On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the Oregon Arts Commission was developing its new strategic plan, the agency heard a recurring refrain from artists, arts organizations, civic leaders and elected officials across the state: strengthen and secure dependable funding for the creative sector. This became the first goal of the agency’s new Strategic…
Since 2010, the Oregon Arts Commission’s (OAC) partnership with The Ford Family Foundation (TFFF) has yielded direct support of Oregon’s artists—through Opportunity Grants for midcareer artists and the Art Acquisition Fund—as well as indirect support via the Visual Arts Ecology Project. The goal of the Visual Arts Ecology Project is to document and recognize Oregon’s…
This fall, the Oregon Arts Commission (OAC) kicks off its new Connecting Students to the World of Work grant program. Through the program, OAC awards grants to organizations that introduce underserved students, grades 6–12, to the artistic and creative job market through internships, externships, mentorships, job shadowing and professionals in residence. The program builds on…
The Oregon Arts Commission has published a new monograph, Arts Build Communities. The publication chronicles outcomes of 24 recent community projects that used the arts to address various civic issues, ranging from cleaning up ocean and beach debris to improving health care in rural hospitals and promoting regional tourism in the Columbia Gorge. Each project…
The Oregon Arts Commission (OAC) recently launched a new statewide database tracking the levels of arts instruction offered to students in Oregon schools. Designed to promote public understanding of the extent of—and need for—arts learning, the database allows parents, educators, policymakers and advocates to learn what arts learning opportunities are offered in any Oregon school…
The Oregon Arts Commission (OAC) provides annual Career Opportunity Grants to individual artists seeking to take advantage of significant opportunities to advance their careers. Designed to support artists as both creators and entrepreneurs, these grants can be used to acquire new business or artistic skills or to participate in national or international exhibits, competitions or…
A new capacity-building initiative of the Oregon Arts Commission (OAC) is concerned with how arts organizations of Oregon can be stronger, effective and more nimble as they move into the future. Based on the findings of an arts organization self-assessment project that OAC worked on with the TCC Group, the Commission secured new funding through…
The Oregon Arts Commission’s Cultural Tourism Grantssupport projects and partnerships that advance arts-based cultural tourism activities in Oregon. As a part of the Commission’s Creative Oregon Initiative, the program fosters stronger links between the arts, culture, the tourism industry and local economic development. The initiative supports activities undertaken by arts or tourism groups with a…