Mega and micro philanthropy

Two stories on supporting arts institutions - at either end of the spectrum - got me thinking today.

A New York Times profile of Eli Broad characterises his support of LA arts and educational institutions as "aggressive philanthropy" conducted with a "business-focused method". It contains this interesting quote:

“Eli is not the problem,” said Ann Philbin, the director of the Hammer Museum, who sparred with Mr. Broad when he sat on and eventually resigned from that museum’s board. “The problem is that we don’t have enough Elis in Los Angeles to balance out his generosity and the power of his influence.”

Meanwhile a post on Jen Bekman's 20x200 website describes the collaboration with artist Valerie Hegarty to sell prints to benefit the Brooklyn Museum. In a nice quid pro quo, all members of the Museum's entry-level 1stFans membership programme who renewed their membership before a certain date get a copy of the print; and everyone that buys a copy of the print (the largest edition is already gone) get a free membership. In his own post about the collaboration, Brooklyn Museum's membership manager Will Cary notes

I grow more convinced every day that unique partnerships and creative incentives are the key to acquiring and retaining members.

A lot of effort goes into both of the above - the wooing and management of single, mega donors and multiple micro donors. I think that, in the American context especially, both are needed. Both pose their own set of challenges around rewarding and retaining givers. What I think Americans do particularly well is innovate and adapt to make this happen.

New Zealand fundraising/membership programmes seem to have remained pretty static for at least the last decade. At the end of last year I saw an ad (perhaps in an Art+Object catalogue?) announcing a new kind of supporters group for the Auckland Triennial, which seemed like a small new move, at least in targeting a specific demographic. If I remember correctly you got an invite to a cocktail function and a Karen Walker t-shirt. I can't for the life of me find any trace of this online, including the Triennial site - anyone got anything?

tribal fundraising

I've been meaning to get this down from week now, since hearing Chris Brown speak at the Engage Your Community conference.

The abstract for Brown's presentation didn't really sum up what he spoke about. Brown is director of brand & PR firm Sputnik and co-author with Jill Caldwell of 8 Tribes: The Hidden Classes of New Zealand, a "values-based social anthropology of New Zealanders".

The 8 Tribes analysis breaks New Zealanders down into eight groupings, based on the values they espouse and lifestyle they lead:

The North Shore tribe
The Grey Lynn tribe
The Balclutha tribe
The Otara tribe
The Remuera tribe
The Raglan tribe
The Cuba Street tribe
The Papatoetoe tribe

You can do an online survey to establish your own tribe (in the interests of transparency, I'm half Grey Lynn and half Balclutha)

Now, before you start yelling at me about insensitive stereotypes and pseudo-social-sciences, it's not my book, and it's certainly not The Book.

What it is though is an interesting way for galleries to look at the audiences they wish to engage when they're on a fund-raising drive. This was the best bit of Brown's EYC presentation.

For example. The North Shore tribe are the "ambitious, hard-working, heavily-mortgaged inhabitants of the great suburban jungle". For them, "looking good and keeping up appearances" are really important. This is your audience for black tie celebrity auctions.

Or the Balclutha tribe: "the tribe of the Kiwi heartland, the provincial conservatives, who see themselves as a source of stability and commonsense, bearers of on-going connection with the land – solid, reliable and down to earth, but also deceptively smart". Will lend time and expertise (get them along for a working bee, or help with your accounts) but unlikely to throw cash your way.

Or the Grey Lynn tribe (I reckon this is your hard-core art patron grouping). They're the "highly educated intelligentsia who value ideas above material things and intellectualise every element of their lives." They "prefer to be “challenged” than entertained, seek out authentic experiences". Give them access to important intellectual figures (visiting curators/writers/critics) and artists (not that I'm saying that artists can't fall into the 'intellectual figures' category)

Of course this is just one way of looking at your engagement and fund-raising activities. But a little analysis never hurt anyone. Check out this blog post on the application of 8 Tribes thinking to green politics.

Feeling flush?

It's a bit late for Christchurch Art Gallery, but with redevelopments underway (Auckland Art Gallery) and on the cards (City Gallery Wellington), here's a way of shaking the last drop out of naming rights:

Here’s to Loo: Naming rights and museum restrooms - Walker Art Blog