In Helicon's view, the non-profit cultural sector in the United States is at a pivotal and exciting moment in its evolution, a moment of some uncertainty but full of opportunity. After five decades of growth in the number of professional artists and non-profit cultural groups – with parallel increases in the number of dollars invested in the system and the number of people touched by it – the sector appears to have hit a wall.
As the operating costs of non-profit cultural groups rise inexorably, they are not seeing similar growth in ticket sales, contributions and other earned income. Audiences for the majority of non-profit cultural organizations are static or declining. Giving to the arts by the public sector is strained, and contributions to the arts and culture by corporations, foundations and individual donors have declined as a percentage of total philanthropic giving. Curtailed media coverage and arts criticism further shrinks the market, and increasing numbers of artists and young arts managers are abjuring work in the non-profit arts sector in favor of more satisfying (and lucrative) opportunities elsewhere.
There are notable exceptions across the country, where wealthy patrons are financing significant building campaigns and individual artists are making substantial incomes, but the "average" non-profit arts organization and the "average" artist are struggling daily to remain both relevant and solvent.
Non-profit arts and culture groups are challenged as never before. Yet many recent studies suggest that cultural participation, broadly defined, has never been more robust. The explosion of technologies that facilitate consumption and creation; the availability of high quality, low-cost commercial entertainment products; the increase in community-based and culturally-specific arts entities serving distinct neighborhoods and populations; the expanding number of religious organizations employing the arts to energize congregations; and the growth of the professional amateurs who make their living in other sectors but are active as artists in their spare time (the "Pro-Am" phenomenon), among other factors, are enabling unprecedented numbers of people – of all ages – to engage with the arts.
Not unlike the 1930s, when radio and movies fundamentally shifted the assumptions on which many cultural providers, such as touring theater companies, based their economic models, the cultural sector is facing a massive shift in the platforms for the delivery and experience in the arts. Will we adjust to this change, or will we fare as poorly as those theater touring groups?
It appears that more and more people appreciate the value of art in their lives, and want to partake of creative endeavors both alone and with families and friends. But increasingly, non-profit cultural institutions represent only one "cultural" or "creative" option among many and – for growing numbers of people – not the most compelling one.
The non-profit cultural sector can deny this trend and see itself continue to lose market share (and with that, both community stature and financial viability). Or it can embrace a broader view of cultural enterprise, re-think ways to engage audiences and meaningfully serve the community, and link with and learn from the proliferating array of alternative cultural and creative venues (live and virtual). These alternative venues include commercial businesses and hybrid "Fourth Sector" entities that blend social purpose and profit motive; Pro-Am groups; neighborhood- and immigrant-centered associations; pioneering web-based social networks and content providers ("weboneers"); religious institutions; and communities of professional and amateur artists, among others.
In Helicon's view, the proliferation of alternative venues and modes of cultural participation is the most important strategic issue facing non-profit cultural organizations today. Members of our sector avoid it or ignore it at their peril. If the non-profit sector does not harness the technology and techniques of these burgeoning alternatives, and make itself more valuable and engaging to more and more diverse people, its near-term viability and long-term sustainability will be seriously threatened. The individual cultural groups, artists, funders and policymakers that most quickly comprehend this emerging reality, learn from the successful practices of the new centers of cultural activity, and adapt their behavior accordingly are the ones that will thrive in the new creative economy. And the communities whose arts service organizations facilitate understanding of the new framework, and encourage inventive responses, will adapt more quickly and successfully.
These "early adapter" communities – where the non-profit arts sector embraces the realities of a highly diversified cultural marketplace – are likely to benefit in other ways. Such communities are likely to attract and better serve high-end knowledge workers – the people critical to any community's economic renaissance. These are the well-educated individuals who value an eclectic mix of art, media and entertainment; need multi-cultural fluency to succeed in their jobs; and want "Pro-Am" opportunities where they can actively showcase and refine their own, often advanced, artistic skills. Such communities are also likely to better serve and engage mid- and lower-income residents, narrowing digital, economic, educational and cultural divides through arts and cultural programs that make participation easy, fun, meaningful and contagious. As recent research studies have documented, cultural participation at the neighborhood level correlates with higher levels of civic engagement, responsible parenting and other indicators of positive social capital.
Re-thinking the non-profit cultural sector in light of the bigger universe of cultural enterprise is not the only challenge facing the non-profit cultural sector. Other pressing issues include the imminent generational leadership transition as hundreds of leaders move to retirement; the weaknesses of the traditional nonprofit business model in the current context; the decline in arts education in public schools; and shifting demographics that are changing community profiles. The expansion of the cultural marketplace, however, is the over-riding issue and it connects to the sector's challenges in most other areas. Non-profit cultural groups' prospects for growing audiences, sustaining adequate funding, retaining younger generations of workers, securing good board leadership, and integrating the arts into the priorities of other policy sectors all relate, at least in part, to whether the sector remains relevant and engaging in the face of growing competition from other cultural providers.
Helicon embraces this evolving situation and is eager to work with other people and organizations that wish to develop with the times and find new ways to bolster the power of the arts to enrich the lives of individuals, communities and our democracy.