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Top Cities for Arts include Boston, Philadelphia, and Big Apple
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A report released this week indicates that Boston has the second largest number of arts organizations per capita among major cities in the United States, trailing only San Francisco. Boston beats out New York City, which ranks third in the number of arts organizations such as museums, art schools, and theaters per person living in the city. Boston ranks third among cities in the income earned by arts organizations through revenue such as admissions and ticket sales based on a per capita basis, which considers the population size of each city in assigning the rankings. Philadelphia places fourth in the number of arts organizations per capita.
While the Boston is the nation’s 10th largest city by population there are more than 1,500 arts organizations in Boston. While there are a large number or arts organizations, nearly 40 percent of all spending by them comes from only three sources: the Museum of Fine Arts, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and public media powerhouse WGBH.
New York City arts programs receive provides more government support than any other city in the U.S. except San Francisco. Funding for arts programs in Boston and Philadelphia from government sources sits at the bottom of the 10 largest arts cities, with Boston receiving the least support among this group, just behind Philadelphia. Boston arts organization are not able to make-up the difference from foundations, as there is also little private support for the arts in the city. Of organizations that receive government funds for the arts in Boston, they are more likely to be receiving federal rather than local grants from organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts.
Boston is seeking to provide stronger local support to the arts. Last week Boston Mayor Marty Walsh announced $1 Million for Boston arts funding, providing support directly to artists and art organizations. This new funding will be provided over the next year according to the Boston Mayor’s office.
American Graphics Institute supports art and design programs in these cities through creative courses and workshops such as Photoshop classes in Boston, Illustrator courses in NYC, and InDesign classes in Philadelphia.