Culture Works celebrates 50 years of supporting visual, performing arts organizations
Longtime Dayton-area residents may be familiar with Culture Works through workplace giving campaigns, but this organization offers local visual and performing artists so much more than critical financial support.
Culture Works began its existence as the Dayton Performing Arts Fund, which launched in 1974. “At the time, the primary purpose was to raise money for the Dayton Ballet, Philharmonic and Opera,” says Lisa Hanson, president and CEO of the organization. “The thought was, ‘Why are we making professional artists rehearse and stage performances and raise funds necessary to support their careers?’”
Garnering support from large regional employers, the Dayton Performing Arts Fund was off to a great start. “In those days, (the ballet, orchestra and opera) organizations did not have significant development departments—if any—so the Dayton Performing Arts Fund served as the primary fundraiser for general operating support through workplace, corporate and individual contributions,” says Dorie Watts, director of Program Operations and Advocacy at Culture Works.
As other arts organizations in the region saw the fund’s success, additional groups sought financial assistance for programming, and the organization was renamed ArtsDayton in 1989 to reflect this broader scope. “Our core mission has always been to grow and support the arts, financially,” Hanson says. “Culture Works also provides advocacy, programming and marketing support for arts organizations, and we generate community awareness about their access to the arts.”
Culture Works has administered dozens of successful projects over its 50-year existence. One recent example is the Edgemont Solar Garden in Dayton. The community garden, located in a distressed neighborhood, received an “Our Town” creative placemaking grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The project had to integrate arts, culture and design into local efforts to strengthen their community. Artists applied to receive training under mentors and received credits from Sinclair Community College when they completed the module. “We coalesced each artist’s education with functional placemaking,” Hanson says. “We had poets, tile workers, muralists, all kinds of artists working on this outdoor classroom as their capstone project. “
One new way Culture Works is evolving has been through management of the rentable event space in the Dayton Arcade. “Being part of the Arcade development has been good for the community and good for Culture Works because now more people know where we are and our role,” Hanson says. “We manage events at the Arcade but we also provide public performances and concerts. We help new, up-and-coming artists by inviting them to perform in the Tank.”
One recent example is the “ONYX: Black Artists Showcase,” by PNC, which featured storytellers, poets, spoken word, musicians and visual artists from the area. “Coming to the Arcade has been good on many levels,” she said.
New opportunities will emerge when Dayton hosts the 2025 Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. “We plan to have a call out to artists to create installations that celebrate Dayton’s arts history,” Hanson says. “The focus will be on this big international visit, but the installations will live on for years to come.” 2025 will also bring new access to studio space and equipment for creative production in the Arcade, as well as networking and engagement events in conjunction with the 50th anniversary.
