Why We Need Art
The Ripple Effect: How the Arts Serve Montana
It is a common mistake of our time to believe that art exists solely "for art's sake." In reality, it naturally embeds itself in every aspect of life—from embroidery on a garment to furniture design to city planning. In many cases the arts serve as a driver for innovation and progress. When one measures dollars alone, public investment in the creative sector delivers a proven 9-1 return on investment in Montana. That is just the tip of the iceberg when you take a closer look at everything that intersects with a thriving arts community. The impact of cultural activities can be seen in things like increased economic productivity, improved education outcomes, greater civic cohesion, healthier people, and more.
The arts impact every aspect of life in our communities—and there is an abundance of data that demonstrates this.
We all need art for...
Human Health & Well-Being
The arts are increasingly recognized as a vital, clinically proven health intervention that spans a person's entire life. From fostering healthy cognitive development in early childhood to managing neurodegenerative diseases in older adults, the arts address a wide spectrum of physical and mental health needs and they transform how we care for one another. This impact is so profound that through a growing movement known as "Social Prescribing," doctors and healthcare providers are now officially referring patients to local arts and cultural programs to effectively treat non-clinical health issues, reduce loneliness, and manage chronic illnesses.
Early Child Development & Emotional Regulation
From infancy, artistic activities actively strengthen neural connections and develop essential gross and fine motor skills. More importantly, K-12 arts participation provides children with a safe outlet to express complex emotions they cannot yet articulate verbally. Studies show that early arts participation actively builds empathy and pro-social behaviors (like sharing and helping), while equipping children with tools to navigate complex emotions.
Supporting Neurodivergent Youth
The arts provide unique communicative breakthroughs for children with atypical social-emotional development. Because conditions like Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can significantly impair traditional language and communication, the arts offer a vital alternative way for these children to connect with the world around them. For children with ADHD, art therapy provides a structured yet flexible outlet for their energy and creativity.
Quality of Life for Older Adults
Creative aging programs—from woodworking and painting to community storytelling—are powerful antidotes to the helplessness, boredom, and isolation often experienced by older adults. Active arts participation has been clinically linked to improved moods, reduced anxiety, and increased verbal communication.
Managing Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, & Dementia
For older adults living with neurodegenerative diseases, the arts offer remarkable cognitive benefits. Specialized choirs and music therapies help synchronize brainwaves, pulling information from healthy parts of the brain to actively improve speech, memory, and motor function. Engaging elders in collaborative art projects has been shown to create a sense of calm and actively reduce "sundowning"—anxiety and distress sometimes experienced by adults with dementia.
Healing Our Veterans & Military Families
For active-duty military and veterans suffering from PTSD, art therapy is a critical, life-saving intervention. Because trauma can be intensely isolating and difficult to articulate, the arts provide a vital bridge, allowing veterans to safely express deep fear and uncertainty through metaphors and symbols. This process significantly reduces PTSD symptoms and combats risk factors, while community initiatives like the NEA’s Creative Forces program help military families build resilience and successfully transition back to civilian life.
Mental Health & Community Healing
Beyond specific age groups, the arts provide critical civic spaces for non-clinical mental health support, directly combatting what the US Surgeon General has declared a national "epidemic of loneliness". Through the science of neuroaesthetics, we know that when audiences gather for a live performance, their brainwaves and nervous systems physically synchronize with one another. This shared experience lowers stress-inducing cortisol, releases neurotransmitters like dopamine, and induces biological changes in as little as three milliseconds. Because this biological synchronicity makes the arts a scientifically proven tool for social connection, public health institutions like the CDC Foundation now actively fund community art experiences to help residents bridge differences and heal from isolation.
Learn more
Susan Magsamen, Co-Author of “Your Brain on Art” (Data on neuroaesthetics, CQ, and audience synchronicity)
Social Prescribing for the Arts: A Promising Framework for Arts & Health Collaboration (The Creative Aging Resource)
A Review of Art Therapy Among Military Service Members and Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Journal of Military and Veterans' Health)
Creative Forces: Community Engagement Program (National Endowment for the Arts)
The Power of Music: Carnegie Hall's Well-Being Concerts (Data on community mental health spaces)
Expanding Boundaries: Creative Aging in the Western States (Data on older adult quality of life)
Investing in Creativity as Social Infrastructure (Arts as a tool for social connection)
Education & Academic Success
Arts education is a critical driver of academic success and one of the most powerful dropout prevention strategies available. Far beyond K-12 test scores, the arts quietly but powerfully cultivate the exact "soft skills" and essential qualities that students need to succeed in the modern workforce—including curiosity, creativity, perseverance, and critical thinking.
Building the "Curiosity Quotient" (CQ) and Retaining Knowledge
The K-12 arts uniquely bolster "deeper learning." While a student's IQ is generally finite, arts education actively builds their "Curiosity Quotient" (CQ), which is a critical driver for lifelong learning. Engaging with a trusted adult in hands-on arts instruction activates the brain's biological reward systems—releasing dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin—which physically reinforces a student's desire to learn and helps them retain core information better than standard methods.
Supporting Learning Differences
Creativity-focused programs provide alternate pathways to success for students who struggle in traditional classroom settings. For instance, arts-based approaches have been successfully used to help students with learning differences, such as dyslexia, build essential reading skills.
Combating Chronic Absenteeism
Research consistently shows a direct link between robust arts access and lower chronic absenteeism. Elementary schools with greater access to the arts see significantly better attendance rates and comprehensive statewide assessments confirm that arts students consistently achieve higher annual attendance rates than their non-arts peers. At the high school level, seniors enrolled in arts classes show between 32% and 50% lower chronic absenteeism rates than those who are not.
Dropout Prevention & College Attainment
The arts are a vital tool for keeping K-12 students engaged in their education. Students with high involvement in the arts are five times more likely to graduate high school than those with low involvement, regardless of their socioeconomic status. Beyond high school, former K-12 arts students are 29% more likely to earn a four-year college degree, and each additional year of K-12 arts coursework increases that likelihood by 12%. Additionally, arts students are 20% less likely to face out-of-school suspensions for each year they study the arts.
Driving Academic Proficiency
Arts-based instruction dramatically impacts K-12 core academic success. It significantly improves the speaking and listening skills of English Language Learners and studies show arts students consistently achieve higher proficiency rates in both Reading (47% vs. 36%) and Math (46% vs. 35%) compared to schoolwide averages.
The Equity Gap (Why We Advocate)
Despite these profound benefits, over 2 million public school students—primarily in rural or high-poverty communities—have zero access to arts education. Many districts also suffer from learning gaps where students lose arts access as they age, highlighting the urgent need for robust public funding arts programs and education to ensure equitable access for all.
Learn more
Tennessee State of the Arts Study Summary Report (Data on arts combatting K-12 chronic absenteeism)
Arts and Dropout Prevention: The Power of Art to Engage (Data on graduation rates and college attainment)
Beyond the Core: Advancing Student Success Through the Arts (Data on core academic proficiency)
Arts in Early Childhood (Data on early learning and cognitive development)
Economic & Workforce Investment
The creative sector is far more than a cultural amenity; it is a multi-billion dollar economic engine that drives local commerce, fuels Montana's broader tourism industry, and prepares our workforce for the future economy. Whether it is generating substantial state GDP, acting as a catalyst for spending at local restaurants and hotels, leveraging private investment, or "future-proofing" our workers against automation, investing in the arts provides an unmatched economic return that touches every corner of our state.
The Bottom Line
(A Multi-Billion Dollar Industry)
The arts are a massive economic force. In Montana alone, the arts and cultural sector contributes $2.4 billion annually to the state’s GDP (value added) and supports over 20,269 jobs, generating $1.3 billion in total compensation. Nationally, the creative industries add $1.17 trillion to the U.S. economy (4.2% of the total GDP) and generate a $37 billion trade surplus.
The "Spillover" Effect on Tourism & Local Commerce
In Montana, tourism is much more than national parks. The creative field is an influential driver for local merchants, hotels, and restaurants. Nationally, when people attend an arts event, they spend an average of $38.46 above the cost of admission on things like dining, parking, and retail. Local studies echo this impact; in Missoula, for example, nonprofit arts audiences spend an average of $29.98 per person, per event, outside the venue.
Independent Venues as Economic Anchors
Montana’s independent live entertainment stages (venues, promoters, and festivals) are critical economic anchors. This sector alone drives $117.2 million in state GDP, generates 9 million dollars in state and local taxes, and fuels $34 million in off-site tourism spending. However, these vital community hubs are highly vulnerable to inflation and rising costs, with 64% of independent stages nationally operating without profitability in 2024. Strong policy support is needed to ensure these economic anchors survive.
The Public Funding Multiplier
The arts represent the ultimate public-private partnership. Public funding makes up only 9% of all arts and culture revenue, but these dollars are incredibly powerful. Every $1 in government arts funding (such as NEA grants) leverages up to $9 in additional private and local investment. While private philanthropy tends to concentrate in wealthy urban areas, this vital 9% of public funding is what ensures arts access—and its resulting economic benefits—reach rural and remote communities across Montana.
Workforce Development & Innovation
To remain competitive, America needs agile, innovation-oriented industries. The arts K-12 and adult programs teach critical skills like perseverance, collaboration, and complex problem-solving. These inherently creative, uniquely human skills are highly resistant to automation, meaning the creative sector helps "future-proof" our workforce. In fact, 86% of highly creative roles are at a low risk of being replaced by AI.
Learn more
Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Arts and Cultural Production: Montana (Data on the $2.4 billion / 20,000+ jobs impact)
2025 NIVA State of Live Report & Montana State of Live Report (Data on independent venues and off-site tourism spending)
City of Missoula AEP6 (Arts & Economic Prosperity) Summary of Findings (Data on the $29.98 per person local spillover effect)
AIPP Bottom-Line (National Assembly of State Arts Agencies data on the 9-to-1 public funding ROI)
Just How Big is the Culture Economy? (Contextual data on the size of the national creative economy)
Civic Cohesion & Community Infrastructure
The arts are far more than just paintings on a wall; they are the physical spaces, community planning tools, and shared experiences that hold Montana towns together. By driving higher rates of civic engagement and providing versatile community hubs, the creative sector actively builds social trust and resilient neighborhoods.
Creating Active, Engaged Citizens
A 2026 national report reveals that adults who participate in the arts experience a nearly fourfold (386%) increase in their likelihood of engaging in civic and community life compared to non-participants. Whether a person is consuming art (like attending a concert) or creating it, they are significantly more likely to vote, volunteer, do charity work, and attend community meetings. In fact, the more ways a person engages with the arts, the higher their civic engagement climbs. A study by the Knight Foundation and Urban Institute found that out of all local amenities, access to arts and culture is the only one that significantly enhances both a resident's emotional attachment to their town and their concrete investment of time and resources into the community.
Physical Anchors & Gathering Spaces
In Montana, local arts venues act as essential civic infrastructure that provide versatile spaces for all residents year-round. Beyond housing books and performances, they provide vital community services, shared meeting rooms, early learning support, and critical digital and broadband access that keep neighborhoods connected. The Holter Museum in Helena utilizes its open architecture as a stigma-free health resource center for veterans and individuals facing mental health challenges. Similarly, tribal arts spaces like the Waterhole Cultural Center in Arlee often double as staging grounds for food sovereignty initiatives, elder nutrition, and mutual aid distribution. Beyond their utility, these are multi-use spaces that welcome informal gathering among neighbors. These cultural venues act as vital "social infrastructure," allowing for intentional social mixing that breaks down polarization and bridges the divide between rural and urban experiences.
Creative Placemaking & Civic Infrastructure
The arts provide practical tools for community planning and rural development. Integrating arts and culture into community development ensures that infrastructure decisions preserve the authentic character of a place and facilitate real civic engagement. In Montana’s Bitterroot Valley, local cultural heritage workshops successfully equipped residents with the design vocabulary and skills needed to actively participate in formal highway and town planning. By using the arts to guide these public works projects, communities are better able to resolve local divisiveness, reimagine vacant properties, and transform public spaces into vibrant, desirable neighborhoods.
Building Social Support & Trust
At a time when Americans are experiencing an epidemic of loneliness, the arts act as a critical lifeline. National data shows arts participants report significantly higher levels of perceived social support than non-participants, proving that shared cultural experiences physically foster social connections and strengthen interpersonal networks.
Learn more
Arts and Civic & Community Engagement (NASERC data on the 386% increase in civic participation)
AIPP Better Together (National Assembly of State Arts Agencies data on social cohesion and rural revitalization)
Creative Placemaking in the NEA's Your Town: The Citizen's Institute on Rural Design
Cultural Identity & Freedom of Expression
Art is the primary vehicle for preserving our cherished local traditions, telling Montana’s unique stories, and defending our fundamental democratic rights. From fulfilling state constitutional mandates that honor Indigenous history to protecting the First Amendment right to free speech, a thriving arts field ensures both our cultural identity and our personal liberties endure.
Telling the American Story
From the heartland to the mountains, the arts honor our distinctive local cultures, instill community pride, and ensure that our stories are passed down to future generations. As we approach America's 250th anniversary, state initiatives like the Montana 250th Commission remind us that celebrating our nation's history also means recognizing the millennia of Indigenous history that existed long before the founding of the United States. There is no better way to reflect upon our complete, shared history than through arts and culture.
Elevating Diverse Voices
A Constitutional Mandate
The arts provide a powerful platform to document and celebrate the rich, diverse histories of our state. In fact, utilizing the arts to amplify Indigenous voices helps fulfill a statewide mandate. Article X of the Montana Constitution explicitly recognizes the "distinct and unique cultural heritage of the American Indians" and commits the state to preserving their cultural integrity. Through creative expression and legislative commitments like the Indian Education for All (IEFA) act, Montana honors Native arts traditions and ensures the heritage of all residents is celebrated.
Preserving Local Identity & Living Traditions
Public arts funding helps preserve Montana’s cherished heritage by supporting folk arts and traditional crafts. These practices—such as Métis fiddling, saddlery, and loom weaving—are not static relics of the past; they are "living" traditions that require active participation and mentorship to endure. If these arts are not supported and passed down, we risk losing entire libraries of cultural wisdom and unique ways of living in the world when the last tradition-bearers pass away.
Protecting Freedom of Expression
The American right to free speech is inherently tied to art-making. In fact, the framers of the Constitution recognized the importance of artistic expression from the very beginning, defining the promotion of the "useful arts" as a core purpose of government. Today, the First Amendment broadly protects all forms of art—from painting and sculpture to theater and dance—from government censorship. The arts are among our most effective instruments of freedom, providing a powerful means for citizens to express ideas and participate in open communication. As long as we champion a thriving, fully supported arts field, we guarantee that Montanans will always retain this fundamental democratic right to freely express themselves.
Learn more
Article X of the Montana Constitution and Indian Education for All (IEFA) (Montana Office of Public Instruction)
Montana 250th Commission (Statewide efforts to commemorate the semi quincentennial and millennia of Indigenous history)
Art Censorship | The First Amendment Encyclopedia (Data on the framers of the Constitution and protection of the "useful arts")
Freedom of Expression in the Arts and Entertainment (American Civil Liberties Union)
Investing in Creativity as Social Infrastructure (civic engagement and connecting people within communities)