A fascinating (and lengthy) study of artists as philanthropists was released by the Aspen Institute in November. It determined that "artist-endowed foundations are a sleeping giant of philanthropy." There are about 300 in the US, with $2.7 billion in combined assets, and are growing. The study found that half of all the assets held by artist-endowed foundations are works of art, and that hundreds of artist foundations exist as shells, awaiting an eventual bequest and hinting at an artist foundation boom to come.