A new public opinion survey conducted by the Regional Arts & Culture Council reveals strong public support for arts and culture throughout the Portland metropolitan area. In a scientific poll of 405 registered voters in Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington Counties, nine out of ten respondents (89%) stated that arts and culture are important to the growth and development of the community.
The telephone survey was commissioned by the Regional Arts & Culture Council, was funded by 18 community partners, and was conducted by Riley Research Associates earlier this year. With 405 interviews completed, the margin of error for this survey is plus or minus 4.9 percent. In this survey, arts and culture were defined as “amateur and professional art including music, dance, theater, film, visual arts, literary arts, folk arts, and historical and cultural elements.” Some additional findings:
- Portland-area residents are avid consumers of arts and culture performances and exhibitions. Almost two-thirds of the population (72%) attend an arts and culture event at least every few months. Fully one-third attend arts and culture events at least once a month. 16% attend arts events at least once a week.
- Most of the public directly supports our community’s nonprofit arts and culture institutions. 73% purchase single tickets for arts and culture events. 27% donate money. 17% volunteer their time. 16% purchase season tickets.
- Many residents are willing to support arts organizations even more. 65% support having governments include arts and culture funding in other community program budgets. 32% would be likely to make personal contributions to the arts and culture community through a new payroll deduction program that is being offered by RACC.
- Arts education is vital. 95% of Portland-area residents agree that arts and culture are an essential part of a child’s education, echoing a national statistic recently published by Americans for the Arts, which cites that 93% of Americans believe that the arts are vital to providing a well-rounded education. (See www.artsusa.org for more details on that poll.)
“These results demonstrate strong support for arts and culture throughout the entire region, and tell us more about what we should be doing to address the values of the people who live here,” said Eloise Damrosch, Executive Director of the Regional Arts & Culture Council. “Across all counties and age groups, regardless of sex or income level, there is consensus that the arts are important in our daily lives and essential to our children’s education.”
At the same time, the survey reveals some challenges that face the arts and culture community:
- Time and money prevent people from attending more arts and culture events than they would like. Ticket prices were reported as a barrier by 47% of respondents; and time/schedule were issues for 40%.
- There remains an east-west divide when it comes to choosing which arts and culture events to attend. While two out of three residents in the region are most likely to travel to downtown Portland (including the Pearl District), most respondents were unlikely to cross through downtown to the opposite side of the Metro area to attend an arts and culture event.
- While most residents are not familiar with the mechanics of the Percent-For-Art program, they like that the program generates public art for the community to enjoy. Just over two-thirds (68%) are not aware of the percent-for-art program, yet 69% say they support it either strongly or somewhat. 69% also support tax incentives for businesses that voluntarily participate in the Percent-for-Art program as part of their new construction projects.
- The community isn’t doing enough in terms of arts education. Nearly half (48%) of the respondents think our public schools are educating students “poorly” on the topic of arts and culture. Only 28% think the schools are educating the students “well.”
18 Community Partners funded the survey: Artists’ Repertory Theatre, Chamber Music Northwest, Clackamas County, The City of Portland, Northwest Business for Culture and the Arts, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Oregon Children’s Theatre, Oregon Symphony Association, Portland Art Museum, Portland Business Alliance, Portland Center Stage, Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, Portland Opera Association, Portland Oregon Visitors Association, the Regional Arts & Culture Council, Riley Research Associates, Washington County, and White Bird.
Commissioner Sam Adams, the City of Portland’s official liaison to RACC, commented on the survey results. “There is consensus that the arts are vital to our children’s education, and that arts and culture strengthen our communities,” Adams stated. “We also know that the arts are good for business, which is why I’m helping lead efforts to increase public and private sector support for arts and culture. I want the Portland region to be known as the best place for arts and culture, where the best and most innovative artists locate, and where residents have art in their daily lives.”
The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) works to integrate arts and culture in all aspects of community life. RACC has served the Portland tri-county area since its inception in 1995, when the city’s Metropolitan Arts Commission transitioned into a separate not-for-profit organization. RACC is the steward of public investment in arts and culture, and works to create an environment in which the arts and culture of the region can flourish and prosper. RACC provides service in six key areas: Advocacy, Public Art, Grants, Arts Education, Information Resources, and Fundraising for arts organizations through a workplace giving program.
For additional information about this survey visit www.racc.org/publicopinionsurvey or contact Jeff Hawthorne at the Regional Arts & Culture Council, 503.823.5258 or jhawthorne@racc.org .
Through vision, leadership and service the Regional Arts & Culture Council works to integrate arts and culture in all aspects of
community life.
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