Art Production Fund

What Art Production Fund does

Art Production Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2000 by Doreen Remen and Yvonne Force Villareal, headquartered in New York City. It commissions and produces ambitious public art projects, acting as a producer that provides funding, production support, and venue access to contemporary artists whose work would otherwise be difficult to realize through traditional gallery or museum channels. The organization serves multiple audiences simultaneously: contemporary artists seeking commissioning support, the general public who experience installations free of charge in high-traffic urban settings, children and families reached through the Art Sundae program, and institutional and corporate partners including Rockefeller Center/Tishman Speyer, Frieze Los Angeles, the City of Santa Monica, and Saks Fifth Avenue.

The organization's core programs include Art in Focus (a multidisciplinary public-art program at Rockefeller Center now in its sixth year, featuring 25 or more artists), Art Sundae (free children's art-making workshops launched in 2017 with Fort Gansevoort), the annual APF Gala (a fundraising vehicle, with the 2024 Cruise Gala presented by Saks raising over $850,000), and annual Frieze Los Angeles public-art commissions (Set Seen in 2024, Inside Out in 2025, Body & Soul in 2026). Notable past commissions include Elmgreen & Dragset's Prada Marfa, Jeff Koons' Seated Ballerina at Rockefeller Plaza, and Ugo Rondinone's Seven Magic Mountains. Operating revenue is generated through donations, corporate sponsorships (notably Saks Fifth Avenue), gala ticket sales and art auctions, and minor merchandise sales via an e-commerce storefront. Headcount is small (1-10 employees), with Executive Director Casey Fremont overseeing day-to-day operations and a board including Sarah Hoover and Claire Chan.

Name

Art Production Fund

Legal name

Art Production Fund

Website

https://artproductionfund.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Arts Nonprofit Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Art, Arts Councils & Grantmaking Programs (BPAGAHAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts Education & Community Arts Programs (BPAGAHAC), Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

Keywords

• Public art commissioning
• Nonprofit arts organization
• Contemporary art production
• Artist commissioning services
• Cultural philanthropy programs

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: APF operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and relies on donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors to fund its operations and artist commissions.
2. Fundraising Gala: Annual gala events serve as major fundraising initiatives. The 2024 Cruise Gala raised over $850,000, with art auction pieces fetching $250,000.
3. Corporate Sponsorship: Corporate sponsors like Saks Fifth Avenue underwrite or present APF events and programs, providing financial support in exchange for brand association with public art initiatives.
4. Merchandise Sales: The organization sells products through its e-commerce storefront (transacted via Braintree/PayPal), including merchandise and potentially limited art-related goods.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Art Production Fund commissions and produces ambitious public art projects, providing artists with guidance, resources, and production support to realize site-specific works. The organization operates multiple ongoing programs including Art in Focus (a public art program at Rockefeller Center), Art Sundae (free children's art-making workshops with Fort Gansevoort), the APF Gala (annual fundraising event presented by sponsors such as Saks Fifth Avenue), and curated public art programming at Frieze Los Angeles such as Frieze Projects: Set Seen (2024) and Frieze Project: Inside Out (2025).

Product overview

Art Production Fund is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to commissioning and producing ambitious public art projects. The organization operates several core programs: Art in Focus (a multidisciplinary public art program at Rockefeller Center showcasing contemporary artists), Art Sundae (free children's art-making workshops in partnership with Fort Gansevoort), and the APF Gala (annual fundraising event). Additionally, APF curates public art programs at art fairs including Frieze Los Angeles (Set Seen, Inside Out), creating site-specific installations that reach new audiences and expand awareness through contemporary art.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Art in Focus: A multidisciplinary public art program in partnership with Rockefeller Center showcasing installations by contemporary artists inspired by the New York City landscape and contemporary life. Now in its sixth year.
• Art Sundae
• APF Gala

Products and services

• Art in Focus A multidisciplinary public art program presented in partnership with Rockefeller Center that showcases site-specific installations by contemporary artists inspired by the New York City landscape. Works are displayed throughout Rockefeller Center's public spaces, including vitrines at 45 Rockefeller Plaza, the Rink Level, and lobbies at 10/30/50 Rockefeller Plaza. The program has featured 25+ artists since its inception and is free to all visitors.
• Art Sundae A free public children's art-making workshop program where children work with contemporary artists to create public art projects. Co-created with Fort Gansevoort gallery, which also hosts Art Sundae exhibition installations in its windows at 51 Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District. The program has engaged hundreds of children in free art-making workshops since 2017.
• APF Gala Annual fundraising gala event that raises funds to support APF's mission of commissioning and producing ambitious public art projects. Features high-profile celebrity attendance, art auctions, and presenting sponsorship partnerships with brands such as Saks Fifth Avenue. The 2024 Cruise Gala raised over $850,000 in total funds, with art auction pieces fetching $250,000.
• Frieze Projects: Set Seen On-site public art program at Frieze Los Angeles curated by Art Production Fund featuring works that speak to constructed environments and perception of reality. Featured artists included Cynthia Talmadge, Matt Johnson, Pippa Garner, Ryan Flores, Sharif Farrag, and Derek Fordjour. Displayed free to the public at the Santa Monica Airport fair grounds and surrounding areas.
• Frieze Project: Inside Out On-site public art program at Frieze Los Angeles 2025 curated by Art Production Fund, featuring works exploring themes of perspective and how personal histories shape understanding of Los Angeles and its cultural landscape. Featured artists included Lita Albuquerque, Jackie Amezquita, Claire Chambless, Joel Gaitan, Madeline Hollander, Greg Ito, Ozzie Juarez, and Dominique Moody.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $850,000 raised at the 2024 Cruise Gala
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Saks Fifth AvenuecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Saks Fifth Avenue is the presenting sponsor of APF's annual gala events (2024 Cruise Gala and 2025 Gala). Saks provides financial underwriting and gains brand association with APF's high-profile philanthropic art events attended by celebrities and cultural figures.
• Rockefeller Center / Tishman SpeyercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRockefeller Center and Art Production Fund have a long-standing partnership for the Art in Focus program, now in its sixth year. APF curates and produces site-specific public art installations throughout the Rockefeller Center campus, featuring contemporary artists in vitrines, murals, and sculptures. Tishman Speyer, the owner/operator of Rockefeller Center, co-presents the program. This is APF's flagship ongoing partnership.
• Frieze Los AngelescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAPF curates on-site public art programs at Frieze Los Angeles, including Frieze Projects: Set Seen (2024) and Frieze Project: Inside Out (2025). These programs feature multiple artists in site-specific installations at the Santa Monica Airport fair grounds and surrounding areas, free to the public.
• Fort GansevoortcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFort Gansevoort gallery co-created the Art Sundae program with APF in 2017, a free children's art-making workshop series. Fort Gansevoort also hosts Art Sundae exhibition installations in its windows at 51 Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District.
• City of Santa MonicacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe City of Santa Monica partnered with APF to extend public art installations (Matt Johnson's Giant Shell Swan and Cynthia Talmadge's Class Gift) at Santa Monica Airport Park beyond Frieze Los Angeles. Support came via the Art of Recovery Grant program.
• The Ranch, MontaukminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Ranch (founded by Max Levai, former president of Marlborough Gallery) supported Matt Johnson's Giant Shell Swan sculpture. The Ranch is a unique exhibition venue on a working horse farm in Montauk, NY.
• Orange Barrel MediaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOrange Barrel Media facilitated Patrick Martinez's neon works appearing on billboards throughout Los Angeles as part of the Body & Soul free public art program at Frieze Los Angeles 2025.
• Destination CrenshawminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDestination Crenshaw partnered with APF for the presentation of Dominique Moody's NOMAD work as part of Frieze Projects: Inside Out at Frieze Los Angeles 2025.
• Maestro Dobel TequilaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMaestro Dobel Tequila provided support for Frieze Los Angeles 2025 projects including Jackie Amézquita's installation and Ryan Flores's ceramic works at the fair.
• Prospect.6 New OrleansminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAPF supported Maia Ruth Lee's presentation at Prospect.6 triennial in New Orleans with her work 'The Conveyor' exploring themes of migration and rootlessness.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Public Art Fund: Public Art Fund is a New York-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that presents temporary public art installations throughout the city, commissioning artists and producing site-specific works. It is the most directly comparable peer to Art Production Fund given the virtually identical mission, NYC geography, and commissioning/production model.
• Creative Time: Creative Time is a New York-based nonprofit that commissions, produces, and presents public art projects with leading contemporary artists. Its commissioning model, public-facing installations, and downtown NYC operations closely mirror Art Production Fund's core business.
• Madison Square Park Conservancy: The Conservancy commissions and installs site-specific contemporary public art in Madison Square Park, partnering with artists for multi-month exhibitions. Like APF, it raises funds through galas, sponsorships, and grants to underwrite artist commissions in a high-traffic urban venue.
• Times Square Arts: Times Square Arts presents cutting-edge contemporary public art installations and performances in Times Square, much as APF operates at Rockefeller Center and Frieze. Both place free public art in iconic commercial venues at the intersection of art, brands, and foot traffic.
• Socrates Sculpture Park: Socrates Sculpture Park is a NYC nonprofit sculpture park and public gallery that commissions large-scale public sculpture and runs community art programs. It overlaps with APF in commissioning ambition-scale public work and free public programming in an outdoor setting.
• SculptureCenter: SculptureCenter is a NYC nonprofit that supports innovative sculpture and public art through artist commissions, exhibitions, and educational programs. It shares APF's niche focus on commissioning ambitious contemporary sculpture and public-facing artist support.
• Lower Manhattan Cultural Council: LMCC provides artist residencies, commissioning programs, and public art in Lower Manhattan, working closely with NYC venues and city agencies. It overlaps with APF in producing site-specific commissions for established artists and underwriting ambitious public art in NYC.
• Creative Capital: Creative Capital is a New York nonprofit that provides grants and project support to innovative artists working in public-facing and ambitious projects. It is comparable to APF as an arts-supporting nonprofit that funds individual artists and underwrites risk-taking creative projects.
• Prospect New Orleans: Prospect New Orleans produces a citywide contemporary art triennial (most recently Prospect.6, which APF contributed to). It is a comparable exhibition-producing nonprofit operating in a different region with similar commissioning-and-production model and large-scale public installations.

Broad incumbents

• DIA Art Foundation: DIA Art Foundation is a major NYC contemporary art nonprofit that commissions, presents, and preserves large-scale site-specific projects. As a significantly larger arts nonprofit with overlapping commissioning mission, DIA is a broader incumbent comparable to APF in the public art commissioning space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/artproductionny
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/art-production-fund-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Art Production Fund