CINCINNATI — Nearly 1,000 artists, organizers and advocates from across the country convened in Cincinnati this week for the annual Americans for the Arts convention, a gathering that feels especially urgent this year as federal funding cuts cast a shadow over the industry’s future.

What You Need To Know

  • Cincinnati was buzzing with creativity this week hosting the annual AFTACON event

  • It offered a space for creatives to network, collaborate, and take part in workshops aimed at advancing the arts and culture sector

  • The event comes as the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) recently eliminated dozens of grants to arts organizations across the U.S.

Hosted locally by ArtsWave, AFTACON offers a space for creatives to network, collaborate, and take part in workshops aimed at advancing the arts and culture sector.

“A lot of the nation’s leaders are also going to get to learn from our arts leaders and artists who are really blazing a trail with how to bring people together and deepen roots in a region,” said Ryan Strand, Marketing and Communications Manager at ArtsWave.

For attendees like Elayna Toby Singer of Palm Beach County’s Art in Public Places program, Cincinnati’s own vibrant arts scene is front and center.

“The murals, the gorgeous craftsmanship, high-quality detail are all relevant and engaging to the people who live here,” Singer said.

More than just an opportunity to celebrate creativity, this year’s convention serves as a critical reminder of the sector’s economic and social importance. According to CreativeOhio’s 2024 Economic Impact Report, the state’s creative sector:

  • Generated $32.9 billion in economic impact
  • Supported more than 132,000 jobs
  • Contributed $923 million in state and local tax revenue

Locally, ArtsWave’s 2025 campaign raised $12.3 million to support arts initiatives in the Greater Cincinnati region.

“$12.3 million invested in our region came from the people of our region, which shows amazing resiliency in the face of headwinds,” Strand said.

Those headwinds include sharp federal cutbacks. In May, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) eliminated dozens of grants to arts organizations across the U.S., a move linked to the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to reduce and potentially eliminate the agency.

“We are concerned about it,” Strand said. “We are looking at how policy is going to change and how our funding patterns are going to change.”

Despite the challenges, Strand said the arts remain a vital force for unity, particularly in divided times.

“We think Cincinnati is an amazing example of bridging divides,” he said. “We hope that the rest of the nation's arts leaders see that and take that back to their cities as well.”

Earlier this year, SMU DataArts named Cincinnati one of the most arts-vibrant communities in the country for the fourth year in a row.