In the May 2023 episode of the NEA’s Quick Study podcast, I alluded to some of the more promising studies about the arts’ positive relationships to social cohesion. While in Boston for a conference, however, I came across an article that made me rethink how the raw experience of arts participation can foster not just togetherness—because of the inherently social quality of … [Read more...] about Community vs. Commodity: Residual Benefits from Purchasing Arts Experiences
Meet Filmmakers and disability rights advocates James LeBrecht and Day Al-Mohamed
We’re marking National Disability Employment Awareness Month with a conversation with James LeBrecht and Day Al-Mohamed—two founding members of FWD-Doc-- a global, intersectional community of disabled creators and allies working in media to build a more inclusive, accessible, and equitable entertainment industry that cultivates and champions disabled media-makers, and elevates … [Read more...] about Meet Filmmakers and disability rights advocates James LeBrecht and Day Al-Mohamed
Quick Study: A Tale of Two Surveys
In this episode of Quick Study, we discuss findings from two new NEA reports about how adults participated in the arts in 2022—and how these patterns have changed over time. A transcript is available on the Arts Endowment website. … [Read more...] about Quick Study: A Tale of Two Surveys
Meet Luthier and Community Activist Manuel Delgado
We close out Hispanic Heritage Month with Manuel Delgado—a luthier who carries on a multi-generational family legacy of hand-crafting string instruments. In this podcast, Delgado talks about his family’s tradition of instrument-making and working closely as a boy with his father and grandfather in their shop in East LA. He discusses the craftsmanship that goes into the making … [Read more...] about Meet Luthier and Community Activist Manuel Delgado
Diary: A Week of Arts & Health Programming
I’ve often used this space to discuss the NEA’s commitment to research about the arts’ relationships to health and well-being. This pledge—along with other priorities in our five-year research agenda—has been fortified by NEA Chair Jackson’s own vision of “artful lives” and “arts-infused civic infrastructure” as critical to healthy communities. For my NEA colleagues and me, … [Read more...] about Diary: A Week of Arts & Health Programming