Regional Arts Commission

The Regional Arts Commission will distribute $10.6 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to St. Louis artists and organizations.

A St. Louis Board of Aldermen committee is moving forward with a bill that would bring federal coronavirus relief funds to arts organizations. The bill would allow the Regional Arts Commission to use $10.6 million in federal funds for arts organizations and programs that shut their doors during the coronavirus pandemic.

A national nonprofit is returning to St. Louis to study how the arts contribute to the region’s economy. Arts leaders say it's important to gauge the strength of arts organizations after the coronavirus pandemic decimated their revenues.

The grants are the first for individual artists and specific programs since 2020. The Regional Arts Commission has continued to provide general funding to larger organizations during the pandemic, though at dramatically reduced levels.

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page’s office is recommending that $1.6 million of the county’s federal coronavirus relief funds go toward regional arts education programs. The recommendation comes as arts leaders have called on the county to allocate 5% of its federal relief funds to arts institutions and programs.

More than 100 St. Louis area arts institutions are calling on St. Louis and St. Louis County officials to use federal coronavirus relief funding to help support the arts.

Vanessa Cooksey has taken the reins of the Regional Arts Commission at a tumultuous time. She faces the arts funder's dramatic drop in tax revenue and an increased demand for racial equity in the arts.

Of the many industries decimated by the coronavirus, the arts may have been hit the hardest. Host Sarah Fenske discusses the arts and culture climate in St. Louis and hears from an artist about her hardships throughout the pandemic and how she’s remained busy.

When was the last time you saw the St. Louis metro’s most prestigious arts organizations all sharing the same bill? If you can’t remember, you may want to…

Performers from across the creative spectrum in St. Louis will hold a telethon-style benefit concert to help artists who have suffered a financial blow…