What exactly does Art mean to a community? I realize this is a broad question, but what does it mean? Do people choose to move to your area because of the art that is found within a city or community? Is the atmosphere conducive to a certain type of artist's maybe?
In College Station, Ron Gay, one of our city councilmen, is running for re-election. As a private citizen, he is a very generous supporter of the arts. However, he believes a city should focus on core services rather than the arts. He believes that the art groups should raise money to support themselves and not rely on general funds (tax dollars) for support. During our discussion, he commented that people are not driving to College Station to see our statues. I had to laugh. He was right.
But, does that mean that the City should not support the arts? 
Given that I was really busy going to school and raising my kids, donating money to support art was very low on my list of priorities. So.....being a practical, certified public accountant sort of person...I'm wondering just exactly how important is art to a community?
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If I say it is very important, it would mean nothing. The larger the metro area, the more art you can find there, the more wealthy and affluent is the area, the better for the art.
Take New York, Miami, LA, these are tier 1 metro areas, and the richest in art. Art needs money, money and money.
Third tier metro areas have more difficult time with attracting and promoting and supporting the arts. They still do. But small towns and villages would find it very hard.
Sondra, I think that art comes out of the culture---it can not in a "real" sense be fostered or deterred by society. I know this sounds contradictory to a culture that wants to train and create artists through our schools and what not. I call this "canned" art. Something more akin to "craft" than art. The great art movements came out of poverty---almost like when there isn't anything else----there is art. It is almost like when you are aware of it---it disappears. And we try to copy the past experience---a "recreative" (very close to "recreational") experience not a creative experience. I don't think it has to come out of poverty, but historically that has been the way it happens.
For the sake of discussion, I'd add to the term Art the performing arts, which would include music, live theater, broadway shows, opera, ballet, jazz and symphonic music. The artistic life in a community is not merely about the plastic arts (painting, sculpture, etc.)
Arts organizations bring tens of millions, perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars into a major city each year. Most major metro areas have a ticket tax on concert events sold at concert halls, theaters and stadiums. There is considerable revenue from beverage and food sales associated with concert patrons. Parking revenues for a concert hall or theater that seats 2000 or more patrons are enormous. Before and after-concert dining is another major source of revenue to a city or municipal government.
The Arts are big business. A glance at statistics on the revenue that Broadway theater generates each year will verify this. Concert promoters and presenters spend many millions to renovate and build new or remodeled concert venues. And cities spend lavishly on the construction of such venues. The reason is money.
Your Councilman needs to read some statistics about the considerable revenues that may be generated directly and indirectly by the Arts.
By the way, the Urban Institute reported at the end of 2006
"In addition to New York and San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Portland-Vancouver, and New Haven ranked among the top 10 metropolitan areas for both commercial and nonprofit arts entities".
Sondra, great question. I honestly believe that art is the soul of the community. That being said, I understand just how difficult it is to find funding for everything that a community needs, not alone wants. There has to be somewhat of a balance between public and private funding of the arts in all of it's forms. I agree that the wealthier the community, the more vibrant and the higher quality of arts. We live in a city where it's largest draw in the form of tourism is it's Shakespearean Festival. The community makes a lot of money because of this festival, hotels, restaurants, shops etc. all gear up for this and profit from it. It recieves mostly private funding now, although the community did step up in it's early years to provide some of it's funds. I am glad that the city government at the time had the foresight to do that.
Jon, Charles, Eric, and the C Team, I wanted to take a moment and say thank you for the comments and links. I will follow up later this evening as this is a discussion that I would like to continue. I was surprised to discover last night that AR doesn't have a single group that I could find that discusses Art and what it means to a community and the people within the community.
I guess its difficult to see an ROI value of the Arts. You can't really number crunch it but the enlightenment value can be endless. You never know how someone is affected by a simple piece of art to live better, invent something marvelous, or to transform the world.
Sondra -- If you subscribe to my blog (and I hope you will!), you will notice that I blog quite extensively about the arts. I spent over thirty years of my life in the symphonic music business, but I blog about repertory theater, broadway, dance, art galleries and as wide a range of arts events and issues as possible.
You've probably guessed by now that I'm passionate about the role the arts play in any community. And even though the dollar value is measurable and considerable, there is the intangible value the arts contribute as well.
Charles,
I am a bit surprised by your phrase that "great art movements came out of poverty". I am not sure I understand what you imply by art movements, but I always thought that art needs to patronised and that's how it was through history. Mozart could not come from poverty, Francisco José de Goya could not become what he was was without the patronage of the Spanish Royalty, and this was the norm.
I understand that this may be not universal, I am not a guru, but I do not understand your "It is almost like when you are aware of it---it disappears". I am not sure I understand what you mean, but painting, for example, is a deliberate creative act. Same with music. It first becomes a vision and then materializes into the art form, but the creation is purposeful and meaningful...
Charles --
Referring to art taught in the schools as "canned" is a somewhat bizarre opinion. And art IS fostered and nurtured by society. That is a measure of its value to society.
The performing arts, such as ballet, opera and music performance, have been taught for centuries. If all art were required to be intrinsic or had to come entirely "from the culture" to have validity, society would be invalidating centuries of growth and change in the performing arts.
Performing art is interpretive, which is a creative process. Music composition is also a creative process. Professional symphonic musicians are not engaged in some sort of recreational exercise.
It is not a prerequisite that artists starve. That may have been the case two or three centuries ago, but it certainly is not today. And starvation does not make the artist more virtuous or the art more valid.
Sondra, I believe it is important to the community and to the children of our community to have more art. We need a new art museum.