Field and Macarthur Foundations Announce 2025 A Road Together (ART) Grant Recipients
Twenty-five Small to Mid-Sized Arts and Culture Nonprofits Funded
through 5-year, $15 Million Partnership Supporting Historically Underserved Communities
CHICAGO – The Field Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced the 2025 “A Road Together” (ART) grant recipients – 25 Chicago-based arts and culture nonprofits who together will receive $2.85 million in general operating grants over three years.
As a five-year, $15 million partnership with the MacArthur Foundation, the ART initiative is rooted in the belief that small and mid-sized arts and culture organizations – including social service groups and community organizers – are vital to Chicago’s identity, economy, and social fabric.
Now in its third year, the partnership has awarded unrestricted, general operating funding to 156 nonprofits – all of which have annual budgets of less than $1 million and operate largely in traditionally underserved communities.
This is a milestone year for the ART initiative, which offered both three-year and one-year grants in its first two years. In 2025, all ART grants provide three years of funding, fulfilling the initiative’s vision of providing substantial, multi-year support to help small and mid-sized arts and culture organizations realize their missions.
The ART initiative supports organizations that serve historically underserved communities, particularly on the city’s South and West Sides, which traditionally have faced significant roadblocks when trying to access arts resources.
A Commitment to Participatory Grantmaking
A panel of Chicago artists and cultural leaders recommended the 2025 cohort of ART grant recipients using a participatory grantmaking process. The panelists reviewed nearly 120 proposals and evaluated organizations on criteria including community engagement, relevance, impact, and alignment with the Field Foundation’s mission to support community power building. Grants range between $25,000 and $100,000 per year over three years.
The Impact of ART
Comprised of three, 25-organization cohorts (2023, 2024, 2025) receiving three-year general operating funding, the ART initiative supports 75 unique organizations annually. This approach is especially significant as the arts sector faces continued challenges, including rising operating costs and declining funding at federal, state, and local levels.
The ART initiative continues to demonstrate the transformative impact of general operating funding. Organizations have reported that ART dollars act as a “release valve” to fund salaries, pay artists, and cover core infrastructure costs—essential expenses that are often unfunded through traditional restricted grants.
2025 ART Grant Recipients
Congratulations to the 2025 ART grant recipients
About Face Theatre
Africa International House USA
Aguijón Theatre
Architreasures
Ballet Folklorico de Chicago
Changing Worlds
Chicago Blues Revival
Chicago Mobile Makers
Chicago Multi-Cultural Dance Center
Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation
Creative Chicago Reuse Exchange
Cultural Access Collaborative
Design Museum of Chicago
Folded Map Project
FreshLens Chicago
High Concept Labs
ILA Creative Studio
Intonation Music
Kalapriya Foundation
Making a Difference Dancing (M.A.D.D.) Rhythms Organization
Pegasus Theatre Chicago
Territory NFP
The Era Footwork Collective
UrbanTheater Company (UTC)
Walls Turned Sideways
Learn about the ART initiative and the 2025 grant recipients.