MAK Center for Art and Architecture

What MAK Center for Art and Architecture does

The MAK Center for Art and Architecture is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1994 and operating as the California satellite of the MAK - Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna. It functions as a contemporary, experimental, multi-disciplinary center for art and architecture, programming exhibitions, residencies, public events, and architecture tours across three R.M. Schindler-designed landmarks: the Schindler House (1922) in West Hollywood, the Fitzpatrick-Leland House (1936), and the Mackey Apartments (1939) in Los Angeles. Its core offering is the internationally recognized MAK Artists and Architects-in-Residence Program, a six-month residency selecting up to eight projects per cohort through an annual international jury, which has hosted more than 50 groups since its 1995 inception; complementary tracks include the SOM Foundation Researcher-in-Residence and a Designer-in-Residence program. Supporting programming includes Schindler House exhibitions, the Garage Exchange Vienna-Los Angeles transatlantic series, an annual Architecture Tour, and audio companion tours.

The organization generates revenue through a diversified nonprofit stack: ticket admissions to exhibitions and tours, recurring annual memberships, location and event rentals of the Schindler House, shop sales of publications, and tax-deductible donations from individuals, corporate sponsors, and foundations. Primary institutional funding comes from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (via MAK Vienna), the Austrian Federal Chancellery, and the Austrian Consulate General in Los Angeles. Significant US-side grants are provided by the City of West Hollywood, the Los Angeles County Arts and Culture Department, the Getty Foundation (Paper Project Series), the Graham Foundation, and the Danish Arts Foundation. Additional curatorial and operational partners include Friends of the Schindler House (FoSH) for preservation, Sprüth Magers and the Holt/Smithson Foundation for the Nancy Holt estate exhibition, and 1301PE for the SUPERFLEX exhibition. Distribution is event-driven and physical-venue-driven: visitors access the Schindler House, Mackey Apartments, and tour sites in person, with online ticketing, donations, and audio tours available via the Squarespace-hosted website and social channels on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

The MAK Center does not develop or deploy proprietary technology. Its GTM motion is event-driven — exhibitions, public programs, book launches, artist talks, and the annual Architecture Tour as a flagship fundraiser — supported by press releases, email newsletters, and partnerships with cultural organizations such as Villa Aurora and homeLA. Leadership includes Director Jia Yi Gu and Director + Curator Beth Stryker, with a small staff (11-50 range) covering curatorial, exhibitions, residency management, communications, development, and business operations. No data API, SDK, or mobile application is offered.

Name

MAK Center for Art and Architecture

Legal name

MAK Center for Art and Architecture

Website

https://makcenter.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The MAK Center for Art and Architecture is a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that programs contemporary exhibitions, residencies, and architecture tours across three R.M. Schindler-designed landmarks, serving international artists, architects, scholars, and the public as the California satellite of the MAK - Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contemporary Art and Architecture Cultural Services

NAICS

Museums (71211), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Historical Sites (712120), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Museums (THAJADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG), Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

Keywords

• Art exhibitions
• Artist residency programs
• Architecture tours
• Modernist architecture preservation
• Contemporary art programming

Headquarters

HQ city

West Hollywood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Visitors purchase tickets for exhibitions and tours at the Schindler House and other locations.
2. Membership Program: Annual memberships provide benefits to supporters including access to events, exhibitions, and special programming.
3. Donations and Fundraising: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors support operations and programming. Major donors, corporate sponsors, and government grants (City of West Hollywood, Los Angeles County Arts & Culture, Austrian Federal Chancellery) provide significant revenue.
4. Special Events and Rentals: The Schindler House and other properties are available for location use and special event rentals, generating revenue while also serving the mission.
5. Shop Sales: The MAK Center operates a shop selling books, publications, and related merchandise.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The MAK Center for Art and Architecture is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit cultural organization that presents contemporary art and architecture exhibitions and hosts an internationally recognized six-month Artists and Architects-in-Residence Program. It operates three R.M. Schindler-designed landmark buildings in the Los Angeles area (Schindler House, Mackey Apartments, Fitzpatrick-Leland House), and complements programming with public lectures, architecture tours, audio tours, and a shop selling publications and merchandise.

Product overview

The MAK Center for Art and Architecture is a contemporary, experimental, multi-disciplinary cultural organization offering exhibitions, residency programs, architecture tours, and public events across three R.M. Schindler-designed architectural landmarks. The core offerings include the MAK Artists- and Architects-in-Residence Program (six-month residencies at Mackey Apartments), exhibitions at Schindler House and Mackey Apartments, the Garage Exchange Vienna—Los Angeles exhibition series, and annual architecture tours. The organization serves as the California satellite of the MAK — Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MAK Artists- and Architects-in-Residence Program Six-month residencies at the Mackey Apartments for international artists and architects selected by an annual international jury competition. Residents receive studio space, housing, a stipend, curatorial support, and exhibit their projects in the Garage Top Gallery at the end of their term.
• Schindler House Exhibitions

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 groups of international residents hosted since program inception in 1995
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Federal Ministry European and International Affairs Republic of AustriacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Austrian government ministry providing funding for the Garage Exchange Vienna-Los Angeles exhibition series and broader residency programming.
• Austrian Consulate General in Los AngelesmajorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Provides support for exhibitions, residency programs, and cultural programming connecting Austrian and Los Angeles arts communities.
• Sprüth MagersmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Gallery partnership for Nancy Holt: Light and Shadow Poetics exhibition. Sprüth Magers represents Holt's estate and co-organizes exhibition programming.
• Holt/Smithson FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Foundation managing Nancy Holt's estate and artistic legacy. Partnership for exhibition and related public programs including conservation symposium.
• 1301PEmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Los Angeles gallery partnering on SUPERFLEX exhibition Rainbows, Sponges, Flies, and Spoons. Co-presenting organization for the exhibition.
• Villa AuroraminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Historic landmark home of Lion Feuchtwanger, co-presenting The Emperor Incognito book talk with Austrian Consulate General.
• Austrian Consulate General (Book Talk)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Co-presenting book talk event with Villa Aurora and MAK Center.
• SOM FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership supporting the Researcher-in-Residence program at Fitzpatrick-Leland House. Provides fully funded summer residencies for US-based architects, artists, and researchers.
• homeLAminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership for VALIE EXPORT: Embodied performance program In Their Own Image, featuring Los Angeles-based performing artists.
• MAK - Museum of Applied Arts, ViennacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1994The MAK Center is the California satellite of the MAK - Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna. This partnership provides institutional support, funding coordination, and international programming connections. The MAK in Vienna oversees the Artists and Architects-in-Residence program jury selection process.
• Friends of the Schindler House (FoSH)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1994A nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and maintaining Schindler's Kings Road house. FoSH works in cooperation with the MAK Center to support the historic property.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt: Frankfurt-based non-profit exhibition hall for contemporary art and architecture with thematic temporary exhibitions, lectures, and educational programs. Comparable as a city-affiliated, no-permanent-collection contemporary art exhibition institution.
• Haus der Kunst: Munich-based, non-profit contemporary art center operating from a historic landmark building with no permanent collection, focused entirely on temporary exhibitions and public programs. Closely comparable programming model to the MAK Center.
• Storefront for Art and Architecture: New York-based non-profit gallery explicitly dedicated to the intersection of art and architecture. Operates a single landmark space with experimental exhibitions and public programs, mirroring the MAK Center's curatorial focus and nonprofit, event-driven model.
• Vitra Design Museum: Weil am Rhein, Germany-based museum dedicated to design and architecture, with exhibitions, collections, and public programming in landmark campus buildings. Comparable as an internationally operating design/architecture museum with tourism-driven revenue.
• Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA): Montreal-based non-profit cultural institution devoted to architecture, with exhibitions, a research center, and a residency-like collection-based study program. Highly comparable as a heritage-anchored, scholarship-driven art/architecture institution.
• MAK – Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna: Parent institution and Austrian counterpart of the MAK Center, also a museum of applied arts and contemporary practice. Functions as the policy and funding hub for the Artists and Architects-in-Residence program and the Garage Exchange.
• Swiss Institute Contemporary Art New York: New York-based non-profit cultural institution presenting contemporary art and architecture exhibitions and residencies with a transatlantic, experimental profile. Comparable as a small-staff, international, art-and-architecture focused non-profit.

Regional players

• Hammer Museum: Los Angeles art museum at UCLA presenting contemporary art exhibitions, public programs, and artist commissions. Comparable as a Los Angeles contemporary-art institution with a comparable scale and free/low-ticket admissions model.

Others

• Graham Foundation: Chicago-based grantmaking foundation supporting individuals and organizations engaged in architecture and design. Already a current funder of the MAK Center (Print Ready Drawings), making it a relevant institutional peer and ecosystem partner.

Broad incumbents

• The Getty Center: Los Angeles-based art institution with extensive architecture and arts programming, supported by a major private endowment and public funding. Comparable as a heritage-architecture-anchored LA arts institution, though at vastly greater scale and scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@makcenter
• Facebookfacebook.com/makcenterLA
• Instagraminstagram.com/makcenter
• Xx.com/MAKCenter

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 MAK Center for Art and Architecture