Coming Up Taller

We Need To Support The Arts For Better Life Now And In the Future Think of a world without any of the arts, no Television or movies, no music, no beautiful paintings or sculpture, no books or poems.

Wouldn't the worlds life be drab without all these things? Architecture is an art and without it our buildings could all be dull boxes. Interior design is an art that makes our homes beautiful to live in. Without the various art forms, we would not have beautiful and varied fabrics, floor coverings, furniture and accessories. There would be no entertainment, beautiful clothes or jewelry. What a drab and unhappy world we would live in without the arts.

Artists and art groups need to be supported so they can continue to make our world a brighter, more interesting place to live. We need to start to support the arts in the elementary schools, high schools and colleges so that young artists can learn to think creatively from an early age. Some reasons for supporting the arts in schools are:

• Art education helps make well rounded students.


• Art is a great stress reliever for children.


• The many art forms give children a sense of self worth.


• Art in schools helps students develop independent thinking and problem solving skills.


• Art in the schools helps children develop communication skills and creative expression.


• Art helps children relate better to the outside world.

Down through history the church, governments and wealthy individuals have recognized the value of art and artists to society. Patrons of the arts in history were noblemen, kings and churches. In today's society, patrons of the arts can be anyone who wants to further art in the community. City, State and Federal government agencies support the art community because they have found that art is good for the economy. A healthy arts community can lead to economic development and a bigger tax base. Many small businesses and individual entrepreneurs are artists of on kind or another. They create jobs and pay taxes as well as improving the communities where they are located.

Because art is so important to the health and well being of society, there are many foundations and organizations devoted to supporting the arts. A few of them are:

• The Ford foundation--they give grants.


• The National Endowment for the Arts


• Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual arts--supports cultural organizations who support artists.


• Henry Moore Foundation--promotes public appreciation of art.


• New York Foundation for the Arts


• Princess Grace Foundation--helps young artists in film, theater and dance.


• International Child Art Foundation--promote children's art and visual learning around the world.

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