I want to expand here on some past writing on the impulses behind philanthropy and the practical skills a funder should possess, as well as on parallels between the fields of producing and collecting contemporary art and philanthropy. I have been consumed with these topics lately as we are in the process of finalizing our upcoming book and these considerations will be part of its central axis.
One of the revelations that only came deep into my research, even though it had always been right before my nose, was how fluid and multifaceted the self-image of a philanthropist really is. We so rarely ask the question what it feels like to be a philanthropist. When we chose to do so systematically, the responses varied dramatically.
The best way that I found, with a bit of trial and error, to discuss self-image with members of the Altruist League community and others in my network was to ask them a question: if your journey of philanthropy was a movie, what would it look like? Who’d be the main hero? Who would play you? The results from about 100 such conversations are still being processed, but some remarkable insights are already emerging.
But first, let’s address the public perception of the philanthropist, if only so as to juxtapose it with what is going on in their heads. If you read grantee websites or the Chronicle of Philanthropy, donors are these nice people who give away their money and pro bono expertise because they want to improve the world and have a big heart. We should therefore be nice to them and try to please them by praising them, a lot.
Conversely, for many in the activist community (alas) the philanthropist is the root of all evil, the holder to of the keys to the kingdom who refuses to relinquish them. Replace “kingdom” with money, equality, justice, etc. I have sat in League-brokered meetings between activist organizations and major foundations where the former would go into hour-long diatribes about privilege and plutocracy and at the end “demand” to be funded. That’s not the way to approach matters either.
If it’s not clear by now, both of these caricatures objectify philanthropists. And being objectified is disempowering and demoralizing, as strange as that sounds. For some of the people with whom we spoke, this extends all the way to their inner circle, to such a degree that they don’t feel like they have anyone around who can truly understand who they are and why they do philanthropy.
So we gave it a shot.
The Noble Benefactor. Yes, some funders squarely fit into the public perception stereotype. They like their donations visible and they like to be thanked, as well as asked for opinions. They like to talk. These people usually describe the plot of their lives as having succeeded despite all the odds (even when they were born into wealth). It is possible that such people dominate the philanthropy world – in our very skewed sample (such people have little interest in what the Altruist League stands for) we saw comparatively few of them.
The Mastermind. Masterminds are still the heroes of the story but more behind the scenes. Their self image is a mix between a James Bond and a James Bond villain. They are happy to donate anonymously, for example, as long as the right people know that it was they who donated. They are not conspicuous about their wealth and give importance to leading a “normal life” otherwise.
The Plumber. The Plumber understands that problems in the world need to be solved and that they are in the position to contribute. Their attitude is no-nonsense and they are happy to help but want to know the details, and make sure the plan is sound before they commit themselves. They often have a science / engineering background and tend to speak in a data-driven, matter-of-fact way. They are not much affected by public perceptions, often due to slightly impaired social skills. They tend to focus on solutions that can help the greatest number of people, without being sentimental about individual cases.
The Vessel. This type is on a mission, and that mission is bigger than themselves. Like the Plumber, they are relatively uninterested in the public perception and gratitude – what matters to them is that they are doing what is right and that they are doing it with integrity. This type tends to be profoundly religious or committed to a set of well-ingrained values.
The Artist. The Artist understands philanthropy as their full-time creative undertaking, a gift they will leave for the posterity, a construction that will survive much longer than they will, a symbolic source of immortality. The Artist, a hybrid of the Vessel and the Plumber type, can be closer to one or the other depending on their personal experience. Their giving can be very personal or largely systemic, depending on who they are, their education, background and upbringing. They tend to place the story of their life either in the future, or depict it as a miniature of a project they are deeply interested in.
The Noble Benefactor is present across cultures, as one might expect. The Vessel is more pronounced in the Middle East and Africa. The Plumber tends to be the most prominent in the Western societies, in particular places like the Silicon Valley and around universities in Western Europe. Interestingly, here in Switzerland, where the Altruist League is based, the Mastermind type is by far the most prominent. One could simplistically ascribe that to the Protestant ethic, although a thorough assessment would require a whole new book to have any value.
Finally, the Artist type is the most difficult to pin down, and we do see it across the world. This type the most directly depends on the person’s intimate experience with life, meaning and existence, and as such can grow out of a variety of contexts.
For systemic change to happen, Artist and Plumbers need to forge a coalition of mutual understanding, which the others will then follow. The Vessel type cannot be influenced much, but the Noble Benefactor and the Mastermind will gladly follow in the direction in which philanthropy ends up going, as long as they get to keep their benefits.
How can this coalition look? Think of the collaboration between an architect and an interior decorator to build a house in which people want to live. The Plumbers can show how the world’s systemic problems can be solved the most effectively. The Altruists need to intuit what those problems are, and to inspire others, through their personal example, to follow their lead.
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