Forman Arts Initiative and Philadelphia Foundation Announce 2024 Art Works Grantees

In its fourth year, Art Works awards $800,000 over two years in unrestricted grants to impact-driven artists, cultural organizations and collectives shaping Philadelphia. 

Philadelphia, PA, November 14, 2024 — Forman Arts Initiative (FAI) and Philadelphia Foundation (PF) are proud to announce the fourth cohort of Art Works Grantees. Art Works is a $3 million grant program designed to support community-based arts and cultural organizations and emerging artists working in partnership with BIPOC and other historically under-resourced communities. 

“We are thrilled to announce another round of Art Works grantees. We are especially excited to see so many Kensington-based artists and organizations included in the cohort, reflecting the commitment FAI is making to its future home on North American Street,” said Jennifer Rice who co-founded FAI with her husband, Michael Forman.

For the first time, the grant initiative will be awarding an artist collective, Ninth Planet. The 2024 artist grantees, representing practices from painting to culinary arts, include Iris Brown, Jose Bustamante, Denice Frohman, Pedro Ospina, and Omar Tate. The 2024 arts organization grantees include cinéSPEAK, Photography Without Borders, South Asian American Digital Archives (SAADA), and Vox Populi. Each of the 2024 artist and collective grantees will receive $50,000, and each organization will receive $100,000 over two years. 

“Each of these artists and organizations demonstrate a deep commitment to caring and creating alongside specific communities. It’s an honor to support and recognize this work, and to bring these brilliant practitioners into community with each other.” said Adjoa Jones de Almeida, Executive Director for FAI.

Past grantees have used the award funds – which are unrestricted –  to support their creative endeavors and strengthen their respective artistic communities. Several used it to cover the costs of creating new installations for exhibits, filming new projects, and hiring additional staff. One recipient used their funds to purchase a 3-acre plot of land in Gee’s Bend, Alabama to create a retreat for Philadelphia artists to be in community with legacy quilters. 

“In its fourth year, it is wonderful to see the impact that ArtWorks is having on the reach of the artists, collectives and organizations that benefit from its support,” Co-founder Michael Forman said. “We look forward to seeing this year’s grantees impact the cultural sphere, both locally and globally.”

Meet the 2024 Cohort:

• cinéSPEAK is a Philadelphia arthouse cinema and journal that uses film as a cultural strategy to celebrate and strengthen movements for collective liberation.
• Photography Without Borders, growing out of an after-school program in Kensington, PWB teaches young artists to tell their stories through photography to better understand themselves and the world around them.
• South Asian American Digital Archives collaborates with artists to create new works inspired by South Asian American stories. SAADA reinterprets historical and cultural narratives to include communities marginalized in the American story.
• Vox Populi, founded in 1988, presents experimental new works by underrepresented artists. The organization facilitates meaningful cultural exchange while embodying a more equitable, interconnected art world.
• Ninth Planet is an artist collective that makes experimental dance-theater that centers people of color, women, queer and trans people in Philadelphia. The collective’s shows are designed to activate the imagination, self-reflection, and a sense of adventure through the collision of dance, theater, music and installation. 
• Iris Brown has lived in the Norris Square neighborhood of North Philadelphia for 50 years and is an artist, cook, community gardener and culture keeper working through horticulture and Puerto Rican traditions to connect people through cooking, workshops, and neighborhood improvement projects.
• Jose Bustamante or “Busta” is a large-scale painter with Colombian roots who has served as a mentor to many up-and-coming young artists in the Kensington area. He creates space and builds community for artists focused on street art. 
• Denice Frohman is a poet and performer whose work explores language, lineage, queerness and the colonial relationship between the United States and Puerto Rico.
• Pedro Ospina is a socially engaged artist, community gardener, and overall connector in the Kensington neighborhood. He is the creator of The Open Kitchen Sculpture Garden, an ongoing project initiating a movement of collaboration, education, and sustainability through the use of art, public space, and food. 
• Omar Tate is a food artist who describes food as the connective tissue between his work with poetry, painting, and structural forms like ceramics and sculpture. His work reflects on various histories and ideas of contemporary Black life.

“The continued partnership between Philadelphia Foundation and Forman Arts Initiative through the Art Works program exemplifies the power of collaboration in nurturing Philadelphia’s vibrant cultural landscape,” said Pedro Ramos, President and CEO of Philadelphia Foundation. “By investing in diverse voices, we’re also fostering community connections, preserving cultural heritage, and driving positive change throughout Philadelphia.” 

The 2024 grantees were selected by a committee of Philadelphia arts professionals, including:  Cesali Morales, Business and Development Director, Norris Square Neighborhood Project; Eric Pryor, President and CEO, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts; Hironaka & Suib, Nadia Hironaka and Matthew Suib, Public Works 2024 Artists in Residence; Valerie Gay, Executive Director, Creative Philadelphia, City of Philadelphia; Casey O’Donnel, CEO, Impact Services; Imani Roach, Curatorial Director, Center for African and African Diasporic Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art; Pedro Ramos, President and CEO, Philadelphia Foundation; Adjoa Jones de Almeida, Executive Director, Forman Arts Initiative, and Jennifer Rice, Founder, Forman Arts Initiative.

A full list of past Art Works grantees can be found here. 

About Forman Arts Initiative: Forman Arts Initiative (FAI) is dedicated to supporting artists and cultural organizations in Philadelphia, and expanding the role of art in local communities through programming, convenings, and advocacy. For more information, visit www.formanartsinitiative.org.

About Philadelphia Foundation: Founded in 1918, Philadelphia Foundation strengthens the economic, social and civic vitality of Greater Philadelphia. Philadelphia Foundation grows effective philanthropic investment, connects individuals and institutions across sectors and geography, and advances civic initiatives through partnerships and collaboration. A publicly supported foundation, the Philadelphia Foundation manages more than 1,000 charitable funds established by its donors and makes over 1,000 grants and scholarship awards each year. To learn more visit test.philafound.org.

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