Framing and Guiding Cultural Investment and Action

By combining in-depth research on the most crucial arts-related issues facing Southwestern Pennsylvania with advocacy-based government relations and community engagement, the Arts Council champions the economic, cultural, and social impacts of the region

State of the Arts: Research and Reporting

The Arts Council’s research gathers and disseminations data on the most crucial issues affecting the sector today. Through development of responsive and community-engaged research projects and partnerships with national arts research powerhouses like SMU DataArts and Americans for the Arts, Arts Council research regularly reports on the state of the sector in four key areas:

• Periodic measures of the health of the Greater Pittsburgh arts sector, as revealed by use of sets of indicators and through arts community surveys
• Studies of the economic, cultural, and social impacts of arts organizations and their audiences
• Research on special topics raised through community feedback, such as racial equity & arts funding and wages & benefits in the non-profit arts
• Inquiries conducted in collaboration with local partners and multi-site research done with national collaborators

Action-oriented Government Relations and Community Mobilization

Arts Council advocacy catalyzes its learnings from research and community listening toward building a more just and vibrant local arts sector. Through strategic relationship-building, presence at key arts advocacy meetings and events, information sharing, and issue-oriented political action campaigns, the Arts Council drives education and action toward the following advocacy priorities:

• Promote the visibility, reach, and sustainability of SWPA arts & culture sector
• Champion artists and creative workers as architects of SWPA social and cultural capital
• Expand equitable access to arts and culture Increase state and national arts funding

Subscribe To Our Advocacy Alerts