arts & business council

MetLife Foundation National Arts Forums Series

Arts & Business Council of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

The Informal Arts: Popular Creative Activities Create a Winning Scenario for Millions
06//2002

Moderator: Joan Gunzberg
Executive Director, Arts & Business Council of Chicago

Panelists:

• Gwen Mcgee Boyd
  Quilter and Informal Artist
• Nick Rabkin
  Executive Director, Chicago Center for Arts Policy, Columbia College
• Laurie Reyna
  Theater Actress and Director
• Alaka Wali
  Associate Director, Center for Cultural Understanding and Change, The Field Museum

Across the country, millions of Americans participate in “informal arts” and contribute to lively local communities by singing in choirs, performing in community theaters and symphonies, and producing visual art. These individuals, though not often viewed as “artists” in the traditional sense, find that their involvement has a profound impact on them, their families, and the places they live. Until the release of the National Endowment for the Arts’ (NEA) 1997 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, little research was available to illuminate the social and educational impact of the informal arts.

The Endowment’s findings were surprising:

• 20 million adult Americans – more than ten percent of the population – sang in groups before the public
• 33 million were involved with photography
• 31 million created paintings
• 22 million played classical music for their own enjoyment
• 5 million acted in public performances

In summer 2002, the Chicago Center for Arts Policy at Columbia College added to the Endowment’s findings with a look at 22 Chicago communities entitled, Informal Arts: Finding Cohesion, Capacity and Other Cultural Benefits in Unexpected Places. The Chicago Center’s study found that the impact of the public’s participation in the informal arts can be seen in three key areas:

• The informal arts provide opportunities for adult expression, creativity, and skill development – such as tolerance of differences, trust, and innovative problem solving – that are critical for civic renewal.
• Involvement in informal arts strengthens the entire arts sector, serving a “research and development” role by helping to create and sustain committed audiences for formal arts programming.
• Informal arts activities help people to transcend the social boundaries of age, gender, race, ethnicity, and occupational status.

Cultural activities occupy a significant place in the social infrastructure of many American communities, helping to build both individual identity and group solidarity. The arts are important vehicles for participation in community life and serve to bridge the divide between people of different cultures, economic backgrounds, and ages – outcomes that are becoming more highly valued in communities across the nation.