No State Funding and Affordable Housing at Portland’s Art Summit

In 2024, Maine ranked 35th in the nation for public funding of the arts.

That statistic might surprise those who associate the state with iconic paintings, historic artists’ colonies or performance venues that draw tourists from across the country. But it was a priority for many guests and panelists at Creative Portland’s biennial Arts and Culture Summit Tuesday at Mechanics’ Hall and Space in Portland.

Throughout the day, the conversation revolved around the funding needs of a sector that has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic and is still recovering. Panels covered how to secure more state funding for the arts, how to find rehearsal and studio spaces, how to cope with the rising cost of living in the state and how to revive business in the city’s largest arts district. Guests included government workers, nonprofit executives, individual artists and real estate developers.

Here are four takeaways from the all-day summit.

Maine raThe level of public funding for the arts is among the lowest in the country.

The Maine Arts Commission operates on a budget of about $2 million. Only three states—Kansas, Wyoming and Idaho—have smaller budgets for their arts agencies.

Half of that money comes from the Maine Legislature and half from the National Endowment for the Arts. The National Assembly for State Arts Agencies says the roughly $1 million from the Legislature puts Maine 35th in the nation in fiscal year 2024 for public spending on the arts per capita.

“One of our goals is to increase per capita spending so that the arts in Maine are treated at the same level or higher than some of the other traditional industries in our state,” said Bob Keyes, chairman of the Maine Arts Commission.

“We’ve always been in the bottom half of the states, despite an artistic heritage that’s probably greater than all but one or two other states in the country,” he added. “The level of funding has never matched the level of artistic expression.”

Maine artists want lobbyist in Augusta.

But how to get more money from the state?

“We know that the lobster industry has a lobbyist who regularly goes to the State House and advocates for this group,” Caroline Koelker, executive director of Opera Maine, said on one panel. “How can we, as artists and arts organizations, have that same presence?”

Others echoed that call throughout the day. Federal data shows that arts and culture is a $2.2 billion industry in Maine, and leaders at the summit said it should be treated in the same spirit as other leading industries in the state.

The answer may come from the Cultural Alliance of Maine, which formed in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and a desire for cultural institutions to have a greater say in funding and policy for recovery. Executive Director Mollie Cashwell said the alliance recently became a registered nonprofit, which will give it time to lobby. She also said there are many ways organizations can work together to raise visibility for their sector.

“Talking to other sectors like land trusts and outdoor recreation, they’re incredibly jealous of the arts and culture sector because we have foot traffic, we have audiences, we have windows that look out onto sidewalks that people walk by,” Cashwell said. “There’s nothing stopping us from talking more about housing and increasing visibility. There’s nothing stopping us from using the platform that we have to raise awareness of some of these issues.”

The lack of affordable housing is a serious problem for artists and arts organizations in Maine.

Nearly every panel touched on the high cost of living in Portland and Maine. Lauren Wayne, general manager of the State Theatre, said 90 percent of the staff does not live in the city.

“They can’t afford it,” she said. “That’s the hospitality industry. When you go out to eat, when you go to a show, these are the people who work every day to provide that experience and community. I’d like to see them enjoy that in the city where they work.”

The summit was held on both sides of Congress Street in the heart of the Arts District, with one panel focusing on efforts to fill long-standing vacancies in the area. Casey Oakes, deputy director of Portland Ovations, said more affordable housing on higher floors would help bring foot traffic back to those storefronts.

“When those people aren’t shopping downtown, they’re not buying coffee, they’re not getting out and doing their daily shopping, you see those businesses dry up and disappear,” Oakes said. “So the most important thing to me is housing.”

Chris White, who is involved with Maine Artists Cohousing, was in the audience. He said the group is trying to create an affordable community where artists can live and work; its website says it is in the process of exploring ownership models, scouting properties and expanding its advisory board.

“It’s pointless unless we do something together,” he said.

Creative Portland has an app for artists, arts organizations, and art fans.

The nonprofit created a free app to promote art in the city. It offers a searchable list of art galleries, music venues and more in Portland. Creatives and cultural organizations can upload their events for people to browse and save. Visitors can use the app to take self-guided tours of public art in Portland.

Minot said Creative Portland will use the grant this fall to expand the app into augmented reality experiences for the Department of Art, Maine Academy of Modern Music, Indigo Arts Alliance, Space and Loquat.

“It’s like walking through art galleries 24/7,” Minot said.

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