This is the fifth publication of the National Arts Index, Americans for the Arts' annual report on the health and vitality of arts and culture in the United States. The 2014 National Arts Index is a highly distilled measure of the health and vitality of arts in the U.S. It is composed of 81 equally weighted, national level indicators of arts and culture activity during the 12-year span of 2001 to 2012, set to a baseline of 2003=100.

The National Arts Index represents the diverse character of the arts, its nonprofit and commercial organizations, individual artists, consumer spending and volunteer participation, philanthropy in support of the arts, creative expression, arts education, and more. It is a tool to stimulate public dialogue about the value of the arts as well as improve policy and decision making--one that is more considered and lacks the fervor often associated with the typical impetus for such conversations ("Funding cuts!" or "Public art controversy!"). It provides a common currency of language--a way for more people to talk in an informed manner about the arts, using similar information and terms, about why change is occurring, where things are going in the future, and how the arts can remain vital.

This is the fifth publication of the National Arts Index, Americans for the Arts' annual report on the health and vitality of arts and culture in the United States. The 2014 National Arts Index is a highly distilled measure of the health and vitality of arts in the U.S. It is composed of 81 equally weighted, national level indicators of arts and culture activity during the 12-year span of 2001 to 2012, set to a baseline of 2003=100.