Blog Posts for Colorado

Thank you to the many people who have been blog contributors to, and readers of ArtsBlog over the years. ArtsBlog has long been a space where we uplifted stories from the field that demonstrated how the arts strengthen our communities socially, educationally, and economically; where trends and issues and controversies were called out; and advocacy tools were provided to help you make the case for more arts funding and favorable arts policies.

As part of Americans for the Arts’ recent Strategic Realignment Process, we were asked to evaluate our storytelling communications platforms and evolve the way we share content. As a result, we launched the Designing Our Destiny portal to explore new ways of telling stories and sharing information, one that is consistent with our longtime practice of, “No numbers without a story, and no stories without a number.”

As we put our energy into developing this platform and reevaluate our communications strategies, we have put ArtsBlog on hold. That is, you can read past blog posts, but we are not posting new ones. You can look to the Designing Our Destiny portal and our news items feed on the Americans for the Arts website for stories you would have seen in ArtsBlog in the past.

ArtsBlog will remain online through this year as we determine the best way to archive this valuable resource and the knowledge you’ve shared here.

As ever, we are grateful for your participation in ArtsBlog and thank you for your work in advancing the arts. It is important, and you are important for doing it.


Mr. Clayton W. Lord

The U.S. Census and the Arts

Posted by Mr. Clayton W. Lord, Jul 11, 2019 0 comments


Mr. Clayton W. Lord

At the Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention this past June, quite a few members voiced concern about the upcoming U.S. Census. In many communities, there is worry that an inaccurate count could negatively impact towns, cities, regions, and even states, and disproportionately affect people who are already marginalized. This blog is meant to give information on the Census, its impact, and what arts and culture agencies across the United States are doing to ensure a comprehensive and equitable count. The U.S. Census is a consequential tool for distributing time, attention, and money in all sorts of ways—including ways that are deeply impactful on the arts. It is also an increasingly politicized tool, and as we round the corner into the 2020 U.S. Census, it is important to understand what the U.S. Census is, what it influences, what the implication of certain proposed changes could be both generally and for the arts, and how arts and culture agencies and organizations are mobilizing to ensure a fair, full, and unthreatening U.S. Census count.

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Randy Cohen

Americans Speak Out About the Arts in 2018: An In-Depth Look at Perceptions and Attitudes About the Arts in America

Posted by Randy Cohen, Sep 27, 2018 0 comments


Randy Cohen

In a society struggling to find equity and social justice, Americans believe the arts improve the quality of our communities. How do we know? We asked. Americans Speak Out About the Arts in 2018 is the second in a series of national public opinion surveys conducted by Ipsos on behalf of Americans for the Arts. One of the largest ever conducted, it gauges the public perspective on (1) personal engagement in the arts as audience and creator, (2) support for arts education and government arts funding, (3) opinions on the personal and well-being benefits that come from engaging in the arts, and (4) how those personal benefits extend to the community. Here are some findings of the survey. 

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Ms. Patricia Walsh


Kimberly O’Keeffe

The Importance and Impact of Planning for Public Art

Posted by Ms. Patricia Walsh, Kimberly O’Keeffe, Dec 18, 2018 0 comments


Ms. Patricia Walsh


Kimberly O’Keeffe

There is a growing interest in public art from across the country. In the Public Art Programs Fiscal Year 2001 report, Americans for the Arts estimated 350 public art programs across the U.S. The 2017 Survey of Public Art Programs identified more than twice as many. With this growth it is important to understand the various ways public art is planned for and implemented in different communities. In this post, we provide an overview of three papers published by Americans for the Arts that speak to the diverse needs of public art programs across the country, and how local institutions are approaching the topic in innovative ways. With a focus on planning for public art from a municipal perspective, growing public art programs in small to mid-sized cities, and recognizing grassroots and folk art in rural communities, these papers show that successful public art values local context and the public art programs are as unique as each community.

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Mr. Lucas Cowan


Mr. Kipp Kobayashi


Ms. Mandy Vink

2018 PAN Year in Review Trends and Themes: Underrepresented History Projects

Posted by Mr. Lucas Cowan, Mr. Kipp Kobayashi, Ms. Mandy Vink, Jan 14, 2019 0 comments


Mr. Lucas Cowan


Mr. Kipp Kobayashi


Ms. Mandy Vink

Annually, the Public Art Network (PAN) Year in Review recognizes outstanding public art projects that represent the most compelling work for the year from across the country and beyond. The projects are selected and presented by a jury of three professionals who represent different aspects of the public art field, including artists, administrators, and other public art allies. New this year, the PAN Advisory Council curated the selected 49 selected projects for 2018 under five unique themes to broaden the exposure of the selected works on ARTSblog and social media, and to provide context to the works through national trends and themes that are impacting the field today.

Many of 2018’s selected public art projects addressed issues at the forefront of current political discourse — particularly, how history and culture has not represented race, gender, sexuality, and class with fairness. Politically and socially, the issues are playing out through the incoming U.S. House of Representatives and the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements, among others. The arts and culture field is not exempt from addressing these national challenges, as demonstrated in recent museum exhibitions focused on decolonization, through the debate on memorials and monuments, and with temporary and permanent public artworks. Of the 2018 selected PAN Year in Review projects, six uniquely addressed the issue of underrepresented histories. 

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Bill Marino

Business Improvement in Colorado Historic Corridor Tied to the Arts

Posted by Bill Marino, Jan 17, 2019 0 comments


Bill Marino

Small business is the heartbeat of the economy—that’s certainly the case here in Lakewood, Colorado—population 155,000 in a city that occupies 44 square miles between Denver and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. We have seven large organizations with 1000+ employees, but nearly 7000 entities employ 50 or fewer. Primary employers are critical. But the math is crystal clear … small business rules the road. But as the new millennium arrived, not every part of our City’s economic engine was hitting on all cylinders. Lakewood’s 40 West Arts District is located in the oldest part of our City along West Colfax Avenue—a historic commercial corridor that is just now emerging from 30 years of economic decline, with the arts at the vanguard of its renaissance.

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Mr. Lucas Cowan


Mr. Kipp Kobayashi


Ms. Mandy Vink

2018 PAN Year in Review Trends and Themes: Participatory and Performative

Posted by Mr. Lucas Cowan, Mr. Kipp Kobayashi, Ms. Mandy Vink, Mar 11, 2019 0 comments


Mr. Lucas Cowan


Mr. Kipp Kobayashi


Ms. Mandy Vink

Annually, the Public Art Network (PAN) Year in Review recognizes outstanding public art projects that represent the most compelling work for the year from across the country and beyond. The projects are selected and presented by a jury of three professionals who represent different aspects of the public art field, including artists, administrators, and other public art allies. New this year, the PAN Advisory Council curated the selected 49 selected projects for 2018 under five unique themes to broaden the exposure of the selected works on ARTSblog and social media, and to provide context to the works through national trends and themes that are impacting the field today.

Over the past decade, performative and participatory public artworks have gained in popularity with commissioning agencies and the communities they serve. Typically, public art is seen as a long-term, integrated, stationary, visual arts-based artwork. Performative and participatory projects allow for a new type of public art that that include multiple sensory experiences and a different way of engaging community where a whole community may be considered an artist. Performative and participatory public art projects create music, encourage touch, and utilize participation to be fully realized as a completed art piece. Of the 2018 selected PAN Year in Review projects, 15 uniquely expanded the definitions of artist, medium, and material. These performative and participatory projects are redefining both the commissioning process and what is expected of a finalized public artwork. 

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