Americans for the Arts, a national arts advocacy organization, has just released its first public opinion survey since 2018. Entitled, Americans Speak Out About the Arts in 2023, the study was designed to gauge the public’s a) level of personal engagement in the arts as both audience and creator; b) support for arts education and government funding of arts and culture; and c) opinions on the personal and well-being benefits that come from engaging in the arts. The survey was conducted in July 2023 and had a sample size of over 3,000 American adults, making it one of the largest ever conducted.
“While every year brings new research about the personal and community benefits of arts and culture, it is also important to understand how engaged in the arts we are as a public,” said Randy Cohen, vice president of research at Americans for the Arts, in an email to this writer. “The findings from this national public opinion study affirm the belief that we are better people with the arts in our lives, and engagement in the arts makes the American public feel healthier, more creative, and more empathetic – feeling better about today and more optimistic about tomorrow.”
Here are a few highlights from that report:
Americans are personally engaged in the arts. 79 percent of Americans visited, attended, or watched an arts or culture event in person during the previous year. The most popular events were living collections (zoos, aquariums, and botanical gardens) followed by museums and concerts.
48 percent of adults said they were personally involved in making, performing, practicing or sharing creative arts, culture or crafts activities – either at home or in their communities. The most selected categories were the making of handmade objects such as crafts, decorative art, jewelry, woodworking, or blacksmithing. Also popular were taking creative photographs, painting, and playing a musical instrument.
Americans also believe that the arts improve personal and community well-being. 71 percent of Americans agree that arts and culture give them “pure pleasure when experiencing or participating in them,” 69 percent say the arts “lift them up beyond everyday experiences,” and 69 percent believe that “arts and culture has a positive effect on their overall health and well-being.”
72 percent believe that “arts and culture provide shared experiences with people of different races, ethnicities, ages, beliefs, and identities” while 63 percent agree that the arts “help me better understand other cultures in my community.”
Americans think that the arts boost creativity and the economic vitality of communities. 86 percent of Americans believe that “arts and culture improve my community’s quality of life and livability,” and 79 percent believe “arts and culture are important to my community’s businesses, economy, and local jobs.”
One of the other remarkable findings is the public’s appreciation for how the arts boost creativity and how creativity boosts job success. 61 percent of employed American workers say, “The more creative and innovative I am at my job – individually or as part of a team — the more successful I am at the workplace.”
Americans also overwhelmingly support arts education with 92 percent of adults believing that it is important for students to receive an education in the arts (including dance media arts, music, theater, visual arts, and literature).
And, finally, Americans approve of government support of the arts. Most Americans approve of government funding nonprofit arts and culture organizations with a majority (70 percent) backing local support, 66 percent state support and 66 percent federal government support. 54 percent support the federal government increasing federal spending on nonprofit arts and culture organizations from 62 cents a person to $1 a person. Democrats are more likely to approve of government support of the arts at all levels (local, state, federal), but a majority of Republicans and Independents also expressed their approval.
While this survey was taken before the presidential election of 2024, it seems likely that most of these stated beliefs haven’t changed since government support of arts and culture wasn’t an issue in the campaign. It remains to be seen what happens to federal spending on a variety of issue areas after the new administration takes office, but arts advocacy organizations like Americans for the Arts are pledging to continue their work.
“Americans for the Arts will continue to ensure that every elected, appointed and career official across all three branches of government understands what the arts and culture sector needs from them,” stated Jamie Bennett and Suzy Delvalle, the interim co-chief executives of Americans for the Arts in an opinion piece in The Art Newspaper. “We will also continue to highlight all the ways the sector can support the work those officials are doing – from revitalizing rural economies and addressing the ongoing epidemic of loneliness to connecting more Americans with our national parks and waterways. And perhaps more importantly we will continue to support all the ways that artists and arts organizations can help America build an even bigger “we,” one expansive enough to include all of us in what remains the oldest multiracial democracy in the world.”