Our 2024 proposal deadlines are Friday, March 29 (Spring Cycle) and Friday, July 26 (Fall Cycle).

Supporting land conservation, artistic vitality, and regional collections for the people of the Chicago region and the Lowcountry of South Carolina.

We seek to sustain and build resilient, vital, engaged, and equitable communities in our two regions by supporting conservation, arts, and collecting organizations.

More about how we work.

LAND CONSERVATION

ARTISTIC VITALITY

COLLECTIONS

More about our program areas.

GDDF News

Explore recent news and stories from the Foundation, grantees, and partners. 

Split image with Chicago skyline on top and a river running through a Lowcountry salt marsh on the bottom

Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation Announces $3.6 Million in Funding to Organizations in Chicago, Lowcountry of South Carolina

  Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation Announces $3.6 Million in Funding to Organizations in Chicago, Lowcountry of South Carolina  Grants Support Artistic Vitality, Broadening Narratives, and Land Conservation  (Chicago, IL & Charleston, SC) The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation (GDDF) is pleased to announce support…

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An art gallery with a yellow wall hung with small framed works. A patron dressed in a sumptuous 18th-century inspired outfit views the works.

Getting to Know… Lowcountry Artistic Vitality

Discover more about our Lowcountry Artistic Vitality program and how GDDF supports the rich and vital arts scene in this unique region. Photo: The Gibbes Museum in Charleston hosted a masquerade opening of the exhibition Something Terrible May Happen: The Works of Aubrey Beardsley and…

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Three young researchers view slides in a microscope-like viewer while another researcher stands behind. They are in front of a shelf of research books.

Getting to Know… Collections & Broadening Narratives

Discover more about our Collections program and Broadening Narratives strategy. Photo: Student researchers at Claflin University work with a collection of photos from the collection of civil rights photographer Cecil Williams. Our 5 Questions Getting to Know Series asks our program officers to provide an…

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