Commissioner

Today, it brings us incredible joy to announce the national expansion of our community-led program, supported by a $1 million investment from Knight Foundation.

Founded on models of mutual care and collective support, we’re thrilled to launch new programs that bring people together to support artists and collect art in Miami, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Charlotte, N.C.

Since 2018, more than 800 people have poured into Commissioner, making our Miami-based program the city’s longest-running crowdfunding art project. Grounded in the support of the many locals who are passionate about art and building community, members’ contributions ranging from $90 to $2,400 have surpassed $500,000, collectively funding 55 artist commissions over the past eight years.

Year after year, hundreds of us have pooled resources in ways that align with our values and capacities to support artistic practices and the production of new work. This affirmation and trust has paved the way for envisioning cultural infrastructure, systems of care, and collaborative funding models that stand to shape our shared future.

As we prepare for a new chapter with commissioned artist Stephen Arboite, we are excited to continue building on this foundation with a $1M investment from Knight Foundation to expand our work in Miami, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Charlotte.

“Commissioner shows how communities can support artists, strengthen their financial durability, and open new pathways for people to become collectors and stewards of creative work,” Kristina Newman-Scott, vice president for arts at Knight Foundation. “That cultural infrastructure makes cities more creative, resilient, and vibrant.”

More than ever, we are so very clear in our belief that the future of artist support is collaborative and community-led. 🫂

✍🏾 Read the full announcement in our bio. And thank you, deeply, for vision dreaming with us.

“All the materials I use yield a certain weight, a certain power, a certain energy. I think it is deeper than what is on the surface. I am interested in those nuances. Why do we have the inclination to use certain materials over others?”
— Stephen Arboite

As we near the finale of an auspicious Season Eight, we’ve come to understand world-building as physical and material transformation. In this way, the past year has engaged artists for whom shape-shifting is core to their process—whether through chemistry, composition, or practice.

Commissioned artists Lauren Shapiro (), , and David Correa () are alchemists, actively altering the state of matter in the kiln, through natural dye, and performance to create a new body of work.

Now, we can’t wait to see what Arboite () has in mind for this very special community collaboration!

🌚 Members: RSVP for Arboite’s Finale Reveal on June 20 at .

🌝 Images from In the Embrace of Memory, a solo exhibition that took place in 2024 during Miami Art Week at .