"The Falling and the Rising" is a new American opera based on the true stories of dozens of active duty soldiers and veterans at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, The Old Guard at Fort Myer, and Fort Meade, Maryland. The opera chronicles the imagined journey inside the mind of a soldier following traumatic brain injuries suffered during a roadside attack, and was first proposed by a tenor in the Soldiers’ Chorus, Staff Sgt. Ben Hilgert.

Second Lady Karen Pence recently visited Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, and observed a Creative Forces music therapy group session as part of her national and international initiative, Art Therapy: Healing with the HeART.

Nationwide, VA medical facilities use the creative arts as one form of rehabilitative treatment to help Veterans recover from and cope with physical and emotional disabilities. Across the country each year, Veterans enrolled at VA health care facilities compete in a local creative arts competition that began in January.

“I write because it is healing, and creativity is the opposite of war.” Peter Bourret, AZ, USMC, Gold Medal category - Poetry

Community recovery in the aftermath of disasters—such as the major hurricanes, fires, and floods in August and September—is a crucial challenge, and the arts have a strong role to play. Americans for the Arts calls on local, state, and federal decisionmakers and government agencies—particularly FEMA and the Small Business Administration—to recognize the crucial role of arts and cultural organizations and workers, and to prioritize immediate and streamlined disaster relief assistance so that they may fulfill their role as healing nexus points for affected communities.

In August 2017, the Tennessee Shakespeare Company began working with Veterans at the Memphis VA Medical Association. This program brings together service Veterans with theatre practitioners to use the plays of Shakespeare in addressing combat-related traumatic and re-integration issues.

The OBX Veterans Week is a collaborative event on the Outer Banks of North Carolina that celebrates Veterans, active-duty military and their families through the arts. Founded in 2013, the event is in its fifth year and is scheduled to take place November 3-12, 2017.  OBX Veterans Week is organized by Dare County Arts Council in Manteo, NC.

Established in 2005, the Caucus’ aim was and continues to be “to bring focus to the arts and humanities and the positive impact they have on our daily lives.”

Well known for bridging the military/civilian divide through theatre in cities across the nation since 2008, the Telling Project's recent production of "She Went to War" at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, MN acknowledged the distinctive and important roles women play on the battlefield.  "She Went to War" was written by Max Reyneard - Senior Writer/Producer and Jonathan Wei - Founder/Executive Director of the Telling Project.

The National Summit convened in Tampa, Florida, for the first time, bringing together military and civilian leaders in sessions and dialogue to define the blueprint for collective arts and military action through 2020. 

Americans for the Arts releases a statement about the importance of artists and creative workers being able to acquire and maintain affordable healthcare insurance at a time when Congress is working to “repeal and replace” portions of ACA.

Americans for the Arts is pleased to release a new guide, Arts Deployed: An Action Guide for Community Arts & Military Programming, for local arts organizations and artists interested in bringing creative arts programming to military and Veteran communities, their caregivers, and families. Arts Deployed honors the highly effective and robust arts and military programs that exist all across the country and seeks to help close a critical gap, as the demand for these services far exceeds their number. 

Today, at an event held at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE), part of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) announced the expansion of their partnership and military healing arts program into Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network. 

The second Roundtable of the National Initiative for Arts & Health in the Military (NIAHM) was held on November 30 at Joint Base Myer Henderson Hall, Virginia to discuss how to bring greater access to the arts and creative arts therapies for military service members, Veterans, their families and caregivers.

Louisville, KY, is one of seven cities to receive the 2016 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Prize for the city's efforts to ensure all residents have the opportunity to live longer, healthier, and more productive lives.

Luc was only 7 years old when his world went dark and he suddenly became blind. The now 13 year-old recalls feeling left out when his family went to an art museum because he was unable to share in his family’s aesthetic and visual experiences.

“It made me feel like an outsider,” he said.

The most recent acquisition of paintings by the Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington—54 paintings valued at more than $40,000—marked the end of a project that spanned five years from conception to completion.

A new study offers compelling evidence that making, and not just viewing art, plays a role in stress reduction regardless of artistic talent or experience.