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PAFA Forward: An Arts Hub for the 21st Century

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Historic Landmark Building interior. Photo by Jeff Fusco.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Historic Landmark Building interior. Photo by Jeff Fusco.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Photo by Jeff Tusco.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Photo by Jeff Tusco.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Rising Sun: Artists in an Uncertain America, 2023, installation view. Photo by Adrian Cubillas.
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Rising Sun: Artists in an Uncertain America, 2023, installation view. Photo by Adrian Cubillas.

A new “arts hub” leverages space in PAFA’s contemporary Samuel M.V. Hamilton building, positioning the oldest art museum and school in the US as a key partner and community destination for diverse and engaging cultural experiences. The building plan includes renting 77,000 square feet of currently unused space to mission-aligned organizations while also partnering with these tenants on joint exhibitions, programs, and events, revitalizing PAFA’s campus and creating new revenue streams. 

The total grant amount represents project funding plus an additional 20% in unrestricted general operating support.

Recipient
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

The oldest art museum and school in the United States—founded in 1805—the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) offers classes and certificate programs, innovative exhibitions of historic and contemporary American art, and a world-class collection of American art. PAFA’s alumni include Mary Cassatt, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Thomas Eakins, William Glackens, Barkley L. Hendricks, Violet Oakley, Louis Kahn, David Lynch, and Henry Ossawa Tanner.

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Explore Connections
Nels Cline in performance at Royce Hall, Los Angeles. Photo by Phinn Sriployrung.

Guitarist Nels Cline on Musical Lineage
Video Tradition & Translation
Walking with Trane, Urban Bush Women. Photo by Gennia Cui.
Questions of Practice: Choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar on Art and Social Justice
Video Social & Community-Based Practices
Sonia Sanchez. Photo by Erika Vonie.
Celebrating Poet Sonia Sanchez, plus Pew Fellows Earn Guggenheim Fellowships, Peabody Award, and More
Sonya Clark, The Descendants of Monticello, 2024, part of Declaration House, Independence National Historical Park, Philadelphia, PA. Photo by Steve Weinik, courtesy of Monument Lab.
Fall Arts Preview: From the Personal to the Historic, 17 Events to Add to Your Calendar
Pew Fellows Candice Iloh and Armando Veve. Photos by Neal Santos.

Fellow to Fellow: Candice Iloh and Armando Veve Find Inspiration in Each Other’s Mediums
Interview Cross-Disciplinary Practices
Enrique Bostelmann, Portrait of Cora Flores, 1980, part of Mirages series.

Projects in Process: Discoveries in the Archives with Berman Museum and Japan America Society
Essay Legacy & Archives
Side-by-side portraits of Sumi Tonooka and Phillip B. Williams.

Fellow to Fellow: Sumi Tonooka and Phillip B. Williams on Expanding Their Artistic Identities 
Interview Practice & Process
Sinta Penyami Storms, 2022 Philadelphia's Cultural Treasures fellow.
Four Philadelphia’s Cultural Treasures Fellows on Care and Community Impact
EgoPo Classic Theater, rehearsal for Ramayana with Papermoon Puppet Theatre and Kalanari Theatre Movement, 2023, Java, Indonesia. Photo courtesy of EgoPo. 

Projects in Process: Wilma Theater and EgoPo on Creative Collaborations
Essay Co-Authorship & Collaboration