Philanthropy: Giving and Receiving

By Sally Raskoff

I recently spent a lovely afternoon in a comfortable space with a great view and access to books, photographs and a collection of the world’s greatest art. During my half-day visit to this place, the only money I spent was on food. The grounds were rich with flowering plants, even in the summer heat, and beautiful stone tiles making the walls and floors. Upon leaving, I felt rested, invigorated, and ready to do anything!

What makes my relaxing day possible? Philanthropy! I spent my afternoon at the Getty Museum here in Los Angeles.

J. Paul Getty (pictured at right) made a lot of money in the oil business and the Getty Trust, that operates the Museum, is his legacy.

Did you see the recent news about the 40 billionaires who have pledged to give away half of their wealth? Reading the letters on givingpledge.org, it is clear that many of these philanthropists are giving their personal wealth to self-named foundations, as Mr. Getty had done years before.

These billionaires give their money through their foundations to benefit health, art, education, and many other institutions and issues in society. These practices link to the historical expectations of noblesse oblige where the fortunate to do something socially responsible with their fortune – or at least with some of it.

Using such large sums of money for the public good is commendable. Yet research suggests that philanthropic efforts benefit the donors far beyond any effects on the general public. Foundations may do a good job at moving their funds towards other organizations that know what they are doing or hiring people with expertise to take on the various functions. For example, if one’s mission is to eradicate a disease, working with researchers and building coalitions with other non-profits can bring much new information to light.

Such funds are not always used so effectively, depending on how the money is managed and the clarity of the organization’s goals.

There might be other reasons for such large-scale generosity. The Gates Foundation was founded at roughly the same time as Microsoft was indicted for violating monopoly laws. While there might have been separate reasons for these two events, their simultaneous occurrence makes one wonder if it affected the sentencing (or lack thereof). In any case, creating a foundation that does philanthropic purposes does give the donor a hefty tax break thus there are benefits besides the satisfaction that may come from using the funds for good works.

The Getty Trust is one of the largest foundations, especially in the art world. Their museum in Los Angles is free, so their collection and exhibits are accessible to virtually anyone. Parking isn’t cheap, though, and the Getty facilities are located off a freeway at the edge of a mountain range. It’s not an easy walk from anywhere.

Foundations and museums that offer access to gardens, art, or other exhibits often have at least one free day a month so anyone can visit to appreciate the collections. However, things other than entry costs often limit access to these places.

Some people might not see the point in looking at particular art pieces or walking through botanical garden. Practically speaking, stepping outside your usual routine or travel through a city or town may not be possible since that may mean losing work or finding transportation that may not exist.

There might also be limits on whose work is being shared because foundations focus on particular types of art or plants. While in Los Angeles we have many different museums featuring different types of art, not all museums are easily accessible to the public.

Sociologically speaking, there are many pros and cons to the phenomenon of philanthropy. While capitalistic excesses may eventually get funneled back into public venues and purposes, there is a tremendous time lag and not all social issues may be addressed by these funds. Philanthropy does not seek to level the playing field; it is controlled by the elite and for the most part they choose which causes to support and how to support them.

Comments

[mac sagada]

Interesting article.