To mark the one-year anniversary of two NEA research reports about how Americans engaged with art during the COVID-19 pandemic, we present a series of thoughtful essays about the reports’ findings and implications—from the perspective of arts practitioners.

The first report, Arts Participation Patterns in 2022: Highlights from the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, covered a reporting period from July 2021 to July 2022. The second, Online Audiences for Arts Programming: A Survey of Virtual Participation Amid COVID-19, examined adults’ self-reported levels of arts participation in the first and second years of the pandemic. Together, the reports showed what some already suspected: receding rates of in-person arts attendance and heightened participation via digital media. Yet levels of art making (e.g., the personal creation or performance of art) remained strong in many categories, while literary reading sank.

The two surveys chronicle a historic phase of transition in our nation’s cultural life. To explore these trends further, to discuss what they mean for the future of the arts and—most important of all—to harvest practical insights from a cross-section of the nation’s arts and cultural leaders, the NEA’s Office of Research & Analysis offers the symposium below. With gratitude to our authors, we also welcome your own opinions and ideas. If you would like to share your reactions to the essays, or to the NEA reports themselves, please email research@arts.gov. 

Essays

A Time of Hope and Worry: Unpacking the 2022 NEA Survey Results about Reading - by Ruth Dickey, Executive Director, National Book Foundation

Understanding ‘Other’ Arts Attendance in the United States: Reflections on Inclusion, Intersectionality, and the Democratization of the SPPA - by Peter Linett, Senior Fellow, NORC at the University of Chicago and Co-Founder, Slover Linett at NORC

The Tyranny of Abundance: What are We Really Measuring? - by Douglas McLennan, Editor, ArtsJournal.com

Decoding the Trend Busters: How Some Arts Organizations Are Increasing Participation as National Figures Decline - by Andrew Recinos

"A lot of people are turning to art": What the 2022 SPPA Survey Findings Mean for Young Creators - by Lissa Soep, Senior Scholar-in-Residence, YR Media

Reimagining Arts Participation: A Crowdfunder’s Perspective, Post-Pandemic - by Everette Taylor, CEO, Kickstarter

Worldmaking through Arts Participation – by the People, for the People - by Johanna K. Taylor, Associate Professor, The Design School, Arizona State University