Learning from the American Fundraising Model: A European Perspective March 2014 | Page 4

Many of the professionals we spoke to have
plenty of ideas on how to tap into the generosity of these individuals. Some institutions are already implementing innovative ideas. These include the “golden helmets” initiative at Vienna’s
Kunsthistorisches Museum, part of a fundraising campaign that, by offering donors cycle and
ski helmets emblazoned with the letters KHM,
also served as an awareness raising effort.
In some places, it is the energies of an individual that have led to success in fundraising. This
is the case at Munich’s Pinakothek der Moderne, where Corinna Thierolf has combined her
passion as head curator of post-war art with
an enthusiasm for fundraising that has helped
her build the support of a small but generous
group of individual donors.
And several participants reported that their in4

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

stitutions had established U.S.-based American
Friends organizations, some of these hosted at
KBFUS, to harness the generosity of U.S. individual donors with interests or connections in
Europe.
But while museums, theaters and universities
across Europe are finding new ways to tap into
the passions of private donors, the deep-rooted tradition of individual giving in the United
States did not fail to impress study visit participants. Most reported that the sessions and
meetings w