Press Releases - 2017
Read the latest arts news
Americans for the Arts and the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) today announced that Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser will be awarded the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for State Arts Leadership today at NLGA’s annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee. The annual award honors a public official who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts at the state level.
Americans for the Arts and the National Association of Counties (NACo) announced that Commissioner Randy Maluchnik of Carver County, Minnesota was awarded the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for County Arts Leadership on Sunday at NACo’s annual conference in Columbus, Ohio. The award honors an elected county board or individual leader who has significantly advanced the arts in the communities they serve.
Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch offered this statement in response to today’s action by the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, which proposed funding of $145 million for the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities in FY2018.
As employee engagement becomes a priority for companies, many of them are turning to the arts in an effort to fuel attraction and retention, according to Business Contributions to the Arts: 2017 Edition, published by The Conference Board and Americans for the Arts. Nearly 70 percent of companies surveyed responded that they offered board service opportunities at arts organizations for their employees, while 65 percent offered volunteer activities and 63 percent provided free or discounted tickets to arts events. However, measuring the business or societal impact of arts contributions continues to challenge most companies and their partners, as only 28 percent of businesses reported making an effort to measure these impacts.
A new national study by Americans for the Arts finds that the nation’s nonprofit arts and culture industry generated $166.3 billion in economic activity in 2015—$63.8 billion in spending by arts and cultural organizations and an additional $102.5 billion in event-related spending by their audiences. This activity supported 4.6 million jobs and generated $27.5 billion in government revenue.
Americans for the Arts announced that RedCan Graffiti Jam of the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota has been awarded the esteemed Robert E. Gard award. The award recognizes and celebrates exemplary work at the intersection of the arts and community life, and was presented today at Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention in San Francisco.
Americans for the Arts today honors 49 outstanding public arts projects created in 2016 through the Public Art Network Year in Review program, the only national program that specifically recognizes the most compelling public art. Chosen by a jury from 325 entries representing communities across the country, the roster of winning projects was unveiled at Americans for the Arts’ 2017 Annual Convention in San Francisco.
The United States Urban Arts Federation (USUAF), an alliance of the arts agencies of the sixty largest cities and a program of Americans for the Arts, today announced that Michael Killoren is the recipient of the 2017 Ray Hanley Innovation Award. The USUAF established this award in 2007 to recognize outstanding individual contributions to arts and culture in American cities.
Americans for the Arts announced today that it is presenting the 2017 American Express Emerging Leader Award to Kevin Seaman, artist, curator and consultant of Bring Your Own Queer (BYOQ), a San Francisco-based community arts organization that fosters greater understanding between disparate segments of the LGBTQ community and its allies by hosting free and low-cost community events that promote accessibility, diversity, and inclusion. The annual award recognizes an exceptional new and/or young arts professional for their exemplary leadership, deep engagement with community, and strong commitment to advancing the arts.
Americans for the Arts announced the recipients of the 2017 Americans for the Arts Annual Leadership Awards. These awards recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations committed to enriching their communities through the arts.
