For Freedoms

For Freedoms is an artist collective co-founded and led by Eric Gottesman, Hank Willis Thomas and Michelle Woo.  For Freedoms injects the nuance and critical thinking that fine art requires into the public discourse through programming, exhibitions, and public artworks.  It was founded in 2016 as the first artist-led Super PAC.  Its first campaign, leading up to the 2016 presidential election, included billboards, town halls, exhibitions, and lawn sign activations in eighteen states with 72 collaborators. For Freedoms then re-organized as a fiscally-sponsored LLC and in 2018 executed the largest creative collaboration in United States history ahead of the midterm elections, including 744 activations with 715 artists and 266 institutional partners in all 50 states plus Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, while also re-creating the Norman Rockwell Four Freedoms images as photographs. In 2020, it hosted the first-ever gathering of its network, the For Freedoms Congress.  

The digital age has ushered in a time of polarized politics, slogans, and sound bites.  At the same time, artists often imagine that we exist at the margins, secluded in our studios or working on complicated community-based social practice models deeply rooted in specific communities but isolated from wider culture.

For Freedoms galvanizes artistic communities and mobilizes artists of every ilk to engage in a large-scale effort to imagine a society in which creativity and critical thinking are considered patriotic. Our thesis is that positioning artists and arts institutions as civic and cultural leaders will encourage people to approach dialogue and policy with complexity, creativity, and openness and to make more space at the table for people from all backgrounds and perspectives.

In 2016, only 55.7% of the United States voting-age population participated in the presidential election, continuing a trend that ranks this group as one of the least active in the developed world.  Since then, the public discourse has only become more polarized, with myopic cable news, a social media echo chamber, and stories about people leaving friends and family relationships due to differing political viewpoints.  The lack of participation and fracturing of American community is an emergency for our democracy, and the people left farthest behind are marginalized populations: low-income communities and people of color. 

For Freedoms partners with artists and arts organizations to create content and programs that engage participants and communities with social and political issues.  Inspired by American artist Norman Rockwell’s paintings of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms (1941)—freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear—For Freedoms’ exhibitions and programs use art to deepen public discussions on civic issues and core values, and to advocate for equality, dialogue, and civic participation. Our work is situated at the nexus of art, politics, commerce, and education.

For Freedoms has produced billboards, exhibitions, town halls, and lawn sign activations, and we have held residencies, given talks, and hosted a fist-ever convening of our partner network.  We share models and blueprints for all of our programs as creative briefs for replication by artists, activists, and organizations around the country.  In this way, we are developing a decentralized movement to position artists as civic leaders and cultural spaces as civic spaces.  

The primary constituency of For Freedoms’ work are artists, arts and cultural institutions, social justice organizations, media companies, universities, and libraries who have designed and implemented our programs and shared For Freedoms content.  For Freedoms works directly with our partners by sharing creative briefs and programmatic models, providing curatorial and strategic support, and facilitating connections among our network.  In addition, we regularly solicit feedback from our partners in informal conversations and through more formal survey processes.  For example, following the 2018 50 State Initiative,  For Freedoms surveyed its partners and made phone calls to collect stories and anecdotes, continue cultivating relationships, and learn what worked in 2018 and what could be improved for 2020. This feedback included the desire amongst partners for increased communication and deeper relationships with For Freedoms and a mechanism to directly connect and share with each other.  In response, For Freedoms developed the For Freedoms Congress, which hosted over 500 delegates from all 50 States plus Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico for a weekend of connection, creation, and action in February 2020.

For Freedoms is rebranding patriotism and cultivating robust and expansive civic engagement.  Over the years, the concept of civic engagement has largely narrowed to mean voting.  In truth, we can create a much more inclusive and accountable society by considering the breadth of civic engagement, from discussing politics and community issues with friends and neighbors, to volunteering in community organizations, to broadening understanding of intersectionality to reduce the number of “no compromise” issues like abortion or gun rights.  By encouraging inclusive civic engagement through creative practices, we can shift people’s perspectives and create a narrative around civic engagement as patriotism.

For Freedoms was imagined by friends walking between sessions during a conference.  It was born of an armchair political discussion about artists disrupting business as usual. The concept was running an artist for President.  The proposed candidate was conceptual visual artist Hank Willis Thomas; the theoretical campaign manager was visual artist and professor Eric Gottesman.  A long-time studio collaborator of Hank’s, Michelle Woo, joined to operationalize the project, and photographer and visual designer Wyatt Gallery contributed design expertise.  The artists’ collective sought to merge artistic and political practice and to expand public discourse by bringing artists to the center of it. 

As artists and collaborators working at the intersection of politics and commerce, For Freedoms is as much an art project as it is an organization.  Initially, we sought to challenge the Super PAC model and the concept of shadowy donors pouring money and influence into political campaigning by running a Super PAC ourselves.  Striking a chord with that first campaign, we doubled down on artists voices as political voices and led our first 50 State Initiative in 2018.  So often we hear that art and artists belong in museums or on walls, but we are interested in participating in conversation and communities.  The creation of For Freedoms is an extension of our personal art practices and has called into our community many other artists and organizations stepping into civic leadership. 

Eric Gottesman photographs, writes, makes videos, teaches and uses art as a vehicle to explore aesthetic, social and political culture. Hank Willis Thomas is a conceptual artist working primarily with themes related to identity, history and popular culture. Michelle Woo is a cultural producer, art historian and arts business consultant.  Together, we have the demonstrated background, skills, networks, and expertise to lead massive cultural campaigns, and for our work on For Freedoms, we have been honored with the 2020 Marina Kellen French Award for Outstanding Contributions in the Arts from Americans for the Arts, inaugural Art For Justice Visionaries Award (2019) from the Bronx Museum and the 2017 Infinity Award from the International Center of Photography.

Last year, For Freedoms was planning and organizing the For Freedoms Congress in Los Angeles and simultaneously developing a media partnership with one of the largest media companies in the country.  With much of our team on the east coast, planning the Congress presented logistical challenges and the attention of our core artist leadership team was split between their personal artistic practices, the Congress creation, and the media partnership. By March 2020, we had successfully executed the For Freedoms Congress but the media deal had fallen apart and our team was exhausted.  Then a pandemic hit.  We quickly made the difficult decision to lay off staff and re-focus our core team.  We entered a period of daily calls with exercises to help us deeply listen to each other and develop more sustainable and strategic ways of working together going forward.  Coming out of this period, we feel energized and aligned with a clear plan of action to leverage the momentum of the Congress toward a fall campaign.  Taking that moment to stop and listen was a huge game changer in our way of working, and helped us move through a period of adversity with clarity and connection.

For Freedoms holds space for artist voices, even in the face of censorship and suppression.  We trust artists, their visions, and their voices, and we do not dilute their work or silence them in collaboration with our project.  In 2018, we were producing a billboard campaign with over 150 artists and had received billboard space as in-kind contributions to the project.  In several instances, billboard companies declined to display works submitted to the For Freedoms project by artists.  In one case, an artist had submitted an abstract artwork, and the billboard company asked For Freedoms to “explain what it meant.”  For Freedoms declined, on principle, to give any explanation about the artists work, and the company said it would only display it with a statement from the artist about the billboard’s intent.  We stood firm in refusing to ask the artist for any rationale or justification, and instead displayed the artwork in an alternative location.  By valuing artists, even when the organization might lose an opportunity, For Freedoms lives its values and demonstrates true leadership.

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Centering artists in the political landscape is bold and radical.  Traditional politicians have legal or business backgrounds, and historically have been white men.  Uplifting voices of artists of color, LGBTQ+, all ages, abilities, and genders necessarily adds new contours and dimensions to the public discourse.  Working in a collective model, For Freedoms also shares out our ideas, programs, and plans so that others can participate and join.  We are interested in including new voices, encouraging people to feel like they have agency, and making more space at the table for people of all backgrounds.

For Freedoms’ long-term cultural change strategy is to re-frame the outdated concept of who can lead by breaking down the false walls between art, politics, commerce, and education. Our programs activate cultural patrons who may appreciate art but not readily see a place for it at the forefront of politics and systemic change. We want to broaden the scope of what art and civic action looks like and approach everything from dialogue to policy with complexity, creativity, and openness. This means making more space at the table for people from all backgrounds and perspectives and creating adaptable, replicable models and forums that spark agency, exchange, and collaboration. Art encourages self-education, introspection, questioning, listening, and digging deeper into ideas and issues that ultimately impact all of us. It has the power to reshape the way we live, think and make decisions.

In 2018, For Freedoms launched the 50 State Initiative: the largest creative collaboration in U.S. history. During the 50 State Initiative, For Freedoms built a network of 715 artists and 266 institutional partners who created and contributed artwork for billboards, organized and led town hall discussions, hosted and participated in exhibitions, and helped bring this massive campaign to life. Together, we produced 744 activations, including 221 billboards, 121 town halls, 140 exhibitions, and 106 lawn sign-making events. For Freedoms also re-created the Norman Rockwell Four Freedoms paintings as photographs to reflect a more inclusive and representative vision of America. By conservative count, our activities and images reached more than 100 million people: For Freedoms’ billboards were seen by more than 68 million people, over 31 million people were reached on social media, and more than half a million attended a For Freedoms activation.

In the past year, we have focused on doubling our partner network, and hosted more than 500 delegates at the For Freedoms Congress.  This fall, we will produce another 50 State Initiative with a goal to reach a mass audience virtually and digitally in the context of COVID-19.  In the next five years, we are focused on building sustainability in our operations, so that we are regularly reaching and building relationships around civic engagement with millions of people across the country and around the world.

In the next year, we are focused on:

• Continued and more sustained focus on community engagement through creativity

• Leadership succession - developing a plan/process for organic artist-led succession in a collective

• Innovating business model and structure - developing a plan/process for artist-led business operations, and a model that allows for greater participation

• Continued development of and investment in our network of artist and arts organization  partners

• Diversifying our revenue streams

In the next five years, we are focused on:

• Content creation/Artist investment fund/Media platform/partnership

• Continue making space for being, creativity, and connection along the lines of the For Freedoms Congress

• Thinking globally vs. nationally

• Artist health and care

• Investing in accessibility

In the spirit of abundance, For Freedoms does not see barriers to our work but rather gaps that we can fill.  In that spirit, below are gaps that we have currently identified for the short and mid-term:

• Media: as mentioned, For Freedoms was working to develop a media partnership last year.  We are actively seeking a media platform to amplify artist leadership and share the incredible content and work of our partners.

• Digital platform: Related to media platform, For Freedoms seeks to develop a robust digital platform where our partners can share and connect with each other.  This responds digitally to the aforementioned partner request for connection, which we responded to in analog with the For Freedoms Congress.

• Creating space: For Freedoms heard loudly and clearly from Congress attendees that the space to connect and create was both unusual among similar gatherings and vital the the health and vitality of the cultural sector.  Seeking partnerships to create the opportunities outside of our own network is a priority.

• Expertise: For Freedoms has strong artist leadership, but seeks expertise in operations, communications, and design as we grow our operations with a view toward sustainability.

• Expanding reach: much of our work has been focused nationally, and our relationships and connections are largely within the United States. To think globally and share our model beyond U.S. borders, we will continue early conversations with collaborators and actively seek partnerships outside the country.

For Freedoms already has a national network of artists and organizations, national institutional funding partnerships, visible and influential co-founders, a track record of impact, cross-sector relationships, and many other resources at hand.  To achieve greater sustainability and fill some of the above gaps, we are working with organizational development consultants at Bridgespan and financial management consultants at FMA; developing funding relationships with both new and existing supporters; and envisioning partnerships in academic, corporations, and pop culture to further our work.  Examples follow:

• Media: we are in conversation with a funder about including a media partnership with a related organization in our grant agreement

• Digital platform: we are working with organizational development consultants to refine the vision for this organizational pillar before proceeding with development

• Creating space: For Freedoms is holding “Virtual Togethering” programs on Zoom in collaboration with other organizations, but imagines producing components of larger gatherings and seeks these partnerships for the post-COVID era

• Expertise: Working with our organizational development consultants and a newly hired Interim Executive Director, For Freedoms is identifying the expertise needed to support our sustainability

• Expanding reach: For Freedoms has relationships with artists living outside the United States, but seeks additional institutional partnerships.

For Freedoms work is contingent on the participation of artists and arts organizations. Over the years, we have worked with museums, art schools, colleges and universities, arts organizations, and municipalities.  As mentioned, the 2018 50 State Initiative included 715 artists and 266 institutional partners, and our 2020 For Freedoms Congress hosted more than 500 delegates.  Our 50 State Partners included the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia; Sun Valley Center for the Arts in Idaho; Contemporary Art Center in New Orleans, Louisiana; Harvard University and MASS MoCA in Massachusetts; Detroit Institute of Art and MoCA Detroit in Michigan; Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Missouri; Princeton University and Rutgers University in New Jersey; Plains Art Museum in North Dakota; Portland Art Museum in Oregon; Columbia Museum of Art in South Carolina; and 1708 Gallery in Virginia, among many others. For Freedoms has had residencies at the Currier Museum in Manchester, New Hampshire; MoMA PS1 in New York City; and the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland in Ohio, among others.  We had a solo show at the International Center of Photography in New York City.  While most of our partnerships are profound in collaboration but informal in terms of agreements, For Freedoms develops contracts and memoranda of understanding with organizations where it holds a residency, or with individual artists who are contributing artwork to the project. 

To date, For Freedoms has largely relied on contributed income to support its programs.  Developing and refining a business model for sustainability is a key part of our planning work with FMA.

As mentioned, For Freedoms is currently working with organizational development consultants at Bridgespan and financial management consultants at FMA to develop our business and revenue models for the future.  We imagine continuing to generate revenue through contributed revenue while developing earned revenue streams.  Within contributed revenue, we actively seek to diversify beyond the major national funders who have supported our work in recent years to include more sustained individual contributions. (For Freedoms successfully executed a 52 simultaneous Kickstarter campaigns for billboards in 2018, but has not sustained individual giving beyond that project.) Within earned revenue, we imagine developing revenue from artist content on a media platform or in fine art sales; from design and sales of For Freedoms merchandise; from fee for service for program design of creative spaces at large gatherings; and from membership dues from our partnerships in the future.

Contributed Income (foundations, individuals, etc.): $2.1 MM

Earned Revenue (sales, artist fees, etc.): $31,000

For Freedoms is seeking $4.2 MM for its 2020 50 State Initiative from institutional and individual donors.

For Freedoms projects that its 2020 annual budget will be $7.2 MM.

For Freedoms is applying to The Elevate Prize because it can provide both recognition and funding for our project.  While we have received awards from two wonderful New York City-based arts organizations and a national arts service organization, For Freedoms has not yet been recognized outside the art world as an influential change maker.  Such recognition would help us as we scale our operations with a view toward more global reach.  In addition, a financial award from The Elevate Prize would support our 2020 50 State Initiative, catalyzing continued and increased visibility and impact for the project as we continue our organizational development and financial planning for sustainability.

Please see the “barriers” section. 

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