Koch Cultural Trust

Visual artist Martha Wherry received a $5,000 grant from
Koch Cultural Trust to attend the International School of
Painting, Drawing and Sculpture in Umbria, Italy.
Read her story.

Foundations & Philanthropy

• Fred C. and Mary R. Koch Foundation
• Koch Cultural Trust
• Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation
• David H. Koch Charitable Foundation
  & Personal Philanthropy

Twenty-three years ago, Elizabeth B. Koch, wife of Charles Koch, chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, Inc., created a way to help a young performer working summer stock in Wichita, Kan., launch a musical career in Europe. That young tenor was the first in a long line of artists to receive support through the Kansas Cultural Trust, the program founded by Liz Koch to channel help from the Fred C. and Mary R. Koch Foundation directly to deserving Kansas artists.

Renamed the Koch Cultural Trust in 2008, the program was inspired by Mary Robinson Koch, an avid patron of the arts. According to Liz Koch, "My mother-in-law was very interested in giving to what is, giving support to existing arts organizations. I was more interested in the creative process of launching people who hoped to become artists. Koch Cultural Trust combines her love of the arts with my love of young people."

The program has provided steady support for artists at varying stages of their careers. Under the guidance of trustee Liz Koch, who is also president of the Fred C. and Mary R. Koch Foundation, Koch Cultural Trust has awarded nearly $1.5 million in grants to outstanding Kansas artists – singers, painters, sculptors, dancers and instrumentalists.

For more information, visit www.kochculturaltrust.org.