The Kresge Foundation annually awards roughly $500,000 to 21 metro Detroit artists: $50,000 to an Eminent Artist, $25,000 to 18 Artist Fellows and $5,000 to 2 Gilda Awardees, totaling more than $4.5 million into the arts community to date.

The foundation also funds the administration of the program, professional practice development for the Artist Fellows and – in 2011, 2013 and 2015 – Art X Detroit, a festival to present the Fellows and Eminent Artists in arts and cultural venues.

The evaluation is based on 70 one-on-one interviews by Minnesota-based 8 Bridges – previously known as Lutman & Associates – including 24 award recipients, other artists and art leaders, civic leaders, Detroit and national grantmakers and Detroit journalists; 8 Bridges also convened a community meeting of 45 arts community leaders, reviewed media report and conducted a review of other foundation evaluations and other related literature.