Arts Loan Fund
The Arts Loan Fund (ALF) is a collaborative fund run by members of Northern California Grantmakers. The fund has provided quick-turnaround loans for over thirty years and aids organizations develop sound financial habits that advance their mission.
While businesses and larger non-profits are able to rely on commercial banking for cash-flow needs, small to mid-sized arts organizations have a harder time accessing capital. The Arts Loan Fund was created by funders to meet this need and alleviate short term cash-flow crunches.
Loans can be a practical financial tool that when used properly, signal proactive financial planning. Funders recognize this and know that cash-flow often lags while incoming grants are pending and that performances often require upfront capital to produce. Learn More >
Events
Resources
October 2018 marks the one-year anniversary of the Northern California firestorm. With funding from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Northern California Grantmakers commissioned Learning for Action, an independent San Francisco-based research firm, to conduct this study to understand the extent of the fires’ impact on the arts community in the three most affected counties: Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino.
The study, North Bay Fired and the Arts, One Year Later, draws upon quantitative and qualitative data collected in each of the three counties from individual artists affected by the fires and from arts organizations serving the region.
The Arts Loan Fund hosted an exciting conversation on funding culturally specific and immigrant communities in the Bay Area. The panel explored the importance of creative place making and place keeping. In the midst of so many changes in our communities, the panel discussed how we as grantmakers can honor the distinct characteristics and soul of the neighborhoods and cities we serve.
NCG's Arts Loan Fund (ALF) committee is made up of Bay Area funders that are committed to the Arts. The ALF meets once a month to review loan applications and determine awards to nonprofits that support the Arts.
News
I found myself, one day, along with my colleague Anjee Helstrup-Alvarez, now the ED of MACLA, facing a nine-month delay for a significant grant that supported the work. MACLA was subsidizing the work with no funds. The intermediary was not delivering the grant on time, nor did it seem it was going to be delivered on time in spite of repeated efforts to collect the grant funds. I became aware of the Arts Loan Fund (ALF) and after some difficult deliberation, applied.
The Arts Loan Fund has announced a COVID-19 Emergency Loan to support arts and culture nonprofits and fiscally sponsored organizations in the eleven Bay Area counties.
Study by Northern California Grantmakers examines how the fires affected a key economic driver in the region, aims to supplement research on fires’ impact.
Study by Northern California Grantmakers examines how the fires affected a key economic driver in the region, aims to supplement research on fires’ impact.