the Block” Project, one of three projects funded by the Mellon Foundation.

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Asheville's 'Boosting the Block' project secures initial $180k funding boost

Mellon makes grants to support communities through the power of the arts and humanities

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How do you make history be vibrant enough? And engaging enough? So that you pay attention. Right? That’s really part of our story. 

Judy Baca co-founded the Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC), and starting in 1974, over five summers, employed 35 artists and over 400 socially and economically diverse youth and their families to bring the vision to life.

Multiple pieces of paper containing pencil sketches on a wooden table, with the artist Judy Baca's outstretched pointer finger touching one of them

The Great Wall of Los Angeles

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Artists as Catalysts

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Beyond Incarceration

A side profile of a Black poet who is wearing glasses and a hat with a feather hat pin.

Civic Engagement

A man in a brown jacket stands in front of blue bulletin board that is covered with papers and advertisements  

Evolving Higher Education

A vertical image of an Indigenous person who is sitting on a chair in front of a backdrop.

Expanding Public Knowledge

An interior room filled with audio and video equipment 

Monuments and Memory

A multicolored painted totem pole set in front of a foggy forest landscape

Multivocality

Five people stand together in a group photo. They are laughing and smiling.

Power of the Word

Five colorful neon signs hang on the wall with messages that include, "Freedom cannot wait," "Brown owned," and "America is for Dreamers."

Public Places‚ Public Stories

A group of Indigenous Maskoke people stand and sit in the wooden frame of a structure in a woods

Puerto Rico and Its Diaspora

In a vertical image, a black leather vest is adorned with colorful pins across the front of it. Embroidery on the vest reads: "Felícitas "La Prieta" Méndez" 