Mayor Brandon Johnson announced that the Mellon Foundation will grant $6.8 million to Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) to support the Chicago Monuments Project (CMP) and community-generated commemorative initiatives.
This funding, the Mellon Foundation’s largest grant ever, will enable the creation of eight new monuments, including the Chicago Torture Justice Memorial, which originated from the community engagement efforts of the Chicago Monuments Project.
“Chicago’s monuments and memorials are more than just public art — they speak directly to the values, history, and vision of our great city,” said Mayor Johnson. “I’m grateful for the Mellon Foundation’s support of the Chicago Monuments Project and the creation of cultural works around labor, civil rights, racial justice and other areas that represent our diversity, honor our history and tell our story.”
These eight projects will enhance Chicago’s collection, serving as both permanent and temporary memorials to historically excluded or underrepresented events, people and groups. Mellon’s additional funding will also sustain programs fostering ongoing artist and community engagement in monuments, public art and cultural history.
“This catalytic support from the Mellon Foundation will fundamentally strengthen our City as our public art collection becomes more honest about our history and far more inclusive regarding who is represented and what stories are told. We are thrilled to celebrate and support our incredible grantees, many of whom have been hard at work for years to see these artistic visions come to life,” shared DCASE Commissioner Erin Harkey. “Mellon’s funding will enable the City to continue engaging thoughtfully and creatively with the complex, ever-evolving issues related to justice, public space and our shared history.”
The Chicago Monuments Project (CMP) emerged to address the City of Chicago’s need to confront monuments that embody outdated values and fail to depict the complete narrative of Chicago’s history. Launched in 2020, CMP is a collaboration among DCASE, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and the Chicago Park District (CPD). Guided by an advisory committee consisting of community leaders, artists, architects, scholars, curators and City officials, CMP conducted an unprecedented, community-driven engagement process. The final report, released in August 2022, synthesized input from thousands of diverse Chicagoans through surveys, live discussions and public feedback via ChicagoMonuments.org.
The grant from the Mellon Foundation will assist in implementing these eight priority projects identified through the new work engagement process of the CMP:
- Chicago Torture Justice Memorial, artist Patricia Nguyen and architectural
designer John Lee - George Washington Monument Intervention, a new public art project by
renowned Chicago artist Amanda Williams - A Long Walk Home (ALWH), “#SayHerName: The Rekia Boyd Monument
Project” - Mother Jones, in partnership with the Mother Jones Heritage Project
(MJHP), a commission to honor Mother Jones’s important contributions to
labor history - Mahalia Jackson monument by artist Gerald Griffin, spearheaded by the
Greater Chatham Initiative (GCI) - Pilsen Latina Histories, lead artist Diana Solis, scholars from the University
of Illinois, Pilsen Arts & Community House staff, and additional artists and
community groups in Pilsen - Chicago Race Riots of 1919 Commemoration Project, designed and
produced in partnership with youth artists at Firebird Community Arts’
Project FIRE - DuSable, a series of monuments that explore the settling of Chicago,
including projects which amplify historic and notable Native Americans