Arts & Culture
Arts and culture are critical to the health and vibrancy of Greater Seattle. Art gives us the opportunity to connect with people whose lives are vastly different from our own, and learn from other cultures. Equitable support of arts and culture organizations is necessary now more than ever.
Learn more (pdf) about the Arts & Culture element and read our specific arts and culture strategies below.
Equitable access to high quality arts education
One of our strategies in the Arts & Culture element is equitable access to high quality arts education. Consistent, equitable arts education provides youth with opportunities to grow, take risks, imagine possibilities and persist through challenges — skills linked to achievement in school and in life. By investing in access to arts education for youth across the racial, economic and geographic spectrum, we can help address the achievement gap and create opportunities for young people throughout our region.
Strategy Approaches:
- Support arts experiences for students in and outside of school, especially within historically underserved communities: low-income, immigrant and refugee communities, and communities of color
- Provide opportunities for all youth to experience culturally diverse arts programming led by professional teaching artists and arts educators that reflect their communities
- Strengthen arts collaborations between school districts and community arts organizations, and determine effective models of replication for all school districts within our region
Support underrepresented arts and cultural organizations
Arts and culture are critical to the health and vibrancy of Greater Seattle. However, the distribution of resources within our local arts and culture nonprofits is out of balance with the changing demographics of our community. That’s why we use a strategy of supporting underrepresented arts and cultural organizations in our Arts & Culture element work.
Strategy Approaches:
- Prioritize investments for traditionally underrepresented artists, arts groups and cultural organizations to create, exhibit and perform timely bodies of work
- Build organizational capacity within cultural institutions to develop and sustain strategies to achieve greater equity across arts and cultural organizations
- Facilitate collaboration and relationship-building through community-based initiatives centered around arts, heritage and cultural organizations
Increase your impact by giving to the Arts & Culture Fund and connect with one of our philanthropic advisors to meet your giving goals.