
History
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation was established in 1969 to strengthen, promote, and defend the arts and humanities as essential to democratic societies.

Throughout our history, Mellon has held true to our founding commitments, secure in our conviction that the arts and humanities are essential to the health of a multivocal and democratic society. From our earliest days, we have aspired to build partnerships with our grantees, offering expertise and counsel in addition to funding. In this unique way, Mellon enables projects carried out by people, organizations, and institutions that unlock deeper understanding and activate cultural expression, while also learning and evolving with the world around us.
In recent years, Mellon has expanded on these core principles by actively prioritizing social justice across all of our grantmaking. This strategic shift builds on our long history of advocating for and investing in expanded access to higher education, humanities, and the arts. Our vision for Mellon's future includes a focus on justice in all that we do—rooted in the Foundation’s historic belief in the transformative power of the arts and humanities.
The Richard King Mellon Foundation, named for Andrew W. Mellon’s nephew, is a separate philanthropic foundation headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The people
Founders and Namesake
The Mellon Foundation was established in 1969 by Ailsa Mellon Bruce and Paul Mellon through the consolidation of the Avalon Foundation and the Old Dominion Foundation—foundations that each sibling had established more than two decades earlier. They named the new foundation in honor of their father, Andrew W. Mellon.


Foundation presidents

Elizabeth Alexander
2018 - Present

Earl Lewis
2013 - 2018

Don Michael Randel
2006 - 2013

William G. Bowen
1988 - 2006

John E. Sawyer
1975 - 1987

Nathan M. Pusey
1971 - 1975

Charles S. Hamilton, Jr
1969 - 1971
At Mellon, we make grants to actively support communities and ideas that unlock the power in the arts and humanities that helps connect us all.
About our grantmaking process