At Innovation 80, we are intent on filling needs in arts organizations that are not adequately met by other sources. We’re told regularly by prospective grantees that raising funds for arts organizations is difficult in any case, but that if the program they seek to create is new and innovative, funding is almost impossible to come by. Most funders want to see proven programs that have succeeded over a period of time. They are risk averse.

Innovation 80 adopts a broader, more long-term perspective on success. Creativity and growth in the arts demands innovation, which entails some degree of risk-taking; without it organizations and ultimately, the arts, would stagnate.

For that reason, we remain open to programs that, for example:

• are completely new

• are applied to or adapted for different age levels

• use art, tools, and/or techniques to address an issue in a new way

• combine art forms and/or organizations

Innovation requires fresh thinking, and an agile and thoughtful approach. Immediate success is never guaranteed. We are in the business of supporting organizations’ innovative efforts and encouraging their entrepreneurial spirit. Even if a particular innovative effort does not succeed as imagined, it can create ripples that produce future success.