How can the arts and culture industry move forward in the Granite State amid disinvestment? This was one of the central questions attendees and organizers sought to answer at the first annual Creative Culture Summit in Concord, New Hampshire, on Monday, September 15.
Since 1965, the State Council on the Arts (also referred to as the State Arts Council) has operated as a grantor and program service provider for arts and culture organizations across the state. In 2024, the council awarded $1.5 million to more than 180 grantees in over sixty communities. But in July of this year, the state legislature slashed the council’s operating budget to just $150,000. As a result, six of the seven employees at the council have been laid off and the current director, Adele Sicilia, is navigating how to accept donations and provide tax credits for a “Granite State Patron of the Arts Fund,” according to a notice on the council’s website.
Sal Prizio, executive director of the Capitol Center for the Arts, addressing the audience during his welcoming remarks. Photo by Katie Duncan.
Sal Prizio, executive director for the Capitol Center for the Arts—a performance venue in downtown Concord that served as the venue for the Creative Culture Summit—was a key organizer for the program.
During his welcoming remarks, he stated, “There were a lot of us in this room who fought to preserve what we could of the funding for the New Hampshire Council on the Arts. It’s time to put on the boxing gloves and get back in the ring.”
The summit, organized in partnership with industry leaders, creators, artists, and multiple organizations, included panelists and speakers from both the nonprofit and for-profit sectors to discuss messaging, strategy, and action.
Harold Steward, executive director of the New England Foundation for the Arts, speaking to the audience. Photo by Katie Duncan.
One of the overall narratives of the day, and the central theme of keynote speaker Harold Steward’s address, was that the arts and humanities provide a beacon to communities. Steward, who is the executive director of the New England Foundation for the Arts, opened with a reading of Assata Shakur’s poem “Affirmation,” drawing parallels between the “tired, seasick sailors” of the final lines and those in the room who were feeling defeated by recent budget cuts, layoffs, and defunding at federal, state, and local levels. Steward’s address was one of hope, serving a reminder to the room that there was still much work to be done.
“His words were inspiring, and I especially appreciated his call to engage younger leaders to sustain the fight,” said Liz Peroni, executive director of Mosaic Art Collective.
Steward’s message cut deep to the heart of criticism leveled against the arts industry in the Granite State: that it’s not a necessity with current budgetary restrictions.
Representative Dan McGuire, an Epsom Republican who helped draft the state’s budget, said in a March committee hearing, “It’s a want-to-have, a nice-to-have kind of thing but not a must-have, in my opinion.”
Steward’s keynote drew on a metaphor as the arts as a lighthouse to demonstrate their necessity. This theme was mirrored throughout the day by panelists and attendees.
Adrienne Petrillo, Deborah Schachter, Kathleen Reardon, and Tom Raffio speaking on a panel discussion titled “Navigating Funding Opportunities in a Challenging Environment,” moderated by Sal Prizio. Photo by Katie Duncan.
Many of the speakers called attention to the necessity for arts, culture, and the humanities within communities. “Art spaces are civic spaces,” said panelist Zeina Eyceoz, executive director of New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility. She pointed to a partnership between her organization and Positive Street Art, which activated BIPOC-owned businesses to facilitate meaningful community discussions.
Director of public policy at New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, Deborah Schachter, pointed to the role arts and culture play in building thriving communities. She said, “Our collective investment is in the shared goods that matter to the health and thriving of our communities, and your work is a key part of that. … Artists and writers speak to the moment. … Writers and artists and culture creatures can help us imagine the future.”
Many panelists also made economic arguments in support of the arts, incorporating data that show arts and culture are vital to a thriving and economically healthy state.
Workforce development and “community stickiness” were a big focus for panelist Corinne Benfield, executive director of Stay Work Play NH, a nonprofit organization focused on recruiting and retaining young talent in the Granite State.
“Eighty percent of young people say they lack community in this state. Eighty-eight percent say they lack social life,” Benfield said, citing the arts and culture industry as a vital part of cultivating that sense of community, which helps to encourage young people to build lives in the state.
New Hampshire’s arts and culture economic sectors have a $3.4 billion impact and represent 21,000 jobs, according to 2022 findings by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis and National Assembly of State Arts Agencies.
These sentiments were echoed by Bryanna Marceau, incoming president of the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce. “Quality of life is no longer a nice-to-have when you’re recruiting and retaining talent,” she said.
With no government officials at state or local levels speaking, much of the programming, conversations, and strategy sought to circumvent a legislative body that, in the eyes of event attendees, lacks understanding and commitment to the arts and culture industry of the state.
Director of development at NH Humanities, Sarah Chaffee, spoke about how the loss of funding has led to new strategies. “Obviously our federal funding disappeared, so now we’re looking for other funding sources,” Chaffee said. “It’s terrible, but maybe it’s also an opportunity.”
A breakout session on policy and advocacy led by Andrew Pinard. Photo by Katie Duncan.
That hopefulness underscored the day. As panelists and attendees acknowledged the devastating nature of the cuts, they also were willing to explore how to use the moment to reshape the arts and culture industry in the state.
Some attendees strategized about messaging, and many identified what had been missing in the state and how they could utilize this moment to rise to meet those needs. They identified an opportunity for centralized messaging, communication, and strategy.
“I wish there had been more focus on outreach to younger and grassroots organizations,” Peroni from Mosaic Art Collective said. “Holding the summit on a Monday workday likely prevented many of those voices from being present, as so many are working full-time jobs to support their nonprofit passions. Instead, the emphasis seemed to lean heavily toward sustaining large institutional nonprofits, rather than community-based organizations and initiatives. I would have loved to hear more directly from younger perspectives about what they see as possible moving forward.”
Both a truly New Hampshire spirit of independent can-do-it attitude and meaningful steps toward collective action were demonstrated as the day concluded. Attendees left feeling hopeful and engaged, many of them energized to take further action.
“The information we’re getting here, I think it’s both useful and it’s inspiring,” Chaffee of NH Humanities said. “I feel like I’m ready to go back and communicate a little bit better about my organization and what we’re trying to do.”
Sal Prizio shared some of his hopes for next steps, which included making the summit an annual event, and connecting attendees through virtual community space on LinkedIn or a similar platform.
Attendees were excited to hear about this. “Wonderful things happen when creative people put their minds together,” Peroni said.
Prizio mentioned in his welcoming remarks the work of lobbyist Susan Paschell and State Senator David Rochefort who is drafting bill LSR 2078, designed to re-establish the commission charged with studying the economic impact of the arts and culture sector in New Hampshire, creating a small window of hope for some state funding to return at a future date.
