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Thursday, December 10, 2009
NEA reports: Fewer of us going to arts events
I’ve had a sense of this, from my own attendance at local events, but now the National Endowment of the Arts has officially weighed in on the topic: Fewer Americans are attending arts events, such as going to concerts, galleries and museum exhibitions.
This blog entry from the arts writer at the Los Angeles Times tells the tale — basically, according to the NEA, the numbers of folks taking advantage of arts events has been dropping since 1982, when the national arts support agency started keeping track.
The biggest surprise is that folks in the main age group that is usually most supportive, from 45 to 54, has also dropped.
So, why do you think this is happening? Ticket cost? Less leisure time? Spending leisure time in different ways? Too much time on the Internet? The recession and a reduction of spare cash? Too much “American Idol”? A combination of all these things?
Or, are we generally less interested as a society in so-called “fine arts” culture?
Or … and I’ve been thinking this for a while: Do we have too many choices?
Here’s what I mean: every metropolitan area in the nation has long identified its own sense of cosmopolitan-ness in terms of the breadth and amount of its arts and cultural offerings. They give leaders and moneyed folks something to brag about: We have an orchestra, museums, a ballet, theater, etc., so therefore we must be a big/cool/worthwhile/pick one city…
And arts groups, if successful, tend to breed more arts groups. Now, personally, I think this is a great thing, and I do absolutely buy into the idea that our city or any city is better off with more arts, not less.
But at the same time, as somebody who’s had a hand in covering local arts for more than a decade, I wonder sometimes if people in town aren’t occasionally overwhelmed by all the many choices theay have in deciding what to attend and do — and in response, simply drop out. Add in popular arts, TV, online life and other ways to spend your time, and sometimes it seems easier to just hang out in a bar with your friends, or not even leave the house.
If you talk to donors who help fund Dayton area arts organizations, they sometimes hint at this, though it’s often in terms of wondering if there are too many groups to support.
OK, it’s just a thought … not sure if that’s a piece of the pie or not.
I confess I don’t have the answer, but I’m curious what you think. Weigh in with your thoughts, and we’ll talk more about this.
Meanwhile, go buy a ticket to something!
