In our recent posts, the Irvine Arts team has been exploring the ways nonprofits can expand arts engagement — to create meaningful experiences that bring forward the full public benefit of arts, and to also increase organizational sustainability for the future. One area that we have been particularly interested in has been finding ways to increase cultural participation and improve financial stability among arts organizations serving areas outside of major California arts centers. In 2009 we launched the second phase of the Arts Regional Initiative, a five-year partnership with 36 arts organizations in Southern California, the Central Valley, and the Central Coast. During that time, we provided $13.4 million in grants and technical assistance to support these goals. What did we learn from this work?
General
We Asked: What’s the Biggest Challenge Facing the Arts?
Last week we conducted our first ArtsJournal poll, asking: What’s the biggest challenge facing the arts? We had 3,191 votes, with the largest percentage – 37% – answering funding. Second at 24% was “relevance/changing tastes” followed by “diversity” at 15% and “leadership” at 13%. Technology came in a distant fifth at 4%.
Moving Arts Leadership Forward
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation’s Performing Arts Program invests in arts leadership because we believe the vitality of the sector is fundamentally dependent on the quality of its leadership. As part of our commitment to strengthening leadership, we commissioned the research presented here to help shape our future investments. But the findings have implications that go far beyond our grantmaking. They show how different generations experience their work in the arts sector, and highlight how the differences affect engagement,
innovation, and other factors critical to the success of individual arts organizations and the health of the field as a whole.
At the heart of the findings is a challenged definition of “leadership.” Members of younger generations often see leadership as the fostering of a culture of connectedness, collaboration, and change—they believe leadership is rooted in the efforts of many. This view is in contrast to the more traditional, hierarchical structures and practices of many arts organizations and funders.
Understanding the value of arts & culture
This report presents the findings of the Cultural Value Project, one of the most in-depth attempts yet made to understand the value of the arts and culture – the difference that they make to individuals and to society. The three-year project, supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, has been looking into the question of why the arts and culture matter, and how we capture the effects that they have.
Determinants, Effects, and Funding of Arts Consumption
The Arts in Early Childhood: Social and Emotional Benefits of Arts Participation
This report is a literature review and gap-analysis of recent research about the arts’ relationship to social-emotional benefits in early childhood. Music-based activities, drama/theater, and visual arts and crafts were among the types of arts participation studied. The review covers the period of 2000 to 2015. 30 pp.
