Why It Matters
The local arts sector, and the creative people it employs, enhances the quality of life, stimulates innovation to attract and retain talent, provides a magnet for cultural tourism, and contributes to overall economic vitality. Historically, $377 million of spending and event-related spending is generated by nonprofit arts and culture audiences in the Triangle every year – making up a large and vital portion of our regional economy. Research has shown that engagement in the arts has positive effects on health, positive impacts on children's social and emotional development, and has a role in influencing social change. It’s clear that cultural arts are integral to a thriving community.
Despite the wide-ranging benefits, however, cultural arts organizations face ongoing challenges to their sustainability, particularly as they respond to and recover from the impacts of COVID-19. Even before the impacts of the pandemic, nonprofit arts organizations struggled with competition for resources and audiences, inadequate artist performing and rehearsal space, and lack of funding. In research conducted by North Carolina State University’s Institute for Nonprofits, groups working in the arts self-reported lower organizational capacities than others in the nonprofit sector, making it harder for them to grow, evolve, and reach expanded audiences.
Additionally, there is a need to support organizations representing the diverse perspectives and traditions in the Triangle. For decades, philanthropy has overwhelmingly favored Eurocentric arts, leaving a gap in funding of educational and artistic expressional experiences for other art forms. As a result, arts organizations led by and serving audiences of color have suffered. The Triangle and the nation continue to become more diverse demographically. It is imperative to invest in arts organizations that are making art reflecting the rich diversity of the Triangle and are accessible to all its residents.
2021 Arts Grantees
Our 2021 group of grantee partners collectively received funding for general operating support, most for two or three years, responding to a need for reliable, flexible funding, particularly as arts organizations continue to face unique challenges due to COVID-19.
Read the press release announcing our 2021 grantees here.
2021 Partners & Programs
The following list of nonprofit organizations represent the partner grantees of the Foundation in conjunction with impact focus areas. View a list of Cultural Arts nonprofit partners since 2013.
Current Partners
- Art Therapy Institute of NC
- Arts Access Inc.
- Chatham Arts Council
- ComMotion – Community in Motion
- Community Music School
- Diamante Arts & Cultural Center
- Durham Symphony Orchestra
- Gaspard&Dancers
- Hidden Voices
- InWave
- MOJOAA Performing Arts Company
- National Women’s Theatre Festival
- NorthStar Church of the Arts
- St. Joseph's Historic Foundation (Hayti Heritage Center)
- The African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh and Wake County, Inc.
- The ArtsCenter
- TheGifted Arts, Inc.
- Visual Art Exchange
- Wake Forest Community Youth Orchestra
- Walltown Children's Theatre
Triangle Community Artists Gallery
As part of our focus on cultural arts, the Foundation’s office space also serves as a rotating art gallery, for two main reasons: to support and foster local artists, and to encourage our community to connect and engage in a meaningful conversation inspired by art.
Current Artist: José Manuel Cruz
The Durham Art Guild and Triangle Community Foundation present "Artistic Connections and Extensions of Culture," by José Manuel Cruz.
"I believe that my work embodies my urban culture with a splash of reality and the opportunity for me to explore the canvas and the materials I use. My Artistic Connections and Extensions exhibit allows me to explore those avenues and take it a step further in the freedoms I have to express myself as the artist that I AM."
Click the button below to learn more about Cruz and to view a few of his pieces. To view the full gallery in-person, please contact Sarah Guidi, Director of Community Engagement, at sarahg@trianglecf.org.

The Impact of COVID-19 and Racial Inequity on the Triangle Arts Community
In our fifth episode of What Matters: The Video Podcast series, our guests highlighted what is it like to be an artist during this time, what the arts do for our community, how funding can play into racial inequity, and from the donor perspective why is it so important to support the arts right now.
Stories from the Community

Visit Triangle Community Foundation's Stories page for voices across our community, like Social Justice Through Art, about Hidden Voices' work amplifying stories of the forgotten, those who go unheard and unseen.