Community-Led Model To Expand Nationally with $1M Investment from Knight Foundation
Founded on models of mutual care and collective support, we’re thrilled to introduce new programs that bring people together to support artists and collect art in Miami, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Charlotte
Since 2018, more than 800 people have poured into Commissioner, making the Miami-based program the city's longest-running crowdfunding art project. Grounded in the support of locals who are passionate about art and building community, members' contributions ranging from $90 to $2,400 have surpassed $500,000 and funded 55 artist commissions over the past eight years.
BOOMBOOMBOOM!! performance by commissioned artist Loni Johnson at Untitled Art, Miami Beach. Photo by Chantal Lawrie
Year after year, hundreds of contributors have pooled resources that align with their values and capacities to support artistic practices and the production of new work. This affirmation and trust from our community have paved the way for envisioning cultural infrastructure, systems of care, and collaborative funding models that stand to shape our shared future. As we prepare for a new chapter with returning and new members, we are excited to continue building on this foundation with a $1M investment from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to expand our work in Miami, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Charlotte, N.C.
"Arts and culture are essential to thriving communities and local economies," said Kristina Newman-Scott, vice president for arts at Knight Foundation. "Commissioner shows how communities can support artists, strengthen their financial durability, and open new pathways for people to become collectors and stewards of creative work. That cultural infrastructure makes cities more creative, resilient, and vibrant."
Collector home tour in Montréal, Canada. Summer 2023. Photo by Dominique Claire Marie
With Knight Foundation support, Commissioner will expand its signature membership program in Miami to develop new initiatives nationally. Programs will launch in Detroit this fall, with Philadelphia and Charlotte to follow in 2027 and 2028. True to our core values of collaboration, care, and experimentation, we look forward to co-creating with local artists, cultural workers, and audiences in each city, with a focus on collaboratively-funded commissions, learning experiences and events, coaching and mentorship, and travel.
"As Season Eight comes to a close with commissioned artist Stephen Arboite, we are so very clear in our belief that supporting artists and collecting art should feel participatory and rooted in community," said Dejha Carrington, co-founder and executive director of Commissioner. "What began in Miami as an experiment in shared cultural investment has grown into a model for how communities can build deeper relationships with artists and show up as active supporters, stakeholders, and memory-keepers in the creative life of their cities."
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ABOUT US
Commissioner was founded in 2017 with a $1,500 WaveMaker at Locust Projects research and development grant and a two-year commitment of $45,000 through Knight Foundation's Knight Arts Challenge. We launched our inaugural season one year later, in the fall of 2018, with 40 Collectors and 40 Patrons—our founding members.
We are possible because of artists; the many organizations, institutions, galleries, and partners that make space for our shared work; and the members, arts workers, curators, educators, storytellers who strengthen our ecosystem. Primary is our curatorial partner, helping ensure that commissioned artists feel free to create unencumbered and with dedicated operational support. We are grateful to Knight Foundation, The Jorge Pérez Family Foundation’s Pérez creARTE grant program, New World School of the Arts and Mitchell Wolfson Sr Foundation, Maven Leadership Collective, and Tito's Handmade Vodka. The Miami Foundation and Diaspora Vibe Cultural Arts Incubator are our fiscal sponsors.