Prebys Foundation announces $13.4 million in emergency arts grants

San Diego’s Prebys Foundation threw a lifeline Wednesday to 61 San Diego County arts organizations and venue operators that have been devastated this year by the 1-2-3 punch of federal and state budget cuts, donor fatigue and rising inflation.

The foundation — which shifted its funding focus to the arts in 2023 — announced the award of $13.4 million in new grants, including $8.6 million in unrestricted, rapid-response operating grants to 22 organizations and $4.8 million in venue and spaces grants to help 39 organizations preserve and enhance affordable and accessible spaces for arts programs. The grants range in size from $10,000 to $1 million.

“The arts are not a luxury. They are essential infrastructure for a thriving, equitable, and prosperous region,” said Prebys Foundation CEO Grant Oliphant, in a statement. “When we invest in the arts, we invest in jobs, innovation, understanding, and the shared spaces where our community’s stories and healing come alive.”

Without immediate intervention, local arts leaders have warned that the loss of programming, partnerships, venues, and jobs could impact San Diego’s entire cultural ecosystem and economy.

“As San Diego’s last remaining independent art-house cinema, the Digital Gym Cinema is a vital cultural hub where the community can come together to experience film,” said Ethan Van Thillo, executive director and founder of Media Arts Center San Diego, which received a $125,000 venues and spaces grant. “At a time when all cinemas face tremendous challenges to sustain themselves, this support allows us to expand our programming and provide more opportunities for community connection.”

Micah Parzen is the CEO of the Museum of Us in Balboa Park, which received a $500,000 rapid-response grant from the Prebys Foundation. He said it’s a perilous time for museums nationwide.

“With the devastating budget cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Sciences, museums such as ours are facing not only financial uncertainty, but also an existential challenge,” Parzen said, in a statement. “This funding is a critical vote of confidence in the importance of values-based work by cultural institutions throughout San Diego County during this tenuous time of historical erasure.”

Organizations were selected based on their civic and cultural leadership, broad reach, and community impact and accessibility, with special consideration for those representing a diverse range of disciplines and geographies, and facing public funding cuts.

“These grants are designed to keep doors open, artists working, and community partnerships alive,” said Dr. Emily Young, executive vice president of the Prebys Foundation, in a statement. “If we wait, we risk losing not just organizations but the spaces and connective tissue they provide for the entire community.”

The grant recipients range in size from the region’s largest arts institutions like the San Diego Symphony, The Old Globe, San Diego Museum of Art and La Jolla Playhouse (which each received a $1 million grant) to some of the smallest, like the Spreckels Organ Society, which provides free outdoor concerts in Balboa Park ($81,000) and regional cultural organizations like the Bonita Museum & Cultural Center ($39,000), T3 Triple Threat Youth Mentors ($30,000) and The Art Center Ramona ($10,000).

The full list of grantees can be found at prebysfdn.org.