People power: Collective philanthropy for museums

Earlier this year, Art Fund’s joint public campaign with Hepworth Wakefield met its £3.8 million target needed to save Barbara Hepworth’s Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue and Red (1943). This pivotal work had been acquired by a private buyer and, had we not raised the funds by the export-bar deadline, was at real risk of leaving the UK and disappearing from public view forever.

Instead, thanks to a collective wave of generosity from across the UK and beyond, the sculpture is now safely in Hepworth Wakefield’s permanent collection. It is on display, set alongside other key works by Hepworth, enabling the gallery to tell a richer story of one of the most important artists of the 20th century.

Our mission to rally public support

Art Fund’s role as a campaigning organisation has underpinned our work for over a century. This stretches back to 1906 when, just three years after we were founded, our first public appeal raised the funds needed to save Diego Velázquez’s The Rokeby Venus (1647-51) for the National Gallery.

Our mission today remains the same, even as the fundraising challenges evolve. We know museums face acute financial pressures on all fronts, and our most recent Museum Directors Survey shows two-thirds of UK museums are concerned about funding shortfalls.

Philanthropists and foundations are managing increasing demands on limited resources and local authority budgets are shrinking, while finding new sources of income is inherently time-consuming and complex. At the same time, members and visitors feel the pressure of a persistent cost-of-living crisis. As the art market increases in value, fundraising targets in the millions can feel abstract, unreachable and off-putting.

Having worked on several campaigns at Art Fund – from the campaign to keep the Wedgwood Collection together on public view in Staffordshire in 2014, to our appeal to save Derek Jarman’s Prospect Cottage in 2020 – I can vouch for the fact no context is a perfect context, and success is never a certainty. We never know when an important work or collection will come up for sale or become subject to an export bar, opening a brief window for a UK museum to acquire it and for us to spring into action. We can rarely anticipate the target, how the public will respond, the deadline, or what twists and turns lie ahead. It is always daunting.

A shared pride in our museums

The only certainty is every donation matters. The big-hitting grants that create momentum are vital, of course. But each act of generosity gives others the confidence to follow suit. The very first pledge that gets you off the starting block; the spur of the moment donation in response to the Instagram post; the gift in memory of a family member who loved visiting the museum. Each donation reflects an individual’s personal motivation – passion for an artist, artwork or place – but together they form a powerful statement of collective pride in our museums and national heritage.

A patchwork of donations of all sizes, ranging from £3 to six figures, contributed to the Hepworth campaign’s success. Nearly 3,000 members of the public chose to donate by clicking a link, posting a cheque, picking up the phone, or donating in person at the visitors’ desk at Hepworth Wakefield.

These gifts came alongside a major grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and generous support from a range of trusts, foundations and philanthropists. Art Fund’s exceptional grant of £750,000 was itself made possible by our members: the 142,000 people who support us through the purchase of a National Art Pass. This mass movement is why the fundraising target was achieved in a matter of months, and eight days ahead of the deadline.

People-powered

We describe Art Fund as a ‘people-powered’ organisation because everything we do is made possible by those who share our belief in the vital role of museums, for everyone. Together they enable us to fund big ideas and ambition, from saving works of art for public view to funding new programmes for visitors. In 2026, our ambition is to widen that circle even further: to reach, mobilise and bring more people together to enjoy, value and sustain our museums.

Fundraising campaigns are just one way to support a museum you love. Whether you’re booking an exhibition ticket, leaving a legacy, buying a coffee or going all out and sponsoring an exhibition: it all matters. Seeing the Hepworth sculpture proudly on public display in Wakefield for the first time was, for me, a vivid reminder that anyone, with a gift of any size, can play a part in collective philanthropy for museums.