The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation

What The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation does

The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation, Inc. is a New York State nonprofit corporation founded in 2009 to preserve and share the legacy of American sculptor Chaim Gross (1902-1991) and his wife Renee. The Foundation operates the historic house and studio at 526 LaGuardia Place in Greenwich Village — purchased by the Grosses in 1962, renovated in 1963, and restored in 2017-2018 — as a museum open to the public for guided House & Studio Tours ($15 per person, limited to 8 participants) from September through June. The three-floor site includes Gross's first-floor sculpture studio and gallery, a second-floor special exhibition space, and the third-floor Grosses' living and dining space with their extensive private art collection comprising works by Gross, collected works from Jacob Lawrence, Willem de Kooning, Milton Avery, and Marsden Hartley, plus African, Oceanic, Pre-Columbian, and decorative arts.

The Foundation's product surface spans in-person offerings (tours, rotating exhibitions, concerts, block print and writing workshops, the Tactile Transmissions access program for visually impaired visitors, and K-5 educational resources) and digital offerings (Bloomberg Connects mobile app guide, Vimeo channel, and a 2020 virtual tour). Revenue is generated through earned streams (tour admissions, event tickets ranging $5-$30, and publication sales up to $125) and contributed streams (grants from NYSCA, National Trust for Historic Preservation, NY State Office of Parks, Preservation League of NY, GHHN, Gardiner Foundation, MANY, and DHPSNY, plus individual donations). Distribution is primarily the single physical site supplemented by digital channels, off-site loan exhibitions to peer institutions, and participation in citywide events (Open House New York Weekend, SoHo Arts Network's Downtown Culture Walk).

The Foundation is led by President Mimi Gross (daughter of Chaim and Renee), Executive Director Sasha Davis, Collections and Programs Manager Brittany Cassandra, and a Board of Trustees that includes former Executive Director Dr. Susan Fisher (now Acting Chief Curator at the Brooklyn Museum) and Melissa Rachleff Burtt. The organization functions as a small nonprofit with a lean management team and no parent company, subsidiaries, or disclosed employees. It is governed independently and reports no venture, private equity, or public ownership.

Name

The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation

Legal name

The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://rcgrossfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation is a New York nonprofit founded in 2009 that preserves sculptor Chaim Gross's Greenwich Village home, studio, and art collections at 526 LaGuardia Place, serving cultural tourists, students, scholars, and visually impaired visitors through guided tours, rotating exhibitions, workshops, and educational programs funded by grants and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Museum & Historic Site

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Historical Sites (712120), Museums (712110)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Studio Tours & Visitor Experiences (MPADAIAL)

Keywords

• Historic house museum
• Art preservation services
• Educational art programs
• Cultural heritage tours
• Sculpture collection exhibits

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Tour Admissions: Revenue from paid House & Studio Tours at $15 per person, limited to 8 participants per tour.
2. Event Tickets: Revenue from ticketed events including concerts, workshops, and lectures ranging from $5 to $30.
3. Publication Sales: Sale of in-house publications including exhibition catalogues and books such as 'Chaim Gross: Early Drawings, 1919-1920' priced at $125.
4. Grants and Donations: Funding received from government arts agencies, private foundations, and individual donors to support operations, preservation, and educational programming.
5. Donations: Voluntary contributions from visitors and supporters of the Foundation's mission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Foundation preserves and operates Chaim Gross's historic three-story home and sculpture studio at 526 LaGuardia Place, offering guided House & Studio Tours, rotating exhibitions, public programs (concerts, lectures, workshops), printmaking and writing workshops, K-5 educational resources, and a Tactile Transmissions access program for visually impaired visitors. It supplements in-person experiences with a Bloomberg Connects digital guide, virtual tours, and social media content.

Product overview

The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation operates as a nonprofit museum and historic site preserving the home, studio, and art collections of sculptor Chaim Gross at 526 LaGuardia Place in Greenwich Village. The Foundation offers in-person House & Studio Tours of the three-floor historic building, access programs like Tactile Transmissions for visually impaired visitors, public programs including concerts and writing workshops, and printmaking workshops. Digital offerings include a Bloomberg Connects mobile app guide and virtual tour. The Foundation also presents rotating exhibitions from its collection and produces educational resources for K-5 students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• House & Studio Tours Approximately one-hour guided tours exploring three floors of the historic LaGuardia Place building, including Chaim Gross's first-floor sculpture studio and gallery, the second-floor special exhibition space, and the third-floor Grosses' living and dining space with their extensive private art collection. Tours are limited to 8 people and run September through June at $15 per person.

Quantifiable outcome

• Welcomed over 1,000 visitors during multiple Open House New York Weekends
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 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

Integration3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Yara Arts GroupminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Presented performances including Julian Kytasty master of the bandura concert and 'SLAP!' theatre musical-cabaret about David Burliuk.
• Barnett Newman FoundationminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Co-presented Fernando do Campo's 'The Archive of We' performance lecture exploring urban multispecies encounters.
• New York Artists Equity AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 December 2023Collaboration on the exhibition '1947: Creating an American Scene' celebrating NYAE's forerunners including founding member Chaim Gross. The exhibition was installed at Equity Gallery and showcased works by Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, Louise Nevelson, and other founding NYAE members. The Foundation loaned 24 works from its collection.
• NYC Landmarks Preservation CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnered with the Commission on the studio skylight restoration project to preserve the historic integrity of the building.
• Historic Artists' Homes & Studios (HAHS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation dedicated to preserving historic artist homes and studios. The Foundation joined as a member site and has received grants including the Dorothy C. Radgowski Learning Through Women's Achievement in the Arts Grant for educational programming.
• New York Landmarks ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Supported the studio skylight restoration project that returned the space to its original appearance after water infiltration damage.
• SoHo Arts NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015The Foundation is a founding member of the SoHo Arts Network, a working network of non-profit art spaces in and around SoHo. The network celebrates the creative community and collectively shares cultural contributions with neighborhood residents and visitors through events like the Downtown Culture Walk.
• HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society)minorOthersHistorical connection: HIAS assisted Chaim Gross and his brother Abraham in finding their brother Naftoli upon their arrival at Ellis Island. Foundation publication sales support current HIAS work for Ukrainian refugees.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Yaddo: Historic artist retreat in Saratoga Springs, NY offering residencies and occasional public tours. Comparable as a preserved historic arts property with similar nonprofit funding model and mission of supporting artists' legacies.
• The Hyde Collection: Historic house museum in Glens Falls, NY with a focused collection of American and European art. Comparable as a small historic house museum offering tours, exhibitions, and educational programming.

Broad incumbents

• The Andy Warhol Museum: Single-artist museum in Pittsburgh dedicated to Andy Warhol. Comparable curatorial model (single-artist focus with deep collection), but operates at significantly larger institutional scale.

Direct peers

• Chesterwood: Preserved home and studio of sculptor Daniel Chester French in Stockbridge, MA, operated by the National Trust. Directly comparable as a historic sculptor home/studio offering guided tours of preserved working spaces.
• Thomas Cole National Historic Site: Preserved home and studios of painter Thomas Cole (founder of the Hudson River School) in Catskill, NY. Comparable as a small historic artist site offering tours, exhibitions, and educational programming with similar grant-funding model.
• Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center: Birthplace and early home of painter Edward Hopper in Nyack, NY; offers tours, exhibitions, and educational programming of comparable size and scope to the Gross Foundation.
• Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center: Preserved East Hampton home and studio of Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner, also a member of the National Trust's Historic Artists' Homes & Studios program. Directly comparable in mission, scale, and visitor-tour format.
• Olana State Historic Site: Preserved home and studio of Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church near Hudson, NY. Comparable historic artist home offering tours, exhibitions, and programming; also partner in regional cultural tourism networks.
• The Tenement Museum: NYC historic site museum preserving immigrant tenement apartments on the Lower East Side. Directly comparable as a small NYC historic site offering guided tours focused on immigrant history and cultural heritage.
• The Noguchi Museum: Sculptor-focused museum in Long Island City, NY dedicated to Isamu Noguchi. Closely comparable as a single-artist sculpture museum with preserved studio, rotating exhibitions, and educational programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xinstagram.com/rcg_foundation
• YouTubevimeo.com/user13450741
• Facebookfacebook.com/The-Renee-and-Chaim-Gross-Foundation-142200941572
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-renee-and-chaim-gross-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation