Administered by The Luminary, the Futures Fund announces its 2025 grantees who will pursue creative projects that exemplify the unique possibilities of St. Louis. Nine grantees will receive a total of $60,000 in funding to support innovative, experimental, and forward-thinking artistic initiatives.
2025 Futures Fund Grantees:
PUNKS NOT DEAD! (but my uncle is) ($6,000): Brendan Logan transforms a vintage van into a mobile memorial exploring grief, legacy, and punk history through his uncle, D.H. Peligro—a St. Louis native and drummer for the Dead Kennedys.
Mangrove ($8,000): Sebastián Llovera and Eva Agüero Benzecri’s project is a new art platform supporting immigrant and first-generation artists through exhibitions and public programs that explore themes of migration, identity, and belonging while fostering inclusive, dialogue-driven community experiences.
Continuing the Chain of Love ($8,000): Jorden Latson and Camryn Daniels bring the Black community a fiber arts–based project rooted in intentional community building, offering accessible workshops that use creativity as a tool for liberation.
Five Dolla Cam Public Programming ($4,500): Malik Fabian-Mahmud and Ryan Gipson II’s community arts initiative offers free, inclusive programs like chess club, figure drawing, and zine-making workshops that engage marginalized communities.
Forging Black Joy ($8,000): Amina Taylor and Naysa Adams’ project is a festival and arts exhibition in North County St. Louis that uplifts local Black artists and affirms the area as a vital space for artistic growth.
Riverlands video project ($8,000): Coco Liao, Moira Smith, Vincent Stemmler, and Elior Berkowitz are artists, activists, researchers, and storytellers documenting the Mississippi-Missouri confluence through interviews, video, and water sampling, culminating in an experimental film.
Queer Fight Club ($5,000): Mad Green organizes an ongoing social practice that offers Queer people a joyful, communal space to share knowledge, release rage and grief, and build safety and solidarity through weekly self-defense classes.
DEAR MAMA Curated Art Experience ($4,500): Niger Dermonee Moore’s project is an annual art gallery that honors mothers and Womxn through art and community healing, with each year focusing on a different aspect of shared experience.
Ply ($8,000): Artists Taylor Yocom, Erin Luna, and Grant Benoit will create an artist book highlighting and archiving work by St. Louis-based fiber artists.