Artolution
Artolution is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that delivers collaborative art-making programs—murals, performance, digital storytelling, and skill-building—led by 120+ locally trained teaching artists to youth and communities affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement across five anchor countries and 35+ countries overall.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersBrooklyn, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Artolution does
Artolution is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit corporation founded in 2016 by Joel Bergner and Max Frieder that delivers collaborative art-making programs to youth and communities affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement. The organization operates across more than 35 countries, with year-round programs in five anchor locations: Uganda, Bangladesh, Jordan, Colombia, and the United States. Its core programs include Murals & Sculpture (including the Foundstrument Soundstrument initiative), Performance, Virtual Bridges, and Skill Building & Entrepreneurship, all led by 120+ locally trained Teaching Artists applying a methodology grounded in Intergroup Contact Theory for psychosocial wellbeing.
The organization's delivery model is community-led: Artolution trains and certifies local artists who live in the communities they serve, then pairs them with institutional partners who provide access and funding. Programs are delivered free of charge to participants; revenue is generated from individual donations, recurring monthly giving, institutional grants (UNHCR, UNICEF, GIZ, Nommontu Foundation, Education Above All), and partnership revenue sharing (Castle Arts Academy donates 10% of its Lifetime Access Membership proceeds). Notable anchor engagements include UNHCR and UNICEF Bangladesh programs in Rohingya camps (40 murals and 5 Soundstrument projects in the last year), year-round UNICEF Jordan work in Azraq camp, and the World Economic Forum's Colour of Resilience project spanning four continents.
The organization is supported by a board chaired by former U.S. Department of State/EPA/Commerce executive Michele Dastin-Van Rijn, with directors including UN and Norwegian Ministry of Culture veteran Kerstin Holst and former Deloitte/AlixPartners/McKinsey partner Clarence Hahn (Treasurer). Operations are administered from Brooklyn, NY and Washington, DC, with country offices in Jordan, Uganda, Bangladesh, and Colombia (branded Artoluci\u00f3n Colombia). Artolution is a Candid Platinum Seal of Transparency recipient and does not have any disclosed funding rounds, M&A activity, or equity capitalization.
Artolution firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Artolution
- Legal name
- Artolution
- Website
- https://artolution.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Artolution is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that delivers collaborative art-making programs—murals, performance, digital storytelling, and skill-building—led by 120+ locally trained teaching artists to youth and communities affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement across five anchor countries and 35+ countries overall.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Artolution industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Arts Programs (Humanitarian Arts Services)
- NAICS
- Fine Arts Schools (61161), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)
- SIC
- Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Arts Education & Community Arts Programs (BPAGAHAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Community Arts, Culture & Creative Placemaking Enterprises (BPAGALAO), Public Art, Arts Councils & Grantmaking Programs (BPAGAHAH), Visual Arts Instruction (Drawing, Painting, Sculpture) (EDAMAAAA)
Keywords
Where Artolution is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brooklyn
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Artolution business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: Direct donations from individuals supporting Artolution programs. Recurring donations encouraged through monthly giving campaigns.
- Institutional Grants and Partnerships: Funding from UNHCR, UNICEF, GIZ, Nommontu Foundation, Education Above All, and other institutional donors to support specific country programs and initiatives.
- Partnership Revenue Sharing: Castle Arts Academy partnership donates 10% of Lifetime Access Membership proceeds to Artolution. Discount code ARTOLUTION provides $50 off memberships.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels6 records
Artolution product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Artolution is a nonprofit organization that designs and delivers free, community-based collaborative art-making programs for youth and families affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement. Programs are led year-round by locally trained Teaching Artists across Bangladesh, Jordan, Uganda, Colombia, and the United States, and encompass community murals and sculpture (including the Foundstrument Soundstrument), theater and dance performances, Virtual Bridges cross-border digital creative exchanges, and skill-building/entrepreneurship training. Programs are funded through institutional grants, individual donations, and partner revenue shares rather than fees paid by participants.
Product overview
Artolution offers a suite of community-based art programs designed for youth and families affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement. The core offerings include Murals & Sculpture (community collaborative mural projects with Foundstrument Soundstrument musical sculptures), Performance (theater and dance workshops culminating in public performances), Virtual Bridges (tech-based creative projects including animation and digital art collaboration across borders), and Skill Building & Entrepreneurship (teaching craft-making and digital design skills with business training). These programs are led by local Teaching Artists trained in Artolution's methodology and are delivered year-round in countries including Uganda, Bangladesh, Jordan, Colombia, and the United States. Artolution is a nonprofit organization, not a software product or technology platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Murals & Sculpture Community mural and sculpture projects for crisis-affected communities (refugees, displaced populations, underserved urban youth), beginning with group discussions and sketching to define a collective vision and culminating in collaborative painting of public murals. Select projects include the Foundstrument Soundstrument — interactive musical sculptures made from recycled materials combining art-making with music education and environmental awareness.
- Performance Theater and dance workshops where participants develop original stories, choreography, and themes reflecting their lived experiences, culminating in public performances for their community. Used for psychosocial support, identity expression, and social cohesion in refugee camps and crisis-affected communities.
- Virtual Bridges Tech-based creative collaboration program where participants learn basic animation skills, explore digital creative platforms, and collaborate with peers across borders. Includes stop motion animation with clay characters and digital art and design, enabling cross-border creative exchange between youth in different countries.
- Skill Building & Entrepreneurship Programs teaching marginalized communities creative skills including crafts (ceramics, jewelry, artisanal chocolate, apparel design) and tech platforms (PhotoShop, AR, VR), combined with entrepreneurship training and marketing skills for small business development. Designed to provide economic opportunities alongside psychosocial wellbeing outcomes.
Quantifiable outcome
- 94% reported improved relationships with peers
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Artolution
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Artolution technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Artolution partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, minor and flagship.
- UNHCR BangladeshcoreArtolution partners with UNHCR Bangladesh to implement groundbreaking projects in Rohingya refugee camps, including murals, Foundstrument Soundstrument projects, exhibitions, and the first program on Bhasan Char Island. In the last year: 40 murals, 5 soundstrument projects, 3 major exhibitions.
- UNICEF BangladeshcorePartnership with UNICEF Bangladesh for mural and art projects in Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar, promoting healing from trauma.
- Terres des HommesmajorPartner in Bangladesh implementing projects in Rohingya refugee camps alongside UNHCR.
- UNICEF JordancorePartnership began February 2019 with UNICEF to start programs in Azraq Syrian Refugee Camp. 10 certified Syrian refugee artists lead year-round mural projects.
- UNHCR UgandacoreNew partnership in 2023 with UNHCR Uganda for a Kampala program with urban refugees and host communities, promoting sustainability through art with repurposed materials.
- Windle International UgandaminorPartner organization supporting arts programming in Bidi Bidi Refugee Settlement.
- Finn Church AidminorPartner organization supporting arts programming in Bidi Bidi Refugee Settlement.
- World Economic ForumflagshipCollaboration on the Colour of Resilience project, the first in history with refugee artist teams painting murals in four continents. Also commissioned collaborative canvas for Artolution's project.
- Kids in Need of Defense (KIND)majorMural project with seven immigrant teenagers who fled violence in Central America, spending three weeks designing and painting a large-scale public mural.
- UNHCR BulgariamajorCreated large mural in Sofia with 18 artists from nine countries, promoting unity between refugees and host communities in Bulgaria.
- Castle Arts AcademyminorGlobal online art education platform where 10% of Lifetime Access Membership proceeds support Artolution programs. Code ARTOLUTION provides $50 discount.
- Pentagram DesignmajorImpact map design collaboration with Pentagram, a renowned design firm, to visualize Artolution's global program reach.
- Center for Court InnovationmajorPartnership through Neighborhood Safety Initiative for community murals in NYC, including projects with Harlem Children's Zone and St. Nicholas Public Housing.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Artolution competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Right To Play: Direct peer — protects and educates children affected by conflict through the power of play, sport, and creative activities. Operates in many of the same refugee-hosting countries (Jordan, Uganda, Lebanon) with a similar psychosocial-support framing.
- Musicians Without Borders: Direct peer — uses participatory music and arts programs in conflict-affected and post-conflict communities worldwide, including refugee contexts. Closest analog to Artolution's model of deploying creative practice for psychosocial outcomes in displaced populations.
- Inside Out Project: Direct peer — large-scale participatory public art initiative that engages communities (including marginalized and displaced groups) in creating paste-up portrait murals globally. Comparable in the community-mural methodology and global participatory art deployment.
- Magic Bus: Direct peer — uses sport and creative activity-based curriculum to take children and youth in poverty and crisis situations out of the poverty cycle. Similar NGO model combining psychosocial outcomes with creative programming for underserved youth.
- War Child: Direct peer — international NGO combining protection, education, and creative arts programming for children affected by war, with country programs in Syria, Jordan, Uganda, Colombia, and DRC. Highly comparable beneficiary base and methodology mix to Artolution.
Broad incumbents
- BRAC: Broad incumbent — large development organization with extensive operations in Bangladesh (Rohingya camps) and Uganda, including psychosocial and education programming. A potential institutional partner or competitor for the same refugee-serving grants.
- International Rescue Committee: Broad incumbent — one of the largest humanitarian NGOs, operating in many of the same crisis contexts (Jordan, Bangladesh, Uganda, Colombia). While not arts-specialized, IRC runs psychosocial programming at a scale Artolution cannot match and could absorb arts-based methods.
- Mercy Corps: Broad incumbent — major humanitarian and development organization with youth-empowerment and psychosocial programming across similar geographies (Jordan, Bangladesh, Colombia, Uganda). Provides context for funding competition at the institutional donor level.
Regional players
- Laundromat Project: Regional peer — NYC-based nonprofit that brings arts programming to underserved neighborhoods across New York City through community-based projects. Directly comparable in the U.S.-side community art methodology and geography (NYC).
- Free Arts NYC: Regional peer — NYC nonprofit providing arts experiences and mentorship to underserved youth, including immigrant and refugee children. Comparable in target beneficiary (underserved NYC youth) and art-based psychosocial framing.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Artolution social profiles
Digital presenceArtolution financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Artolution leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Artolution funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Artolution M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Artolution
What does Artolution do?
Artolution is a nonprofit organization that designs and delivers free, community-based collaborative art-making programs for youth and families affected by conflict, trauma, and displacement. Programs are led year-round by locally trained Teaching Artists across Bangladesh, Jordan, Uganda, Colombia, and the United States, and encompass community murals and sculpture (including the Foundstrument Soundstrument), theater and dance performances, Virtual Bridges cross-border digital creative exchanges, and skill-building/entrepreneurship training. Programs are funded through institutional grants, individual donations, and partner revenue shares rather than fees paid by participants.
Is Artolution a public or private company?
Artolution is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Artolution founded?
Artolution was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Artolution based?
Artolution is headquartered in Brooklyn, United States, in the North America region.
How does Artolution make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are institutional Grants and Partnerships and partnership Revenue Sharing.
Who are Artolution's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Right To Play, Musicians Without Borders, Inside Out Project, Magic Bus and War Child. Broad incumbents are BRAC, International Rescue Committee and Mercy Corps. Regional players are Laundromat Project and Free Arts NYC.
Does Artolution have an API?
No public API is recorded for Artolution.
What industry is Artolution in?
Artolution's product category is Community Arts Programs (Humanitarian Arts Services). Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAHAC, Arts Education & Community Arts Programs, with a secondary code of BPAGALAO, Community Arts, Culture & Creative Placemaking Enterprises. Its NAICS code is 61161 and its SIC code is 7330.