Did you know? Maybe you didn’t know. October is National Arts and Humanities Month! What can you do to contribute?
The Americans for the Arts has a list of ideas for you: How will you celebrate this October?
I like the #ShowYourArt Instagram campaign they have set up since anyone can participate. This brings me to my main point of this post.
Anyone and everyone that cares about the arts can become involved in arts advocacy, and not just during the month of October, and not only during an arts day or arts week.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the national and regional efforts, and we still need these types of campaigns. What I would love to see is every day as an arts advocacy campaign!
- I want to see the hashtags #artsadvoc and #artsadvocacy trending on a consistent basis.
- I want people to post one message supporting the arts each day, or at least when they are on social media.
- I want people to build relationships outside of their arts bubble to include more “non-arts” folks.
- I want us to expand recognition for the arts and prove that arts are everywhere and for everyone!
- I want to end the conversation of why funding for the arts is important and instead replace it with the common sense that we always fund the arts.
Sure, I may want a great deal to happen, and some of these ideals may seem like pie in the sky desires. However, only by focusing on these ideals will we get closer to making them a reality.
Yes, we have challenges. The main challenge being that the arts are not recognized as being for everyone (and thus not worthy enough for the necessary bigger funding).
So, what can you do about it? Yes, you! It’s National Arts and Humanities Month – a perfect time to get your every day arts advocacy started!
Cheers to happy and loyal audiences,
Shoshana
Shoshana Fanizza
Chief Audience Builder
My new eBook is out! The Tao of Audience Development for the Arts – check it out!
