About Arts Midwest

Arts Midwest, a non-profit regional arts organization headquartered in Minneapolis , serves audiences, arts organizations and artists throughout the nine states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The organization's history spans more than 25 years.

Arts Midwest's mission is to connect people throughout the Midwest and the world to meaningful arts opportunities, sharing creativity, knowledge, and understanding across boundaries.

Annually, cultural programs initiated by Arts Midwest reach close to a million people, enhancing the quality of life in hundreds of cities, towns, and rural areas. Arts Midwest brings touring performing artists, educational outreach activities, conferences, and visual arts exhibitions to performing arts centers, arts councils, colleges and universities, primary and secondary schools, community centers, museums, and art centers. Arts Midwest's high-quality cultural activities, in a spectrum of artistic genres, reach school children, university students, families, and adults of all ages.

In addition to managing the NEA's Big Read, current programs include:

Performing Arts Fund, which supports regional performing arts touring.

Midwest Arts Conference, an annual performing arts trade show and educational conference.

Midwest World Fest, a global education and outreach performing arts program that provides inspiring arts enrichment and appreciation for other cultures through in-depth residency experiences featuring international music ensembles.

Exhibitions developed and toured in collaboration with regional museums and art centers examining the Midwest 's distinct cultural visions and styles.

Management of two other National Endowment for the Arts national initiatives: Shakespeare in American Communities, bringing professional Shakespeare theater productions of and related educational activities to Americans throughout the country; and NEA Jazz Masters on Tour, touring highly-esteemed NEA Jazz Masters to audiences across the country.

National and international collaborations, including bi-national projects with Japan and Mexico intended to generate cultural exchange and international collaboration.

Arts Midwest is governed by a volunteer board of directors composed of 15 business, arts, and community leaders. Arts Midwest also works with advisors who help shape its programs and services to fit the needs of the hundreds of artists, organizations and communities it serves. Arts Midwest has a staff of 15 full-time employees and works with approximately 60 volunteers annually.