Brant Foundation
Brant Foundation is a private foundation located in New York, NY. Founded by Peter M. Brant in 1996, the foundation’s stated mission centers on promoting education and appreciation of contemporary art and design. Its website describes an artwork loan program and public programs, while its 2025 filing reports grants to organizations in several fields.
Brant Foundation at a glance
In short: Brant Foundation gave $979K across 37 grants in 2025 (avg $26K), mostly in Washington. 62% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $978,500
- -23.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 37
- +94.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $26,446
- -60.5% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $8,139,970
- +7.1% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 62% first-time grantees (23 of 37, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Washington (62% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Brant Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 299 Park Avenue 2Nd Fl, New York, NY 10171-0002
Phone: (212) 605-3100
Website: https://brantfoundation.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Brant Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Common Power Future ($500K). Together the top 10 received $885K.
Grant Size Distribution
156 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 135 grants of 156 (87%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 62% of grant dollars went to recipients in Washington state and 31% to recipients in California. Smaller shares went to recipients in DC (3%), Maine (3%), and Oregon (1%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 37 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Brant Foundation open to new grantees?
62%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 23 of 37 grantees (62%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $4K; repeat grants $64K. How we count
Medians: $3K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 27% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving fell 22% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 110% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $779K (2021) to $1.4M (2020). In 2025 it made 37 grants totaling $979K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Common Power Future Seattle, WA | General Support | $500,000 |
| Scripps College Claremont, CA | General Support | $200,000 |
| Earth Justice San Francisco, CA | General Support | $100,000 |
| Camden Public Library Camden, ME | General Support | $25,000 |
| ACLU Washington, DC | General Support | $10,000 |
| Ceti Institute Portland, OR | General Support | $10,000 |
| NW African American Museum Seattle, WA | General Support | $10,000 |
| Planned Parenthood Washington, DC | General Support | $10,000 |
| Seattle Art Museum Seattle, WA | General Support | $10,000 |
| Uw Continuum Scholarship Fund Seattle, WA | General Support | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Brant Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $8,139,970 | $1,537,269 | $1,000,079 | $978,500 | 37 | $978,500 | $1,535,690 | $887,748 |
| 2024 | $7,602,780 | $1,151,289 | $1,305,475 | $1,270,500 | 19 | $1,278,250 | $1,143,539 | $824,810 |
| 2023 | $7,756,966 | $818,248 | $816,667 | $797,954 | 28 | $805,354 | $809,935 | $696,640 |
| 2022 | $7,475,415 | $224,879 | $1,277,078 | $1,260,303 | 35 | $1,267,078 | $217,879 | $741,896 |
| 2021 | $7,982,090 | $153,509 | $794,840 | $779,090 | 37 | $785,340 | $147,009 | $781,317 |
| 2020 | $8,396,456 | $149,703 | $1,376,400 | $1,366,550 | 32 | — | $144,403 | $632,195 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Brant Foundation reported a distributable amount of $888K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The foundation states that it promotes education and appreciation of contemporary art and design by making works available for scholarly study and examination. Its loan program lends artwork to exhibiting venues, and its programs include classroom workshops, lectures, and other activities intended to support art education and creative and scholarly development.
The 2025 grants included organizations with varied missions. Common Power Future describes its work as educating and mobilizing civic leaders; Scripps College says it educates women for leadership and service; and Seattle Art Museum describes itself as a visual arts institution and cultural and educational resource. Other recipients included ProPublica, which describes its work as investigative journalism in the public interest; the Holocaust Center for Humanity, which teaches Holocaust lessons and promotes human dignity; Ballard Food Bank, whose mission is to bring food and hope to neighbors; and Lao Senior Outreach, which described digital-literacy training and support for elders.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 37 grants totaling $978,500. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $500,000, with a median grant of $5,000. The largest grants were $500,000 to Common Power Future, $200,000 to Scripps College, and $100,000 to Earthjustice; each was listed for general support. Other listed grants included $25,000 to Camden Public Library and $10,000 each to ACLU, CETI Institute, Northwest African American Museum, Planned Parenthood, Seattle Art Museum, and UW Continuum Scholarship Fund.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Gale Jean Picker as trustee. The foundation’s website identifies Peter M. Brant as its founder. It also lists Allison Brant as director, Zoe Larson as associate director, Sabrina Marsalisi as director of education, Mario Fasani as manager of visitor relations and development, Sophia Phillips as shop manager, and Samantha White as executive assistant.
Brant Foundation is led by Gale Jean Picker, Trustee on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Gale Jean Picker
Trustee
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Jean Larsen (2020) — Trustee
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Frequently asked questions about Brant Foundation
How much does Brant Foundation give each year?
Brant Foundation gave $979K across 37 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $1.3M across 19 grants.
What is Brant Foundation's typical grant size?
Brant Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $26,446, across 37 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Brant Foundation that year got $4K on average.
Where does Brant Foundation give grants?
Brant Foundation gives mostly in Washington: 62% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was California (31%). The most frequent recipient cities were Seattle, WA (20 grants), Washington, DC (4 grants) and Federal Way, WA (2 grants).
Does Brant Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Brant Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (37 of 37) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Brant Foundation's largest grantees?
Brant Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Common Power Future ($500,000), Scripps College ($200,000) and Earth Justice ($100,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 82% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Brant Foundation?
Brant Foundation reported $8.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $979K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $888K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Brant Foundation fund?
The foundation states that it promotes education and appreciation of contemporary art and design by making works available for scholarly study and examination. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Brant Foundation?
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Brant Foundation's EIN?
Brant Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 91-1724951. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Brant Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS July 15, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS September 2, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 7, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 13, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS November 13, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Brant Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Brant Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/brant-foundation-morg_f5a63231f26445cbac2679616aabe95e
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_911724951_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Brant Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/brant-foundation-morg_f5a63231f26445cbac2679616aabe95e},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-12. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
} The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Brant Foundation's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
Brant Foundation down — hundreds of funders to go?