named programs · 4 · from sources
What they call their work
J’Ouvert Advocacy
Support and documentation of Brooklyn’s J’Ouvert Carnival tradition, including advocacy against restrictive policies that threaten the cultural integrity of the event
People’s City Report Card
Annual publication assessing the state of New York City’s grassroots cultures, highlighting commendable, mixed, and troubling developments affecting local artists, traditions, and community spaces
Place Matters
Community asset-mapping initiative that identifies and advocates for culturally significant neighborhood sites, referenced in the city’s CreateNYC cultural plan
Subway Therapy
Public art and dialogue project initiated by artist Matthew Chavez (Levee) that invites New Yorkers to express emotions through conversation and sticky-note messages in subway spaces
activities · 9 groups
What they do
-
Curated Art Exhibitions and Public Displays 2 activities
- Operating public cultural programs and exhibitionsOperates a gallery space in the Lower East Side and presents exhibitions, performances, lectures, and public art projects—including the POEMobile, which projects poems onto buildings—across New York City’s five boroughs. Exhibitions include Moving Murals, Mother Tongues, What We Bring: New Immigrant Gifts, and Bama and Pistol: Pioneers of Subway Graffiti.
- Supporting immigrant and ethnic community artistsProduces the 'What We Bring' initiative, which highlights the cultural contributions of immigrant artists from NYC communities, including a major exhibition featuring 31 artists from 25 countries across music, dance, poetry, cooking, visual arts, and theater. Hosted the exhibition at Queens Central Library and supports cross-language communication among poets.
-
-
Historic Site Designation Advocacy 1 activity
- Advocating for culturally significant places and landmarksAdvocates for endangered local establishments, public spaces, and community landmarks through the Place Matters program, including contributing to CreateNYC, the city’s first comprehensive cultural plan, and playing a leading role in the restoration of Jim Power’s mosaic light poles at Astor Place.
-
-
Industry and Community Recognition Awards 1 activity
- Hosting the People’s Hall of Fame and annual awards celebrationHosts the annual People’s Hall of Fame awards celebration, honoring individuals and organizations for grassroots contributions to New York City’s folk culture since 1993.
-
-
Artist and Curatorial Publications 1 activity
- Maintaining digital archives and public-facing cultural contentEstablished the Corona Chronicles Digital Archive in 2020, collecting digital materials from 200 contributors across the U.S., including documentation of Black Lives Matter protests and the Naming The Lost Memorials project. Also maintains the blog Sense & the City, which explores NYC’s hidden cultural spaces through the lens of the five senses.
-
-
Documentary Film Production 1 activity
- Producing and co-producing documentary films and audio storytelling seriesProduces and co-produces documentary films such as From Mambo to Hip Hop: A South Bronx Tale and We Like It Like That: The Story of Latin Boogaloo, and co-produced the storytelling series American Talkers for NPR. Also collaborates with filmmakers on projects aligned with urban folk culture preservation.
-
-
Nonprofit Capacity Building Services 1 activity
- Providing capacity-building support and consultingProvides consulting support to external organizations and initiatives, including during the creation of StoryCorps.
-
-
Film Production Funding and Fiscal Sponsorship 1 activity
- Providing fiscal sponsorship for cultural projectsFunds and provides fiscal sponsorship for documentary film projects, including Ric Burns’ Coney Island and the New York series.
-
-
After-School Academic and Enrichment Programs 1 activity
- Running arts education and youth programsProvides in-school, after-school, and professional development programs for students and teachers based on NYC’s neighborhood and ethnic cultural traditions. Directs the Urban Explorers after-school program and works with 7 public schools in northern Queens through a U.S. Department of Education grant.
-
-
Uncategorized 2 activities
- Documenting and preserving NYC's grassroots cultures and cultural heritageDocuments, archives, and preserves New York City’s grassroots cultures through collections including the Ethnic USA Collection (10,000 color slides, 15,000 negatives), the 369th Regiment Harlem Hellfighters’ sheet music (941 digitized items), and post-9/11 memorial documentation in The Missing: Streetscape of a City in Mourning (nearly 1,300 color slides). Also maintains the City Lore Archive and supports public access and publication requests.
- Producing research and public assessments on community cultureProduces the annual People’s City Report Card, which assesses New York City’s community-based cultural expressions such as parades, street vendors, community gardens, and performers.
-
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$3.79M
Contributions & grants$3.42M90%
Program service revenue$356K9%
Investment income$15K0%
Other revenue$2K
expenses
Total expenses$3.83M
Program expenses87%
Admin / overhead9%
Fundraising3%
Salaries & benefits$1.10M
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$3.09M
Cash$211K
Investments$248K
Liabilities$1.38M
Net assets$1.71M
Liquid reserves1.4 mo
4 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue +36.9%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 2
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| MOLLY GARFINKEL | CO-DIRECTOR | 40 | $123K |
| STEVE ZEITLIN | EXECUTIVE CO-DIRECTOR | 40 | $122K |
board members · 18
- AMY CHIN — BOARD MEMBER
- ANN BANKS — BOARD MEMBER
- BOB HOLMAN — BOARD MEMBER
- CAROLINE HARRIS — VICE PRESIDENT
- ESTHER COHEN — BOARD MEMBER
- HENRY CHALFANT — CHAIR
- HOLLY SIDFORD — BOARD MEMBER
- KAY TURNER — BOARD MEMBER
- KENDALL WILLIAMS — BOARD MEMBER
- KIRAN SINGH SIRAH — BOARD MEMBER
- MARILYN WHITE — BOARD MEMBER
- NATHAN PEARSON — TREASURER
- PHYLLIS MAY-MACHUNDA — BOARD MEMBER
- RAM DEVINENI — BOARD MEMBER
- RAMAKRISHNA VENKATRAMAN — BOARD MEMBER
- RAQUEL CEPEDA — BOARD MEMBER
- RAY ALLEN — BOARD MEMBER
- ROHIT ACHARYA — BOARD MEMBER
relationships · 55
Who they work with
- 369th Regiment Historical Society Partner — Collaborates to digitize and disseminate music scores and song charts, preserving and sharing the musical legacy of the 369th Regiment.
- Alan Lomax Archive Partner — Partnered with City Lore and the Hitchcock Institute on a tribute to Alan Lomax and the early folk music revival in 2003.
- American Folklore Society Network — Hosts records related to City Lore collections in its online folklore collections database.
- Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Funder — Primary funder of the "What We Bring" exhibition.
- Association for Cultural Equity Partner — Collaborated with City Lore and the Alan Lomax Archive on a tribute to Alan Lomax and the early folk music revival in 2003.
- Bloomberg Family Foundation Funder — Provides general operating support and website development funding
- Booth Ferris Foundation Funder — Provides general operating support and website development funding
- Bronx Music Heritage Center Partner — Collaborated on the Bronx Rising program
- Brooklyn Arts Council Partner — Cosponsored the "What We Bring" exhibition.
- CATCH consortium Partner — Cosponsored the "What We Bring" exhibition.
- Center for Traditional Music and Dance Partner — Collaborated on the exhibit What We Bring: New Immigrant Gifts
- Center for Traditional Music and Dance Partner — Cosponsored the "What We Bring" exhibition.
- City Lore Network — Non-profit membership organization that engages members in its programs and offers event discounts and joining premiums.
- City Lore’s Board of Directors Network — Collaborates with a committee of New York City-lovers to select People’s Hall of Fame awardees.
- EHA Foundation Funder — Supports Place Matters program
- Gotham Center for New York City History Partner — Collaborated on Teaching American History initiatives
- Humanities New York Funder — Supports Special Projects
- Independent Television Service (ITVS) Funder — Supports Special Projects
- Khadijah Shaheed Partner — Community liaison collaborating with City Lore
- La Vida Feliz Foundation Funder — Supports Place Matters program
- Leveraging Investments in Creativity (Ford Foundation) Funder — Provides general operating support and website development funding
- Library of Congress Funder — Supports Special Projects
- Lily Auchincloss Foundation Funder — Supports Place Matters program
- Marissa Wesely Funder — Provides general operating support and website development funding
- Mertz Gilmore Foundation Funder — Provides general operating support and website development funding
- MetLife Foundation Funder — Supports education programs
- NPR Partner — Coproduced the storytelling series "American Talkers" for NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday and Morning Edition.
- NYC Department of Cultural Affairs Funder — Provided additional support for the "What We Bring" exhibition.
- Nathan Cummings Foundation Funder — Supports Grassroots Poetry Initiatives
- National Endowment for the Arts Funder — Funds education, Place Matters, and Urban Culture initiatives
+ 25 more
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Cultural Equity Through Community-Collaborative Artmethodology: community-collaborative artBy collaborating directly with folk and community-based artists and embracing diverse aesthetics in artistic creation, the organization advances urban art and democratizes cultural expression, because centering marginalized voices in the creative process fosters inclusion and challenges dominant cultural narratives.
- Decolonial and Heritage-Centered Arts Educationmethodology: decolonial arts educationBy using a decolonial, culturally-rooted approach that centers folk and traditional art forms reflecting students’ heritages, identities, and communities, the organization increases relevance and engagement in arts education, because connecting learning to lived cultural experience validates identity and fosters deeper participation.
- Grassroots Cultural Preservation as Living Legacymethodology: grassroots_cultural_documentationBy documenting, presenting, and advocating for grassroots cultures—especially stories, histories, places, and traditions—the organization sustains living legacies and promotes cultural equity, because preserving these expressions strengthens community identity and counters erasure of marginalized histories.
- Living Archive Model for Cultural Activationmethodology: living_archiveBy maintaining a “living archive” in which collections actively inform public programs like the Place Matters Awards and People’s Hall of Fame, the organization ensures archival materials serve contemporary cultural advocacy, because linking documentation to recognition and celebration sustains ongoing community cultural vitality.
- Museum Without Walls: Community-Embedded Programmingmethodology: museum_without_walls_community_engagementBy operating as a “Museum without Walls” and bringing programming directly into communities across all five boroughs, the organization increases access and relevance, because removing institutional gatekeeping and meeting people where they are deepens engagement with grassroots cultures.