Arts Performance and Exhibition Spaces (APEX)

Applicants must be:

• An arts and culture organization incorporated as 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

• Located and operating a performance venue or exhibition space in San Francisco, Alameda, or Contra Costa county.

• Engaged in the production and presentation of new work by Bay Area artists in the disciplines of dance, filmmusic, theater, visual arts, interdisciplinary arts, or film.

• An organization that financially compensates artists for their work.

• Of an annual budget size between $500,000 and $2 million.

• An organization that evidences strong support from the community and its Board of Directors. (Please see details provided in the review criteria below.)

Not eligible are:

• Organizations with more than 50% of their annual expense budgets directed toward educational programs, youth training in the arts, youth ensembles and performances, exhibitions of youth artwork, and/or productions designed for youth.

• Organizations whose primary purpose is to present historical works by artists no longer living.

• Organizations whose fundamental purpose or benefit falls within the fields of social services, health, youth, or community development.

• Fiscally sponsored projects or individual artists.

The most important considerations in assessing APEX Grant requests are:

• Does the organization have a significant history of artistic accomplishment, and what are its contributions to the local arts community and the Bay Area at large?

• What are the organization’s upcoming artistic plans and projects?

• Does the organization represent and engage artists from historically marginalized groups and/or under-resourced communities in a meaningful way?

• Does the organization reasonably compensate artists?

• How viable are the organization’s plans for the future?

• What are the financial needs of the organization?

• Is there strong evidence of Board and community support for the organization; specifically, what percentage of Board members made financial contributions, and what other income has been raised or generated within the last year?

• Does the organization use its resources efficiently and well, seeking to collaborate and share resources when appropriate?

Guideines and eligibility criteria for the APEX Grants program (formerly Special Arts) have recently changed. Please review the information above carefully before preparing a Letter of Inquiry.

Annual grantmaking in this program now takes place once each year at the Foundation’s spring Board meeting. Letters of Inquiry are generally due by December 1.

Letters of Inquiry for the 2026 review cycle were due by December 1, 2025. No further LOIs will be accepted for consideration in 2026.

Letters of Inquiry for the 2027 review cycle are due by Tuesday, December 1, 2026. The Foundation will inform prospective applicants by December 15, 2026 if a full proposal is invited.

The deadline for invited grant proposals is January 15. Funding decisions will be communicated in May.

Letters of Inquiry may be sent by email to: [email protected] with subject line “APEX Grant: LOI.” The communication should provide a brief description of the organization, its mission, location, key programs, annual budget size, the venue(s) it operates, and the artists and communities it engages.

Potential applicants must send a Letter of Inquiry to the Foundation’s Executive Director to approve the submission of a proposal for this grant program. Please review the Letter of Inquiry procedures above for instructions and deadlines for doing so.

If your Letter of Inquiry is approved, you will be provided with an access code to apply. To do so, please go to our online portal. Create an application account, if your organization does not yet have one. Choose a username and password and follow the online instructions. Please note your login information, since you will need it every time you access the grantee portal.

Once you have logged in, click Apply, and enter the access code you were provided (in the upper right-hand corner of the screen). You will then be able to view and complete the Arts Performance and Exhibition Spaces (APEX) Grants Program application.

You may save and return to your draft application using your login information, but applications may not be edited once submitted.

The following information is requested: (Please note that character-count limits include spaces.)

1. A brief description of the organization that includes: its mission and history, when it was founded, its key accomplishments, and a short summary of its artistic activities, programs, and the benefits it provides for the local arts community. Please also provide a brief description of the performance venue(s) or exhibition space(s) that it operates, including the size, location, whether made available for use by art groups and artists in the community, and, if so, how. (Up to 5,500 characters.)

2. A brief description of significant recent or upcoming changes or challenges (organizational leadership, finances, operations, or major shifts in programming), if any. (Up to 3,250 characters.)

3. The amount of any existing deficit, if applicable, and a brief description of plans for how it might be addressed. (Up to 1,500 characters.)

4. A description of the artists and communities the organization engages and/or serves. Please include any relevant demographic information the organization may already have available about its artists, audiences, leadership, and/or staff, and the approximate total attendance at public events and performances during the past year, separating in-person and online participation, if any. (Up to 2,750 characters.)

5. A description of the organization’s artistic projects, plans, and priorities for the year ahead, focusing on activities between May 15, 2027, and April 15, 2028. Please note that the strength of the organization’s planned artistic projects during this period will be a key consideration in the evaluation of your proposal.

Attachments:

1. An organizational budget for the fiscal year for which funding is being sought, with itemized income and expenses, including the amount(s) for compensation for artists clearly separated out.

2. A financial statement for the organization’s last completed fiscal year, with itemized income and expenses (actual).

3. A list of confirmed and pending foundation, corporate, and government grants for the current fiscal year with amounts.

4. Board of Directors list and the percentage of Board members who made a financial contribution to the organization within the last year.

5. Up to three video or audio work samples totaling ten minutes of material to review, and an optional image.

6. Optional: Up to three supporting documents such as press reviews and program material.

All applicants will receive written confirmation of receipt of their proposal. Funding decisions are made once each year in the spring and will be communicated in May.

Apply