Space to Create, Colorado is a state-driven effort to develop affordable housing and work space for artists and arts organizations. The brand new initiative—led by Colorado Creative Industries (CCI) in partnership with the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, History Colorado, the Boettcher Foundation and the consulting firm Artspace—will develop mixed-use buildings that merge affordable live/work…
In a new public-private partnership, the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) is harnessing the technology and know-how of Etsy, the on-line global marketplace for creative entrepreneurship, to help Kentucky artists, craftspeople and other creators launch and grow their own small businesses. In conjunction with Etsy, the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, and Hazard Community and…
The Gulf States Presenters Network (GSPN) is a collaborative effort of the Alabama State Council on the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts and the Mississippi Arts Commission to cultivate performance opportunities—and the creative economy—for presenting artists and arts organizations. The three state arts agencies each offer grants to presenters in their own state…
More than a decade after the rise of “Web 2.0,” the proliferation and falling cost of on-line and other digital technologies means that state arts agencies can do more now than ever to engage their constituents and support artists, arts organizations and arts audiences in their state. This month, State to State looks at three…
Every holiday season, the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC) and the Kentucky Artisan Center at Berea (KACB), its sibling agency within the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, partner to promote Kentucky art, craft, music, books, specialty foods, and more through the Give a Gift Made in Kentucky campaign. For its part, KAC features on its website…
Like many statewide cultural district programs, the Oklahoma Arts Council’s (OAC) Cultural District Initiative aims to help communities identify and leverage their creative assets for economic growth and community vibrancy. Unlike most other statewide cultural district programs, however, there is no legislatively set policy behind OAC’s effort. Without a legislative mandate, OAC was able to design the program…
Creative Economy 2014 State Legislation Roundup State policymakers are increasingly eager to harness the power of the creative economy for the benefit of their citizens. Cultural districts, in particular, are a popular policy measure with state lawmakers as they foster both commerce and quality of life in home districts. In addition, cultural districts are primed…
The Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA) is leveraging the exposure, networking and community building of its upcoming statewide meeting, Latitude: 2014 Arts Convergence, to offer two professional-development opportunities to the state’s creative class. Storm Sessions for Alaska Musicians is a seminar for helping independent Alaskan musicians expand their careers. The training will address…
The Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC) has taken its commitment to strengthening the state’s creative economy, places and communities to the next level with the recent launch of its Creative Mississippi Institute (CMI). Building off MAC’s 2011 Mississippi’s Creative Economy study, the new CMI is an on-line and broadcast-radio clearinghouse of technical assistance for creative economic…
Through its participation in the National Park Service and Amtrak’s Trails & Rails Program, the North Dakota Council on the Arts (NDCA) cultivates audiences and opportunities for local performing artists while simultaneously introducing travelers to the state’s cultural and geographic diversity. The national Trails & Rails Program, which began in 2002, aims to connect Amtrak…