The goal of the Arts program is to promote a vibrant and inclusive artistic and cultural environment in California.

We believe that a healthy arts system in today's environment must have: the ability to create art and connect it to diverse communities; opportunities to explore innovative and risk taking approaches that can help the sector conduct its business more effectively in the future; and well-run arts organizations. This holistic approach, which considers diverse arts disciplines, audiences and regions, as well as a broad range of the state's artistic and cultural organizations, leads us to organize our grantmaking along the following priority areas:

1. Artistic creativity: Promote the creation and reinterpretation of art and infuse the arts field with new ideas and methods of creative expression.
2. Cultural participation: Support the active engagement of Californians from all socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds with quality art from a variety of sources and cultures.
3. Arts leadership: Foster an environment in which arts and culture flourish in California through leading arts organizations.

• Artistic Innovation Fund: Support the state's premier cultural institutions as they advance their artistic vision and deliver innovative, aspirational programming
• Arts Regional Initiative: Improve the financial sustainability, management, governance and growth capacity of leading arts organizations outside of the cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego

Open Application Program

• Creative Connections Fund: This fund provides open, competitive funding for small and mid-size arts organizations.

Special Projects

• Communities Advancing the Arts: Build new, sustainable funding streams for the arts in California by partnering with selected community foundations
• The Arts Training School Cluster: This cross-program initiative with the Youth program will be evaluated in mid-2008 to determine appropriate next steps.
• California Cultural Data Project: Launching in January 2008, this is a statewide collaboration that will collect comprehensive information about the cultural sector in California

Profiles of illustrative grants

The following grantee profiles are illustrative of the type of work the Arts program seeks to fund:

Artistic Creativity
Margaret Jenkins Dance Company

Cultural Participation
Community Youth Performing Arts Center

Artistic Innovation Fund
Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County

Arts Regional Initiative
Riverside Art Museum