Americans for the Arts will be joined virtually by more than 500 grassroots advocates from across the country for the National Arts Action Summit, held April 5–9, 2021. The annual event will give advocates crucial policy briefings and advocacy training from experts in the field and then put that training into practice during Arts Advocacy Week in meetings with elected officials. Arts Advocacy Week will take place April 12-16, 2021.

Americans for the Arts and the National Association of Counties (NACo) have awarded former Oakland County Commissioner Shelley Taub of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for County Arts Leadership. The award was given today at NACo’s virtual Arts and Culture Commission event, and honors an elected county official who has significantly advanced the arts in the community they serve. 

Americans for the Arts announced today three extraordinary artists as recipients of the 2021 Johnson Fellowship for Artists Transforming Communities: Rosten Woo of Los Angeles for his work in public art and design, Laurie Woolery of New York for her work in theater, and Eddy Kwon of Brooklyn and Cincinnati for their work in music. With unprecedented circumstances created by the pandemic and the challenges facing artists, Americans for the Arts is spreading the Fellowship award to benefit three artists this year, honoring the top finalists for the 2018 (public art), 2019 (theater), and 2020 (music) Johnson Fellowship. Each artist is recognized with a $20,000 award.

Brigadier General Nolen Bivens, Interim President and CEO of Americans for the Arts and the Americans for the Arts Action Fund, released a statement in response to final passage of the year-end bill that combines $900 billion in immediate COVID-19 economic relief with $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill for fiscal year (FY) 2021.

Americans for the Arts released a statement from the Americans for the Arts Board of Directors on the commencement of independent reviews and interim leadership changes.

Americans for the Arts today announced its annual National Arts Marketing Project Conference, held virtually for the first time December 7–8. The largest gathering of arts marketers in the country, the conference will provide ideas and tactics, strategies and inspiration to set the groundwork for surviving and thriving in the next 18-24 months. From changes in consumer behavior, to pricing strategies in the COVID era, to addressing bias in content, to targeting audiences and accessibility planning, the National Arts Marketing Project Conference aims to equip and prepare arts marketers for 2021.

Serving as a volunteer citizen in his personal capacity, Americans for the Arts President and CEO Robert L. Lynch is pleased to join the Biden-Harris transition Arts and Humanities Agency Review Team. Lynch’s work on the transition team will be done apart from his role as president and CEO of Americans for the Arts, which is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. Its sister organization, the Americans for the Arts Action Fund, is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, which supports all pro-arts candidates for political office.

Americans for the Arts heartily congratulates President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, as well as all the federal, state, and local elected leaders across the country who won their elections. The historic election saw record-high popular votes electing Joe Biden to become the 46th president of the United States and Kamala Harris, as both the first woman and woman of color, to be elected as vice president.

To keep voters safe during the Coronavirus public health crisis, every state adopted some form of special voting accommodations this year, such as mail-in ballots and expanded early voting. These changes have yielded historically high voter turnout and many states passed legislation to allow for an extended counting period for all properly postmarked and received ballots by each state’s approved deadline. Americans for the Arts Action Fund urges all government officials to honor the United States Constitution that specifically empowers states and the District of Columbia with the authority and procedures to elect the president and vice president.

Americans for the Arts today announced that New York-based artist Vinnie Bagwell has been awarded the inaugural Jorge and Darlene Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design, a first-of-its-kind national program established by the Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation. The award will include a cash stipend of $30,000, as well as additional support for Bagwell to participate in learning opportunities and discussion about her work with national leaders in the arts and other allied fields. These programs include a virtual panel about art and civic design in celebration of the Public Art Network’s 20th anniversary, held on December 3 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. 

Today, the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) and Americans for the Arts announced the release of the ‘City Song Collection,’ featuring nine songs inspired, composed, and performed by local artists from cities all over the country in a demonstration of healing, unity and city pride. The songs and overall collection showcase how cities are coming together through music in 2020, which has been an unprecedented year for communities across America. The effort comes as America celebrates October’s annual National Arts and Humanities Month. The project features both original compositions and covers of songs from Louisville, Chicago, Reno, Austin, Detroit, Charleston, Oklahoma City, Atlanta, and New Orleans.

Americans for the Arts today announced its October celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month, a coast-to-coast collective celebration of culture in America. In this turbulent year, the arts and humanities have played a critically important role in getting us through the COVID-19 pandemic and in amplifying the need for racial equity across the country. National Arts & Humanities Month is the time for communities to come together in unified celebration of the power of the arts to make a difference and change our lives for the better.

Americans for the Arts, in partnership with over 775 cultural organizations and creative workers, has proposed a 15-action national recovery strategy that the next Administration can use to put creative workers to work—activating the creative economy and drawing upon the creative energies of the country’s 5.1 million creative workers to energize Americans, reimagine how communities can thrive, and improve the lives of all. Organizations and creative workers who wish to endorse this proposal can do so via the Creative Workforce Proposal Endorsement form.