Freelands Foundation

RENO, NV EIN: 47-3819627 Website

Freelands Foundation is a private foundation established in 2015 and headquartered in London, England. The organization is dedicated to advancing art education and supporting artists, with a particular focus on the intrinsic value of art-making and its role in fostering creativity, resilience, and critical thinking. The foundation operates a public gallery in London that is open four days per week and maintains a growing library of art education resources.

Financial Overview

From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

—

Annual Giving

$2.8M

-35.0% YoY

Grant Count

-7.7% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$59K

-29.6% YoY

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated April 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The foundation champions the symbiotic relationship between teaching, learning, and making art, and encourages artists to teach while viewing teaching as an artistic practice. It values lifelong learning as integral to artists' work and enables collaborative relationships with teachers, schools, universities, galleries, and museums.

Primary focus areas include:

Art Education: Supporting progressive approaches to teaching art at all levels, from primary to postgraduate, as well as outside formal education systems
Artist Development: Supporting emerging artists through grants and fellowships
Exhibitions: Hosting varied exhibitions relating to the foundation's work and themes
Publications: Creating publications for artist development projects and other initiatives
Research & Action: Commissioning innovative action research to inform the foundation's support and advance the sector

Grantmaking

The foundation provides vital funding through grants, awards, fellowships, and residencies to support art education and artist development.

Grant Range

of £40,000 and a maximum grant of £298,000. Total distributions in 2024 were $5.9 million.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The foundation primarily funds work in the United Kingdom, with specific emphasis on the four UK nations through the Freelands Artist Programme.

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

As of 2024:

Total assets: $68,239,626
Total revenues: $1,172,529
Total expenses: $5,458,029
Total distributions: $5.9 million
Number of employees: 5 (per one source); 27 (per another source)

Revenue

Expenses

Qualifying Distributions

Net Investment Income

Metric	2024	2023	2022
Total Assets	—	—	—
Revenue	—	—	—
Expenses	—	—	—
Qualifying Distributions	—	—	—
Net Investment Income	—	—	—
Distributable Amount	—	—	—

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

Grant Size Distribution

180 grants across all recorded years

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

Among its reported 2024 grants, the largest include Iniva ($297,861), Public Catalogue Foundation Aka Art Uk ($287,016), A-n the Artists Information Company ($204,718).

Recipient	Purpose	Amount
198 CONTEMPORARY ARTS & LEARNING	SPACE TO DREAM FUND GRANT TO SUPPORT EXHIBITION AND CURATORIAL PROGRAMME	$37,858
A-N THE ARTISTS INFORMATION COMPANY	REGRANTING PARTNERSHIP WITH A-N TO PROVIDE SMALL GRANTS TO BLACK, ASIAN, BROWN AND/OR GLOBAL MAJORITY ARTISTS AT EVERY STAGE OF THEIR CAREER.	$204,718
ARAB BRITISH CENTRE	GRANT TO SUPPORT A CURATORIAL PROJECT EXPLORING ARAB BRITISH IDENTITIES	$50,387
ART FUND	ACQUISITIONS PROGRAMME FOR FREELANDS AWARD-WINNING ARTISTS	$137,438
ARTS EDUCATION EXCHANGE	GRANT TO BRING TOGETHER AN ART TEACHER AT A LOCAL SCHOOL, A VISUAL ARTIST AND THE GRANTEE IN AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AIMED AT CULTIVATING SPACE FOR INTERCULTURAL AND INTERSECTIONAL DIALOGUE IN THE CONTEXT OF ART EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS.	$31,084
AUTOGRAPH ABP	GRANT TO SUPPORT AUTOGRAPH ABP TO WORK WITH SCHOOLS AND TEACHERS THROUGH THE AUTUMN 2023 FUND	$49,640
BATH SPA UNIVERSITY	FREELANDS STUDIO FELLOWSHIP	$40,317
BERNIE GRANT ARTS CENTRE	GRANT TO SUPPORT EXPANSION OF VISUAL ART OFFERING	$25,812
CAMDEN ARTS CENTRE	GRANT AS SHORTLISTED FOR FREELANDS AWARD	$12,573
CHAPTER (CARDIFF) LTD	GRANT AS SHORTLISTED FOR FREELANDS AWARD	$12,573

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

Key personnel include:

Elisabeth Murdoch – Treasurer and Director
Nick Pianim – President and Director
Paula Wardynski – Secretary and Director
Dr. Henry Ward – Creative Director
Amy Walker – Chief Operating Officer
Jessica Hewitt – Head of Finance
Victoria Carmichael – Head of Education
Meghan Goodeve – Head of Artist Development
Mark Devereux – Trustee
Sarah von Schmidt – Trustee
Keith Tyson – Trustee

Compensation Overview

From 2024 IRS filing

From 2024 filing

Name	Title	Hours	Compensation
ELISABETH MURDOCH	TREASURER, DIRECTOR	10	—
PAULA WARDYNSKI	SECRETARY, DIRECTOR	5	—
NICK PIANIM	PRESIDENT, DIRECTOR	5	—
DR HENRY WARD	CREATIVE DIRECTOR	40	$193,248
MARK DEVEREUX	TRUSTEE	7	—
SARAH VON SCHMIDT	TRUSTEE	5	—
KEITH TYSON	TRUSTEE	5	—
AMY WALKER	CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER	40	$148,770

Recent News & Activity

Recent developments and announcements

The foundation continues to actively support art education across the UK. Recent initiatives include the third annual Freelands Painting Prize exhibition, which supports the teaching of painting at art schools across the UK. The foundation is actively recruiting for new positions, including a Programme Assistant role to support programming activities.

Freelands Foundation Unveils \xA31.5 million Awards Supporting Art ...

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Freelands Foundation fund?

Freelands Foundation believes art is central to a broad and balanced education and a right for everyone. The foundation is driven by a conviction in the vital role of learning and making to foster creativity, resilience, criticality, and problem-solving that empowers people for the future. The foundation champions the symbiotic relationship between teaching, learning, and making art, and encourages artists to teach while viewing teaching as an artistic practice. It values lifelong learning as i…

How do I apply for a grant from Freelands Foundation?

The foundation provides vital funding through grants, awards, fellowships, and residencies to support art education and artist development. **Freelands Artist Programme**: Established in September 2018, this program supports emerging artists based in each of the four UK nations. Each partner organization runs a five-year program supporting five new artists annually for a two-year duration. Each artist receives an annual grant of £5,000, with total spend over five years exceeding £1,500,000. The…