Background

Datasets

Arts Basic Survey (ABS)

The 2018 ABS asked respondents about personal performance and creation of art and covered the period of February 2017 to February 2018.

Target Population and Sample Size

The 2018 ABS sample size was 18,116 civilian, non-institutional adults, 18 years and older

Source/Sponsor

Partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts, Office of Research & Analysis, and the U.S. Census Bureau. The ABS is a supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).

Notable Features

Adults were asked if they:

• Played a musical instrument

• Performed or practiced singing

• Did creative writing including fiction or poetry

• Created visual art such as paintings or sculpture

• Worked with pottery or ceramics

• Did leatherwork, metalwork, or woodwork

• Took photographs or created films as an artistic activity

Overview

According to the 2018 Arts Basic Survey, 33.4 percent of adults, or 83 million Americans, did at least one of the following activities in a 12-month period:

• Performing arts (Play a musical instrument; do acting; perform or practice any dance; perform or practice any singing): 16.2 percent, or 40.3 million adults

• Craft arts (Work with pottery, ceramics, or jewelry; do leatherwork, woodwork, or metalwork; do weaving, crocheting, quilting, needlepoint, knitting, or sewing): 15.7 percent, or 39.1million adults

• Film/photography (Produce films, videos, and photographs as an artistic activity): 11.7 percent, or 29.2 million adults

• Visual arts (Create visual art such as paintings, sculpture, or graphic designs): 7.5 percent, or 18.4 million adults

• Creative writing (Do any creative writing such as fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or plays): 4.7 percent, or 11.6 million adults