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Cy Twombly Foundation

Annual Giving
$16.5M
Grant Range
$45K - $3.0M

Cy Twombly Foundation

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $16,474,500 (2023)
  • Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed
  • Decision Time: Not publicly disclosed
  • Grant Range: $45,000 - $3,000,000+ (based on documented grants)
  • Geographic Focus: International (with emphasis on institutions exhibiting Twombly's work)

Contact Details

Overview

The Cy Twombly Foundation is a private non-profit foundation established in 2005 with the mission to foster the study and preservation of the work and legacy of Cy Twombly. The Foundation made 8 awards totaling $16,474,500 in grants during 2023. Its primary focus is supporting scholarship on the artist, exhibitions of his work around the world, and philanthropic initiatives that embody the spirit of the artist. The Foundation operates through trustee discretion, making contributions to pre-selected charitable organizations. Recent major gifts include a $3 million donation to Rome's GNAMC for museum restoration and a multi-year grant to the Drawing Center in New York that provided free admission for three years.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The Foundation does not operate formal grant programs with public application processes. Instead, it provides:

  • Major Museum Support: Multi-million dollar gifts to institutions for exhibitions, acquisitions, and facility improvements (e.g., $3 million to GNAMC Rome)
  • Access Initiatives: Multi-year grants to cultural institutions to provide free admission (e.g., Drawing Center free admission through 2023)
  • Poetry Award: Annual $45,000 unrestricted award through Foundation for Contemporary Arts (administered separately via confidential nomination process)
  • Emergency Relief: Collaborative funding initiatives for artists and cultural workers during crises

Priority Areas

  • Museums and cultural institutions exhibiting or preserving Cy Twombly's work
  • Academic research and scholarship on the artist
  • Publication of catalogues raisonnés documenting Twombly's output
  • Arts education programs, particularly master's degree programs in art conservation and scholarship
  • Contemporary art nonprofits in cultural centers like New York City
  • Free public access to cultural institutions
  • Emergency relief for cultural workers and artists

What They Don't Fund

The Foundation explicitly states it:

  • Does not accept unsolicited requests for funds
  • Only makes contributions to pre-selected charitable organizations
  • Does not operate public grant programs

Governance and Leadership

The Foundation operates with a Board of Trustees that makes decisions on grantmaking through trustee discretion. Nicola Del Roscio, who was closely associated with Cy Twombly during his lifetime, maintains a significant connection to the Foundation's work (he also founded the Fondazione Nicola Del Roscio in Italy, which has complementary preservation goals).

The Foundation maintains an archive of materials available to qualified scholars, curators, and researchers upon request.

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

This funder does not have a public application process.

The Cy Twombly Foundation operates as a private grantmaking foundation that makes contributions exclusively to pre-selected charitable organizations. The Foundation explicitly states it does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.

Grants are awarded at the discretion of the Foundation's trustees to organizations that:

  • Support exhibitions of Cy Twombly's work
  • Advance scholarship on the artist
  • Embody the spirit of the artist through their philanthropic work
  • Increase public access to contemporary art and culture

For organizations with existing relationships or those seeking archive access for scholarly purposes, inquiries may be directed to info@cytwombly.org.

Decision Timeline

Not applicable due to invitation-only structure.

Success Rates

Not publicly disclosed. The Foundation made 8 awards in 2023, 6 awards in 2022, and 7 awards in 2021.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable - no public application process exists.

Application Success Factors

While there is no public application process, the Foundation's documented grant history reveals clear funding patterns:

Institutional Characteristics of Funded Organizations:

  • Major museums and cultural institutions with international reputation and reach
  • Organizations presenting significant exhibitions of Cy Twombly's work
  • Institutions that can demonstrate long-term preservation and public access commitment
  • Cultural organizations in major art centers (New York, Rome, Paris, Philadelphia)

Types of Projects Funded:

  • Major retrospectives and scholarly exhibitions (Centre Pompidou, Getty Centre, MFA Boston)
  • Museum facility improvements directly related to preservation (GNAMC restoration laboratory)
  • Free admission initiatives that dramatically increase public access (Drawing Center saw 50% visitor increase)
  • Educational programs including master's degree scholarships in relevant fields
  • Emergency relief initiatives for the broader cultural community

The Foundation's Values (drawn from documented actions):

  • Preservation: Significant investments in conservation facilities and catalogues raisonnés
  • Access: Multi-year support for free admission programs
  • Scholarship: Support for academic research and advanced degree programs
  • Legacy: Strategic placement of works in major institutional collections worldwide
  • Community: Emergency support for cultural workers during COVID-19

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • No public application process exists - the Foundation operates exclusively through trustee-selected grants to pre-selected organizations
  • Relationship with Twombly's work is essential - virtually all grants support exhibitions, preservation, or scholarship directly related to Cy Twombly
  • Scale matters - documented grants range from tens of thousands to millions of dollars, suggesting the Foundation works primarily with established cultural institutions
  • Public access is valued - the Drawing Center grant specifically supported free admission, and this initiative increased visitors by 50%
  • Long-term partnerships - the Drawing Center received multiple grants over several years, suggesting the Foundation values sustained relationships
  • Strategic mission alignment - grants advance the Foundation's core purpose of fostering study and preservation of Twombly's legacy
  • For scholarly inquiries only - qualified researchers may contact info@cytwombly.org for archive access, not for funding requests

References

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