As arts organizations reconnect with audiences and continue on the path to recovery, the PNC Foundation, through PNC Arts Alive, has selected five local arts nonprofits to share $250,000 in grant funding. The 2021 PNC Arts Alive grantees for Greater St. Louis are Big Muddy Dance Company, Circus Harmony, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, Laumeier Sculpture Park and Metro Theater Company.

In addition to receiving funding, these organizations will benefit from recent enhancements to the PNC Arts Alive initiative in Greater St. Louis. These new features are designed to help arts nonprofits as they rebuild from the pandemic and plan for the future, with a focus on improving resilience and delivering sustainable programming. Grantees will participate in next-generation capacity-building sessions, with access to business experts ― including members of PNC’s experience innovation team ― who will share “next practices” such as design thinking and applying principles of successful startups. A 24-month grant funding cycle will provide the time and space for grant recipients to incorporate these learnings in the execution of their grant projects.

“In the financial services industry, we often talk about business resilience as being key to the long-term success of a company,” said Michael Scully, PNC regional president for St. Louis. “Through PNC Arts Alive, we have the opportunity to apply a similar lens to help arts nonprofits at this critical juncture as they plan for the future of their organizations and deliver sustainable programming.”

Since 2010, PNC Arts Alive, a multi-year initiative of the PNC Foundation, has empowered visual and performing arts organizations in Greater St. Louis to expand audience participation and engagement, awarding $3.25 million locally to fund programming that is innovative, engaging and accessible.

“PNC has demonstrated its support for the arts in St. Louis since the day it established a presence here,” said Cynthia Prost, president and CEO of the Arts and Education Council. “The landscape for the arts is different today as organizations revisit their business capabilities and audience development strategies following a year of overwhelming challenges. Through the evolution of the PNC Arts Alive initiative, PNC acknowledges this reality and is leaning into its commitment to help shape the future of the arts.”

PNC Arts Alive is a multi-year initiative of PNC and the PNC Foundation dedicated to supporting visual and performing arts groups with the goal of increasing arts access and engagement in new and innovative ways. The PNC Foundation, which receives its principal funding from The PNC Financial Services Group, actively supports organizations that provide services for the benefit of communities in which it has a significant presence. The foundation focuses its philanthropic mission on early childhood education and community and economic development, which includes the arts and culture. For more information, visit www.pncartsalive.com.