PHILANTHROPY AND THE ARTS
How Giving To and Through the Arts Can Transform Communities

October 22, 2018

What role has philanthropic investment in the arts played in Miami’s economic and cultural growth over the past decades—and why is it so important for building community?

In the Philanthropy Initiative’s first regional program, Jorge Pérez, chairman and CEO of The Related Group, and Dennis Scholl, president and CEO of the ArtCenter/South Florida and former VP/Arts of the Knight Foundation, shared first-hand perspectives on Miami’s dramatic transformation. Claire Costello, a US Trust philanthropic specialist, moderated. Pérez and Scholl connected Miami’s success to the evolution of the community’s belief in itself as a cultural place, and discussed how the Knight and Pérez Foundations, and others, have invested in the arts to help facilitate this connection. They also talked about the importance of funding in different forms and scales—from individual artists and neighborhood nonprofits to anchor institutions such as the Pérez Art Museum Miami, the site of the discussion. Additionally, Pérez spoke about how he and his wife, Darlene, made the decision to sign the Giving Pledge, and their Giving Pledge letter being a part of the Giving in America exhibition.

Remarks by Amanda B. Moniz, the Philanthropy Initiative’s David M. Rubenstein Curator of Philanthropy, provided further context, including the conversation’s origins in the March 2018 Power of Giving talk, Arts Bind People to Place and Each Other, given by Alberto Ibargüen, president of the Knight Foundation.

The Philanthropy Initiative co-hosted the program with US Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management.