The Guston Fund
The Guston Fund is a private foundation based in West Hurley, New York. Its 2025 filing reports grants to arts and cultural organizations, including artist-residency programs, visual arts organizations, and museums.
The Guston Fund at a glance
In short: The Guston Fund gave $305K across 10 grants in 2025 (avg $31K), top state New York. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $305,000
- -87.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 10
- -9.1% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $30,500
- -85.7% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $20,000
- Total assets
- $23,292,005
- +14.2% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- New York (41% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to The Guston Fund
- 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: PO Box 189, West Hurley, NY 12491-0189
Phone: (845) 684-5868
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Guston Fund funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Vermont Studio Center Inc ($100K). Together the top 10 received $305K.
Grant Size Distribution
30 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 14 grants of 30 (47%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, grant dollars went to recipients in New York (41%), Vermont (33%), New Hampshire (16%), California (7%), and Washington, DC (3%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 10 itemized grants.
Cities
How The Guston Fund gives
- 90% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 205% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 41% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (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 $50K (2020) to $2.3M (2024). In 2025 it made 10 grants totaling $305K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Vermont Studio Center Inc Johnson, VT | Capital Project - Corner House Renovation | $100,000 |
| Marian and Edward Macdowell Inc Peterborough, NH | General Operating Support | $50,000 |
| New York Studio School New York, NY | General Operating Support | $50,000 |
| American Academy in Rome New York, NY | General Operating Support | $20,000 |
| Brooklyn Rail Inc Brooklyn, NY | General Operating Support | $20,000 |
| Center for Cultural Innovation Los Angeles, CA | General Operating Support | $20,000 |
| Corporation of Yaddo Saratoga Springs, NY | General Operating Support | $20,000 |
| Aspen Institute Inc Washington, DC | Project support - consortium advancing next-gen leaders in the visual arts | $10,000 |
| International Print Center New York New York, NY | General Operating Support | $10,000 |
| Jewish Museum New York, NY | Project Support - Guston/Hancock Exhibit | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Guston Fund?
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 | $23,292,005 | $1,040,270 | $508,439 | $305,000 | 10 | $434,970 | $978,801 | $1,061,313 |
| 2024 | $20,388,400 | $1,911,609 | $2,512,335 | $2,346,500 | 11 | $2,450,217 | $854,491 | $1,007,321 |
| 2023 | $19,991,575 | $4,917,386 | $717,007 | $515,000 | 6 | $673,634 | $374,013 | $740,807 |
| 2022 | $14,221,415 | $148,783 | $400,849 | $100,000 | 1 | $305,670 | $219,051 | $725,964 |
| 2021 | $16,769,609 | $4,102,975 | $2,121,815 | $2,010,000 | 2 | $2,076,430 | $3,054,134 | $688,525 |
| 2020 | $14,188,629 | $3,630,398 | $93,051 | $50,000 | 1 | — | $170,876 | $481,291 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Guston Fund reported a distributable amount of $1.1M 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 available filing information does not state the fund’s mission. Its 2025 grants include general operating support for arts organizations and project support for visual arts initiatives and an exhibition. Grantee descriptions illustrate the range of work: Vermont Studio Center says it supports artists and writers through studio residencies, while the American Academy in Rome describes itself as a residential institute for advanced work in the arts and humanities. Print Center New York says it champions printmaking through exhibitions, public programs, education, and artistic development.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the fund reported 10 grants totaling $305,000. Grants ranged from $5,000 to $100,000, with a median of $20,000.
The largest 2025 grant was $100,000 to Vermont Studio Center for a capital project: Corner House renovation. Other notable grants included $50,000 each to MacDowell and New York Studio School for general operating support, and $20,000 each to the American Academy in Rome, Brooklyn Rail, Center for Cultural Innovation, and Yaddo for general operating support. The fund also awarded $10,000 to Aspen Institute for a visual-arts leadership consortium project, $10,000 to International Print Center New York for general operating support, and $5,000 to the Jewish Museum for a Guston/Hancock exhibit project.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Musa Mayer as director and president, and Thomas Mayer as director, secretary, and treasurer.
The Guston Fund is led by Musa Mayer, Director & President on every filing since 2020; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Musa Mayer
Director & President
On filings since 2020
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Thomas Mayer
Director, Secretary & Treasurer
On filings since 2020
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
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 The Guston Fund
How much does The Guston Fund give each year?
The Guston Fund gave $305K across 10 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $2.3M across 11 grants.
What is The Guston Fund's typical grant size?
The Guston Fund's median grant in 2025 was $20,000, and its average grant was $30,500, across 10 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does The Guston Fund give grants?
The Guston Fund's top state is New York, with 41% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Vermont (33%) and New Hampshire (16%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (4 grants).
Does The Guston Fund give general operating support?
Yes: 70% of The Guston Fund's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (7 of 10) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Guston Fund's largest grantees?
The Guston Fund's largest 2025 grantees include Vermont Studio Center Inc ($100,000), Marian and Edward Macdowell Inc ($50,000) and New York Studio School ($50,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 66% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Guston Fund?
The Guston Fund reported $23.3M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $435K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $1.1M (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does The Guston Fund fund?
The available filing information does not state the fund’s mission. Its 2025 grants include general operating support for arts organizations and project support for visual arts initiatives and an exhibition. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Guston Fund?
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 The Guston Fund's EIN?
The Guston Fund's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 83-2712035. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Guston Fund 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
(2)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 10, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Browse active grant opportunities in The Guston Fund's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Guston Fund funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-guston-fund-morg_aeebaf1fb1424527b792e39cc595b030
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_832712035_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Guston Fund funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-guston-fund-morg_aeebaf1fb1424527b792e39cc595b030},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-13. 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 The Guston Fund'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.
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