WomenArts

What WomenArts does

WomenArts (legally The Fund for Women Artists, Inc) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1994 by Martha Richards and headquartered at a PO Box in Northampton, MA. Its mission is to increase visibility and opportunities for diverse women artists across all art forms, including music, dance, theatre, film, visual arts, spoken word, and literature. The organization serves as an information hub and advocacy platform rather than a software business, reaching approximately 10,000 women artists worldwide via its e-newsletters and an extended global community through SWAN Day (Support Women Artists Now Day), an annual international celebration launched in 2007 and held each year on the last Saturday of March, with events organized in multiple countries by volunteers and partner organizations.

The core product portfolio consists of the WomenArts Blog, weekly e-newsletters, the SWAN Day calendar, a Funding Resources directory, a "Build Your Skills" educational section, the WomenArts News Room (aggregating 35 feminist arts blogs), and the Harmony Project (opera and civil rights programming). The underlying technology is minimal: the website is built on WordPress, the News Room is hosted on Blogger, and there are no proprietary software platforms, APIs, or applications. Distribution is entirely digital and free to users, relying on content marketing, email, organic social media (primarily Facebook), partner referral networks, and volunteer-led events.

The business model is donation-based. WomenArts does not charge for any of its services, does not operate a grants program, and does not sell products. Revenue comes exclusively from individual contributions processed via PayPal. Operations are run by 1-5 staff members (volunteer-run), with two recent staff additions — Associate Director Isabelle Spike (2016) and Associate Editor Michaela Goldhaber (2017). The organization partners strategically with the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition and, as of October 2024, with San Francisco's Brava for Women in the Arts to co-sponsor artist projects over a multi-year horizon.

Name

WomenArts

Legal name

The Fund for Women Artists, Inc

Website

https://womenarts.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

WomenArts is a volunteer-run 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 1994 that increases visibility and opportunities for diverse women artists globally through a blog, newsletters reaching 10,000 subscribers, funding resources, and the annual SWAN Day celebration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arts Advocacy Nonprofit

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts Education & Community Arts Programs (BPAGAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Art, Arts Councils & Grantmaking Programs (BPAGAHAH), Gender Equality & Women’s Rights Advocacy (BPAGAFAD)

Keywords

• Women arts nonprofit
• Arts funding resources
• Artist community platform
• Women artist blog
• Swan day celebrations

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkeley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: WomenArts operates as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that raises funds through individual donations. The organization accepts donations via PayPal and encourages support through its website.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WomenArts is a 501(c)(3) non-profit content and community platform that increases visibility and opportunities for diverse women artists across all art forms. It distributes free editorial content via its blog and e-newsletters (reaching 10,000 women artists worldwide), coordinates the annual international SWAN Day celebration, curates funding and skill-building resource directories, and aggregates content from 35 feminist arts bloggers. The organization does not sell products or services; it is funded by donations and operates on a volunteer-run model.

Product overview

WomenArts is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization operating primarily as a content and community platform dedicated to increasing visibility and opportunities for diverse women artists. The organization functions as a volunteer-run nonprofit offering a portfolio of interconnected programs including the WomenArts Blog (news and features about women artists), E-Newsletters (reaching 10,000 subscribers), SWAN Day (an annual international celebration), Funding Resources directories, Build Your Skills educational content, the WomenArts News Room (aggregating 35 feminist arts bloggers), and the Harmony Project (civil rights opera programs). The organization does not offer a software-as-a-service product or technical platform but rather serves as an information hub and advocacy organization for women in the arts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SWAN Day: Support Women Artists Now Day - an annual international celebration of women artists held on the last Saturday of March.

Products and services

• WomenArts Blog A blog featuring news about trailblazing women artists and gender parity activists, covering art forms including dance, film, music, theatre, visual arts, spoken word, and writing. It is free and aimed at women artists and arts advocates.
• WomenArts E-Newsletters Email newsletters distributed to 10,000 women artists worldwide featuring funding opportunities, news, and resources for women artists. Provided free of charge.
• SWAN Day (Support Women Artists Now Day) An annual international celebration of women artists held each March (last Saturday), with events organized globally to increase visibility and opportunities for women artists across all art forms.
• Funding Resources Online directory of funding opportunities, grants, and resources for women artists, including listings of women artist directories and women's theatre companies and festivals.
• Build Your Skills Educational resources section offering guidance on fundraising, publicity, fiscal sponsorships, and crowdfunding for women artists.
• WomenArts News Room Live feed aggregating content from 35 feminist arts bloggers, providing diverse perspectives on women and the arts.
• Harmony Project Initiative featuring the Fannie Lou Hamer Opera and other programs addressing civil rights and social justice through opera.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30 years of operation supporting women artists globally
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Brava for Women in the ArtscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 October 2024WomenArts formed a partnership with San Francisco's Brava for Women in the Arts to support the creation of new works by women artists. WomenArts is co-sponsoring five of Brava's artist projects during 2024 and plans to support additional projects over the next three years.
• Women in the Arts & Media CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWomenArts collaborates with the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition to serve their community better. The Coalition provides opportunities and resources for funding or employment, while WomenArts contributes through its network and events.
• Women in Arts and Media (WAM) CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWomenArts joined forces with the WAM Coalition and other feminist arts groups to expand funding newsletters and resources for women artists.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Women in the Arts & Media Coalition (WAM Coalition): WAM Coalition is a New York-based coalition of nonprofit arts and media organizations serving women artists with funding and employment opportunities. Direct peer and active WomenArts partner sharing a mission of increasing visibility and opportunities for women in the arts.
• Women's Caucus for Art (WCA): WCA is a nonprofit organization of women in the visual arts dedicated to expanding opportunities for women artists. Directly comparable in mission and structure to WomenArts, serving a similar constituency of women artists with advocacy, programming, and community support.
• Women's Studio Workshop: Women's Studio Workshop is a nonprofit artist residency and print publishing workspace supporting women artists. Comparable as a nonprofit serving women artists with residency, programming, and publishing services targeting a similar artist constituency.
• National Association of Women Artists (NAWA): NAWA is a nonprofit advocating for women artists across the United States through exhibitions, publications, and professional development. Directly comparable as a membership-based organization serving women artists with similar advocacy, visibility, and community-building missions.
• Anonymous Was A Woman: Anonymous Was A Woman is a nonprofit that awards unrestricted grants to women artists. Comparable as a women's arts advocacy organization, though more focused on direct grantmaking while WomenArts curates funding resources—a complementary rather than overlapping model.
• La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club: La MaMa is a New York-based nonprofit experimental theatre that supports women theatre artists through productions, development programs, and community events. Comparable to WomenArts in supporting women across performance art forms and providing visibility opportunities.
• Brava for Women in the Arts: Brava is a San Francisco-based nonprofit arts organization focused on supporting women artists through performance, residencies, and artist development. Already a WomenArts partner, it serves the same constituency of diverse women artists with overlapping programming and community goals.

Others

• Grantmakers in the Arts (GIA): GIA is a membership organization of arts funders and grantmakers supporting the arts field. Comparable as an adjacent ecosystem player that helps channel funding toward women artists and arts organizations, overlapping with WomenArts' funding resources curation mission.

Emerging players

• League of Professional System Administrators (LOPSA) - women in tech focus: Note: Switching to a more relevant peer. Anu Enterprises / WomenArts International equivalent: SPARK Movement is a global network mobilizing support for women artists through advocacy and programming, comparable as an emerging global player intersecting with WomenArts' international advocacy work.

Broad incumbents

• National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA): NMWA is the world's only major museum dedicated to recognizing women's contributions to the arts. A much larger and broader incumbent in the women's arts space, NMWA shares the advocacy mission but operates at institutional scale with museum programming rather than community organizing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@barcelonafestivalofsong
• Facebookfacebook.com/Womenarts
• Pinterestpinterest.com/womenarts
• Xx.com/Womenarts
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/womenarts

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WomenArts