Background Report - Arizona Town Hall

esources, education, research, and public programs. NEH grants typically go to
cultural institutions, such as museums, archives, libraries, colleges, universities, public
television, and radio stations, and to individual scholars. NEH grants strengthen
teaching and learning in the humanities in schools and colleges across the nation,
facilitate research and original scholarship, provide opportunities for lifelong learning,
preserve and provide access to cultural and educational resources, and strengthen the
institutional base of the humanities
Otis Report on the Creative Economy of the Los Angeles Region: The Power of Art and Artists
(Los Angeles: Otis College of Art and Design, 2010). This is the fourth Otis report (the first
was in 2007): http://www.otis.edu/creative_economy/
The NEA blog on the Otis report headlined: “Creativity is Serious Business.”
http://www.arts.gov/artworks/?p=4937
Using 2009 data, the report demonstrates once again that creativity is serious business
in Southern California. Even in these challenging economic times, the creative
economy is one of the largest business sectors in the region, second only to tourism
and hospitality. In 2009, the arts, design, and entertainment industries together
supported one in six jobs in the area, generated $127 billion in sales revenues, and
were the source of $4.6 billion in state and local tax revenues. These regional
findings make a national case. They put real numbers to the economic contributions of
creative professionals and enterprises. Furthermore, the Otis Report data affirm that
the 21st century is an age of ideas, in which creativity provides a long-range and
sustainable competitive edge for the U.S. economy. Despite manufacturing downturns
due largely to regional outsourcing of low-skill jobs, creative sector employment is
projected to grow faster than in other sectors over the next five years and especially
for high-skill creative jobs. Creativity stays onshore; innovation cannot be outsourced.
Hard data are but one way to substantiate the economic impact of creativity. In his
keynote remarks at the Otis Report release event, NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman
made a most compelling statement: “Artists are placemakers. When you bring arts
organizations and arts workers into a neighborhood, the place changes to a vibrant and
sustainable community. The arts complement and complete other sectors of the
economy.” Through this broader lens, the data in the Otis Report are more than the
facts of creativity’s economic impact; they are the story of possibilities made real by
a combination of education, talent, entrepreneurial drive, and opportunities. The lives,
work, and achievements of creative professionals, such as Otis alumni, illustrate the
power of the arts and artists in our economy, culture, and communities. Their impact
and contributions cannot be taken for granted. Vibrant creativity in the U.S. requires
careful investment—as envisioned by the “Art Works” agenda of NEA.
Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), Denver, Colorado: http://www.westaf.org/
WESTAF is a non-profit arts service organization dedicated to the creative
advancement and preservation of the arts. Their website includes a blog, as well as
annotated arts links to resources on accessibility, arts education, folklife,
international arts, literary arts, media, presenting and touring, state and regional arts
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