Platform

The Platform is a set of strategic issue areas that support Arts for LA's mission. 

  

Arts for LA believes:

• the arts are critical to a healthy, prosperous society
• access to artistic and cultural experiences enrich the quality of life for both residents and visitors
• the arts foster civic engagement, stimulate economic activity and increase cultural empathy
• every resident deserves access to a variety of quality arts and cultural experiences
• arts education is central to a child’s development and to the creative engagement of people of all ages
• artists and arts organizations need an environment that values their contributions and encourages excellence;
• the breadth, depth, and diversity of the region’s artistic and cultural life are a measure of its vitality

These beliefs drive every campaign and activity Arts for LA undertakes.  Each Arts for LA campaign, event, and program is aligned with one of five Platform issues:  Arts Education; Cultural Infrastructure; Cultural Tourism; Funding and Revenue Streams; and Integration into All Aspects of Civic Life.

Arts Education

The arts are an essential part of a complete education.  So essential in fact, that arts education is a requirement for entrance into the University of California system.   The arts equip young people with the academic and creative skills they need to excel.  Every child in Los Angeles County should have access to standards-based, quality, sequential arts education – an arts curriculum that is taught by a qualified teacher, is ongoing and meaningful, and tied to learning in other critical subjects, such as science, math, and English.

Much of our work in arts education is done in partnership with Arts for All, a County-led initiative building arts education programs in 39 of the County’s 81 school districts.  In Arts for All districts, we help mobilize parents and community members into arts advocates who take an active role in shaping and supporting the arts programs in their schools.  We also work with other school districts, such as the Los Angeles and Long Beach Unified School Districts, where we help school officials develop quality arts education programs that are accessible to all students.

Interested in joining an advocacy team in your local school district?  Click here.  You can also visit the Campaign page to learn more about current Arts Education campaigns, or check out all Arts Education content here.  

 

Cultural Infrastructure

Cultural infrastructure is that constellation of elements within a city or region that enable the arts to flourish.  Policies, investments, public awareness, and an availability of resources for artists all help foster an environment where the arts are accessible to all.  Arts for LA works with local governments to help build this cultural infrastructure, making the arts central to the policies they implement, the public buildings they develop, and the services they provide. 

Arts for LA is particularly interested in the issue of access.  What policies need to be in place to ensure that all Los Angeles residents, regardless of where they live, are afforded arts and cultural opportunities?  What are the infrastructure barriers that prevent the arts from reaching every neighborhood, every school, every adult?  These questions are addressed through think tanks and town hall meetings, in dialogue with policy makers and elected leaders, and by highlighting opportunities to close gaps of access.

Interested in attending a community event?  Click here to access a current list of convenings and events.

 

Cultural Tourism

Did you know that tourism is the number-one industry in the City of Los Angeles?  That one in every five of those visitors participates in an artistic or cultural activity?  The arts and culture are incredibly important, pumping millions of dollars into the local economy through the restaurants, taxis, hotels, stores, and business districts visited by art lovers.

Artists and arts organizations are the engine behind this great economic activity, creating the works of art, performances and festivals people enjoy.  Arts for LA helps build appreciation among the public and elected leaders about how valuable the arts are.  We use that awareness to advance the policies, regional marketing programs, and planning that help the arts serve even greater numbers of visitors to the Los Angeles region.

 

Funding and Revenue Streams

Artists and arts organizations receive support in a number of ways.  One of the most important sources is public funding, used by municipalities across the nation to ensure the arts are alive and thriving in their communities.  In the City of Los Angeles, two percent of the taxes hotel visitors pay is set aside to support the Department of Cultural Affairs and other cultural projects.  Los Angeles County also makes funds available to arts organizations and artists through grant programs and civic art commissions.  Other cities in the region, from Santa Monica to Pasadena, have funding programs as well.

Not surprisingly, these funds have come under serious threat as city and county budgets feel the strain of the economic downturn.  This makes an already tough situation much worse.  Even before the recession, Los Angeles and California were among the most anemic arts funders when compared to other states and major cities. 

In response, Arts for LA works directly with elected leaders, communicating to them the economic value of the arts and their role in the overall health of the communities they represent.  We also provide arts advocates with the tools to be strategic and effective in their own efforts to preserve public arts funding in their schools and communities.  This work has been remarkably effective, protecting public funding streams and empowering local communities to act.

Interested in protecting arts funding?  Click here to see Arts for LA’s current campaigns.

 

Integration into All Aspects of Civic Life

Arts and culture – with their many benefits – should be integrated into all aspects of civic life.  Participation in the arts is part of a healthy lifestyle, for both individuals and the region as a whole.  In fact, the National Endowment for the Arts reports that individuals who participate in arts and culture activities are three-times more likely to exercise, to volunteer, and to vote!

The arts and their impact can help shape urban planning, education, health policy, community relations, and other areas of our lives.  Part of this work is in encouraging artists to take active roles in the leadership of their communities, such as serving on neighborhood councils and other local leadership boards, and encouraging communities to see the arts and artists as a real resource. 

The arts and culture come in many forms, produced by individuals of varied talents, skills, ages and interests.  Arts for LA promotes programs that engage all individuals to create art, enjoy cultural events in their communities, and integrate the arts into their family life and neighborhood.  Only then will the arts and culture find appreciation as an essential part of a healthy, vibrant city and region.

 

Downloadable English and Spanish versions of the Platform coming soon.