Figge Art Museum
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE FIGGE ART MUSEUM ACTIVELY SERVES THE PUBLIC BY PROMOTING APPRECIATION AND CREATION OF VISUAL ART THROUGH EDUCATION AND BY COLLECTING, CONSERVING, AND EXHIBITING ART. AS A VITAL, RESPONSIVE INSTITUTION, THE MUSEUM BRINGS ART AND PEOPLE TOGETHER. WE ENRICH OUR COMMUNITY WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF ART THROUGH EDUCATION, COLLECTIONS, EXHIBITIONS AND PRESERVATION AND WE ENDEAVOR TO TRANSFORM OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH THE POWER OF ART.
- Income
- $4.7 million
- Spending
- $6.2 million
- Spent on programs
- 67%
- Reserves
- 4 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 30%
- Employees
- 57
- Volunteers
- 200
- Highest pay
- $130,822, executive di
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 65 out of 100. Higher than 39% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 4.0 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 6% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 30% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 2% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1567% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 13 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 65% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2521 of 21 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (3)
- $3.2 million spent. THE FIGGE'S 2024-2025 EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDED: "WALTER WICK:HIDDEN WONDERS" THE WHIMSICAL WORLD OF WALTER WICK HAS FASCINATED PEOPLE OF ALL AGES SINCE 1991, WHEN HIS FIRST CHILDRENS BOOK SERIES I SPY FOUND ITS WAY ONTO THE BOOKSHELVES OF MILLIONS OF AMERICAN HOUSEHOLDS. THIS EXHIBITION IS THE LARGEST SURVEY OF WICKS WORK TO DATE. TITLED AFTER HIS RECENT BOOK, WALTER WICK: HIDDEN WONDERS THE EXHIBITION SHOWCASES FIFTY YEARS OF INNOVATION, WONDER, AND IMAGINATION.D POLITICS. "RECKONINGS AND RECONSTRUCTIONS: SOUTHERN PHOTOGRAPHY FROM THE DO GOOD FUND" REPRESENTS A SURVEY OF THE ART AND ARTISTS WITHIN THE DO GOOD FUNDS COLLECTION. PROVIDING A SCHOLARLY INVESTIGATION OF SOUTHERN PHOTOGRAPHY SINCE WORLD WAR II, THE COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS A WIDE-RANGING GROUP OF PHOTOGRAPHERSDIVERSE IN GENDER, RACE, ETHNICITY, AND REGIONIN OVER ONE HUNDRED PHOTOGRAPHS BY MORE THAN SIXTY ARTISTS. "INTERSTELLAR" WILL SHOWCASE NINE WORKS FROM LIGHT SCULPTOR LEO VILLAREALS NEBULA SERIES. USING LEDS AND CUSTOM SOFTWARE, VILLAREAL DELVES INTO THE REALMS OF SPACE, TIME, AND PERCEPTION. HIS ARTISTIC PRACTICE BELONGS TO A TRADITION THAT INTERTWINES NATURE, TECHNOLOGY, AND HUMAN EXPERIENCE. THE SCULPTURES EMIT A HYPNOTIC, DIFFUSED LIGHT, DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM CELESTIAL IMAGERY AND CAPTURING THE DYNAMISM OF SPACE THROUGH THEIR INTERPLAY OF COLORS AND SHAPES. "PRISON FANTASIES" DAVID ALFARO SIQUEIROSS SERIES OF LITHOGRAPHS WILL BE ON LOAN FROM THE DEERE & COMPANY COLLECTION FOR AN INTIMATE EXHIBITION. SIQUEIROS (1896-1974) FOUNDED THE MODERN SCHOOL OF MEXICAN MURAL PAINTING ALONGSIDE HIS CONTEMPORARIES DIEGO RIVERA AND JOS CLEMENTE OROZCO. "CARA AND DIEGO ROMERO: TALES OF FUTURES PAST" BRINGS TOGETHER ARTWORK BY ACCLAIMED CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS CARA ROMERO (CHEMEHUEVI) AND DIEGO ROMERO (COCHITI). ORGANIZED BY THE FIGGE ART MUSEUM, THIS NATIONALLY TRAVELING EXHIBITION FEATURES 18 OF DIEGO ROMEROS THOUGHT-PROVOKING POTTERY PIECES AND LITHOGRAPHS, 20 OF CARA ROMEROS EVOCATIVE PHOTOGRAPHS, INCLUDING FROM HER INDIGENOUS FUTURISM SERIES, AND A NEW COLLABORATIVE PIECE CREATED EXCLUSIVELY FOR THIS EXHIBITION. "THE GOLDEN AGE: NORTHERN EUROPEAN WORKS FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART" THIS EXHIBITION INCLUDES MASTERPIECES BY NORTHERN RENAISSANCE AND BAROQUE ARTISTS, INCLUDING ANTHONY VAN DYCK, FRANS HALS, AND LUCAS CRANACH THE ELDER, ON LOAN FROM THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART IN WASHINGTON, DC. AS ONE OF JUST 10 MUSEUMS SELECTED FOR THE NATIONAL GALLERYS ACROSS THE NATION INITIATIVE TO SHARE THE NATIONS COLLECTION WITH MUSEUMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. "FUTURE NOW: VIRTUAL SNEAKERS TO CUTTING-EDGE KICKS" IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE BATA SHOE MUSEUM AND THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF ARTS, THE EXHIBITION SHOWCASES NEARLY 60 FUTURISTIC FOOTWEAR DESIGNS REDEFINING THE POSSIBILITIES OF SHOES. BLENDING FASHION, GAMING, ARCHITECTURE, AND SUSTAINABILITY, THE EXHIBITION FEATURES DESIGNERS LIKE REM D. KOOLHAAS, ZAHA HADID, MR. BAILEY, AND SALEHE BEMBURY, ALONGSIDE COLLABORATIONS WITH RICK OWENS, STELLA MCCARTNEY, AND PLAYSTATION. HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE 3D-PRINTED SHOES, SNEAKERS MADE FROM MUSHROOM LEATHER, AND FOOTWEAR DESIGNED FOR THE METAVERSE. "FUTURE NOW" OFFERS A GLIMPSE INTO THE INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES AND ARTISTIC PRACTICES SHAPING THE FUTURE OF FOOTWEAR. "FEVER DREAMS: GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM" PRESENTS THE WORK OF ARTISTS ACTIVE IN EUROPE DURING THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY, INCLUDING KTHE KOLLWITZ, ARTHUR SEGAL, AND LUDWIG MEIDNER, WHO PUT THEIR INNER VISIONS TO PAPER IN DEFIANCE OF TRADITION AND POLITICAL INJUSTICE. GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM BEGAN WHEN A GROUP OF YOUNG ARTISTS SOUGHT TO BOLDLY INTERPRET THE WORLD AROUND THEM AS AN ACT OF FREEDOM AND A POLITICAL STATEMENT IN OPPOSITION TO THE OLD, ESTABLISHED FORCES. THE FIGGE'S 2024-2025 EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDED: "WALTER WICK:HIDDEN WONDERS" THE WHIMSICAL WORLD OF WALTER WICK HAS FASCINATED PEOPLE OF ALL AGES SINCE 1991, WHEN HIS FIRST CHILDRENS BOOK SERIES I SPY FOUND ITS WAY ONTO THE BOOKSHELVES OF MILLIONS OF AMERICAN HOUSEHOLDS. THIS EXHIBITION IS THE LARGEST SURVEY OF WICKS WORK TO DATE. TITLED AFTER HIS RECENT BOOK, WALTER WICK: HIDDEN WONDERS THE EXHIBITION SHOWCASES FIFTY YEARS OF INNOVATION, WONDER, AND IMAGINATION.D POLITICS. "RECKONINGS AND RECONSTRUCTIONS: SOUTHERN PHOTOGRAPHY FROM THE DO GOOD FUND" REPRESENTS A SURVEY OF THE ART AND ARTISTS WITHIN THE DO GOOD FUNDS COLLECTION. PROVIDING A SCHOLARLY INVESTIGATION OF SOUTHERN PHOTOGRAPHY SINCE WORLD WAR II, THE COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS A WIDE-RANGING GROUP OF PHOTOGRAPHERSDIVERSE IN GENDER, RACE, ETHNICITY, AND REGIONIN OVER ONE HUNDRED PHOTOGRAPHS BY MORE THAN SIXTY ARTISTS. "INTERSTELLAR" WILL SHOWCASE NINE WORKS FROM LIGHT SCULPTOR LEO VILLAREALS NEBULA SERIES. USING LEDS AND CUSTOM SOFTWARE, VILLAREAL DELVES INTO THE REALMS OF SPACE, TIME, AND PERCEPTION. HIS ARTISTIC PRACTICE BELONGS TO A TRADITION THAT INTERTWINES NATURE, TECHNOLOGY, AND HUMAN EXPERIENCE. THE SCULPTURES EMIT A HYPNOTIC, DIFFUSED LIGHT, DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM CELESTIAL IMAGERY AND CAPTURING THE DYNAMISM OF SPACE THROUGH THEIR INTERPLAY OF COLORS AND SHAPES. "PRISON FANTASIES" DAVID ALFARO SIQUEIROSS SERIES OF LITHOGRAPHS WILL BE ON LOAN FROM THE DEERE & COMPANY COLLECTION FOR AN INTIMATE EXHIBITION. SIQUEIROS (1896-1974) FOUNDED THE MODERN SCHOOL OF MEXICAN MURAL PAINTING ALONGSIDE HIS CONTEMPORARIES DIEGO RIVERA AND JOS CLEMENTE OROZCO. "CARA AND DIEGO ROMERO: TALES OF FUTURES PAST" BRINGS TOGETHER ARTWORK BY ACCLAIMED CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS CARA ROMERO (CHEMEHUEVI) AND DIEGO ROMERO (COCHITI). ORGANIZED BY THE FIGGE ART MUSEUM, THIS NATIONALLY TRAVELING EXHIBITION FEATURES 18 OF DIEGO ROMEROS THOUGHT-PROVOKING POTTERY PIECES AND LITHOGRAPHS, 20 OF CARA ROMEROS EVOCATIVE PHOTOGRAPHS, INCLUDING FROM HER INDIGENOUS FUTURISM SERIES, AND A NEW COLLABORATIVE PIECE CREATED EXCLUSIVELY FOR THIS EXHIBITION. "THE GOLDEN AGE: NORTHERN EUROPEAN WORKS FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART" THIS EXHIBITION INCLUDES MASTERPIECES BY NORTHERN RENAISSANCE AND
- $803,641 spent. EDUCATION: THE FIGGE SERVED STUDENTS FROM LOCAL ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS, COLLEGES, AND UNIVERSITIES, AS WELL AS PRIVATE SCHOOL STUDENTS, SENIOR CITIZENS, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND TOURISTS WITH A BROAD PROGRAM OF ONSITE TOURS, LECTURES, HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES. THE "BIG PICTURE" OUTREACH PROGRAM PROVIDED HANDS-ON ART EXPERIENCES TO OVER 20,000 STUDENTS AND OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS THROUGHOUT THE REGION. IN ADDITION, FREE FAMILY DAYS, THURSDAY NIGHT PROGRAMS, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES ATTRACTED THOUSANDS OF VISITORS FOR INNOVATIVE, ART-BASED LEARNING.
- $186,098 spent. AUXILIARY ACTIVITIES: THE FIGGE HAS IDENTIFIED THE SUPPLEMENTAL ACTIVITIES RELATED TO OPERATING THE STORE AND ITS CAF/CATERING OPERATIONS INTO A THIRD PROGRAM CALLED AUXILIARY ACTIVITIES. THE MUSEUM OPERATES A STORE OFFERING FOR SALE VARIOUS ART-ORIENTED ITEMS, MANY OF WHICH ARE THEMED AROUND EXHIBITIONS CURRENTLY OR RECENTLY ON DISPLAY. IN ADDITION THE MUSEUM RENTS A PORTION OF THE MUSEUM COMMON SPACE FOR AFTER HOURS PRIVATE EVENTS, AND OPERATES THE BAR.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since September 1966.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.