| The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage

What is The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage?

The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage (the Center) is a multidisciplinary grantmaker and hub for knowledge-sharing, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, dedicated to fostering a vibrant cultural community in Greater Philadelphia. Please visit our About page to learn more about our work.

How is the Center associated with The Pew Charitable Trusts?

The Center is funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and is the major instrument of its ongoing support for culture in the Greater Philadelphia region.

How can I stay up to date with the Center’s grant-making work and news?

What kinds of grants do you award? Do you have grants for individuals?

The Center makes awards to organizations for projects and to individuals through fellowships. Each of our funding programs has a set of annual guidelines detailing the types of grants available and eligibility criteria. Our grant types include Project grants in the areas of Performance and Exhibitions & Public Interpretation, and Pew Fellowships for individual artists, which are awarded through a nomination process.

Following our focus in 2021 on pandemic-related recovery work, the Center resumed project funding in areas of cultural production in 2022 and continues its longstanding Pew Fellowships in the Arts program.

To find out if your organization is eligible to apply for funding through the Center, please visit our Apply page or contact Center staff directly. Center staff members are always available to answer your questions.

Pew Fellowships in the Arts are open to artists of all disciplines currently working in the Philadelphia area. Artists are nominated and invited to apply for fellowships.

How are grant decisions made at the Center?

Grants are made annually through rigorous peer-review panels composed of a rotating group of distinguished, internationally recognized experts. These panelists come from outside the region and bring both general and specific areas of disciplinary expertise to the process.

How many grants did the Center make last year?

In 2023, the Center awarded 40 grants totaling more than $9 million and providing funding for 12 Pew Fellowships and 28 Project grants. Since 1989, the Center has provided more than $182 million to artists and arts and heritage organizations based in Greater Philadelphia’s five counties.

How do I apply for a grant?

Guidelines and eligibility criteria for our grants can be found on our Apply page, along with a calendar of application due dates and deadlines. Pew Fellowship applicants are determined by a nomination process, and apply by invitation only. Please review our guidelines and contact Center program staff with questions.

Where can I find a full list of Pew Fellows?

View our full list of Pew Fellows, ranging from 1992 to the present.

Where can I find information on how to credit the Center’s support for my project?

Please visit our Credit Guidelines page.

What is the history and background of The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage?

The Center was established in 2005 to house seven funding programs of The Pew Charitable Trusts. These programs merged to form a single entity that awards grants throughout Greater Philadelphia. In 2013, the Center consolidated its Project grant programs to create two new funding categories: Performance and Exhibitions & Public Interpretation. Our timeline below provides a look into our history and the culmination of the Center as it exists today.

1989: Philadelphia Music Project is established.
1991: Pew Fellowships in the Arts is established.
1993: Dance Advance is established.
1995: Philadelphia Theatre Initiative is established.
1997: Philadelphia Exhibitions Initiative is established.
1998: Heritage Philadelphia Program is established.
2001: Philadelphia Cultural Management Initiative is established.
2005: Programs are brought together as the Philadelphia Center for Arts and Heritage.
2008: Center is renamed The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.
2014: Center consolidates to three funding areas (Performance, Exhibitions & Public Interpretation, and Pew Fellowships), introduces Advancement grants, and concludes Cultural Management Initiative.
2018: Center introduces Pew Fellows-in-Residence program, increases level of support for Project grants, and concludes Advancement grant program.
2021: Center awards Re:imagining Recovery grants to help organizations emerge from the effects of the pandemic.
2022: Center participates in Ford Foundation's "America's Cultural Treasures" initiative in Philadelphia, supporting the recovery of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) cultural groups, artists, and organizations.

Who are the designers and artists represented in your offices?

The Center’s offices were designed by BluPath Design, Philadelphia. All of the artwork in our office, including text excerpts, has been created by Pew Fellows. For details about individual works of art in the space, download the Center’s Art Notes PDF.

Can we visit your library?

Our library is made available to constituents upon request. Please contact Ellen Maher at emaher@pewcenterarts.org to request more information and to schedule an appointment.

Where is the Center located, and where can I park when I visit?

The Center is located on the 18th floor of 1608 Walnut Street, between 16th and 17th Streets in Center City, Philadelphia, near Rittenhouse Square. Limited street parking is available. There are two parking garages on Chancellor Street between 16th and17th streets (The Hyatt Centric and the 1616 Chancellor Garage) within walking distance.

The Center is also easily accessible via public transportation. The closest Regional Rail stop is at Suburban Station, located at 16th Street and JFK Boulevard. The closest subway stop is on the Broad Street Line at Walnut Street and Broad Street. Trolley lines and the Market-Frankford Line are accessible at 15th Street Station, at 15th Street and Market Street.

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