Arts Wisconsin is working tirelessly to keep Wisconsin’s creative economy strong at this moment of crisis. Please get in touch with questions and comments at info@artswisconsin.org. This site is updated continuously.
- All about the CARES Act and what it means to the creative sector
- Resources – funding and opportunities for creative workers and businesses
- Sign on to Arts Wisconsin’s Legislative Action Center for advocacy actions.
- Sign on to the WisARTS@groups.io listserve for arts sector connections
Click for info on: General health and safety | Organization resource pages | Guides to re-opening, re-emergence, and revitalization | Webinars and sessions for arts organizations and constituents | Stories from the field | Media | Supporting Wisconsin’s creative businesses and workers
General health and safety information:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- Wisconsin Department of Health Services
- ArtsReady, an online emergency preparedness service providing a wealth of resources to arts and cultural nonprofit leaders stewarding their organizations through crises
- CERF+, a grassroots nonprofit that creates safety nets for artists
- The National Coalition for Arts’ Preparedness and Emergency Response.
- Performing Arts Readiness
- Learn More About The Novel Coronavirus, COVID-19 And Wisconsin – WisContext
- AARP resources – latest information
- A Huge Mistake Nonprofits Make in Preparing for COVID-19 – NonProfit Pro
- Get Your Mass Gatherings or Large Community Events Ready for Coronavirus Disease – (CDC)
Organization resource pages
- Americans for the Arts (AFTA):
- Wisconsin Arts Board – COVID-19 info and resources page
- Arts Midwest
- ArtPlace America
- National Endowment for the Arts – FAQs for applicants and awardees
- Association of Performing Arts Presenters
- American Alliance of Museums – COVID-19/Coronavirus Resources & Information for the Museum Field
- Resources for Preparing for the Potential Impact of the Coronavirus – Dance USA
- League of American Orchestras – Coronavirus
- Theatre Communications Group – Preparing for the Impact of the Coronavirus
- Grantmakers in the Arts – A Message on Covid-19 Coronavirus and Arts Funding
- Wisconsin Philanthropy Network – resources for and about philanthropy in the crisis and beyond
Resources – funding and opportunities
Stories from the field: creative sector response to the pandemic
Webinars and listening sessions
- U.S. Arts Organizations to Lose $6.8 B. Because of Pandemic: Report
ArtNews, 5-18-20 - Most theater-goers won’t come back for a while, American Theatre, 5-11-20
- Waukesha dance center finds creative way to stay open and keep kids active during pandemic, CBS 58 | WDJT, 5-4-20
- How Do We Safely Reopen Music Venues?, Offbeat Magazine, 4-30-20
- What The Depression-Era Works Progress Administration Can Teach Us About The Arts During A Crisis, WBUR, 4-29-20
- Milwaukee arts leaders expect comeback from coronavirus to be slow, gradual and unpredictable, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 4-29-20
- Closed by coronavirus, Madison’s performing arts adapt, Madison Capital Times, 4-29-20
- The Cultural World Is Ailing. That’s Why 23 Arts Groups Have United to Give $5,000 to 100 Artists Every Week Until September, ArtNet News, 4-8-20
- The Last Days of the Art World … and Perhaps the First Days of a New One, Vulture, 4-2-20
- Local bands and gigging musicians losing income, connection during shutdowns due to COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin State Journal, 3-29-20
- Eleven ways to help local musicians during the coronavirus crisis, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 3-28-20
- Organizations keep the arts alive in Door County during coronavirus pandemic
Green Bay Press Gazette, 3-27-20 - What Happens When We Lose the Art That Brings Us Together? New York Times, 3-22-20
- Performing Artists and the Fallout of the Coronavirus. An article that should really get us all thinking and talking about the larger practical infrastructure taken for granted in other industries (retirement, health insurance, job protection, sick leave, etc.) that elude “the arts”. Will we get a chance after-coronavirus (whenever that is and whatever that looks like) to retool the performing arts industry and if so, what are the needed building blocks? How do we reduce our vulnerability? What will it take?
New Yorker, 3-20-20 - The arts will recover from the coronavirus, as they did after Sept. 11. But they might look a lot different, Washington Post, 3-19-20
- Finding Connection During An Pandemic, with Anne Basting of Timeslips, Wisconsin Public Radio, 3-17-20
- Pablo Center closes, Eau Claire Leader Telegram, 3-13-20
- Performing Arts And Cultural Organizations Close Their Doors Due To Coronavirus, NPR, 3-12-20
- Everything is in chaos: the concert business stands to lose billions, Rolling Stone, 3-11-20
- Coronavirus Could Decimate Touring Musicians’ Livelihoods, Rolling Stone, 3-11-20
- Theatres Stay Open but Make Backup Plans Amid COVID-19 Concerns, American Theatre, 3-10-20
- For museums, theaters and symphonies, a coronavirus case study in S.F. vs. Seattle, Los Angeles Times, 3-9-20
Supporting Wisconsin’s arts organizations and creative workers:
- If there is a cancellation of live events and if you receive a refund, consider donating the refund to the presenting organization
- Consider becoming a member or sustaining donor to your favorite performing arts organization
- Support individual artists by purchasing music, merchandise, gift cards, and tickets to future events
- Social service organizations like food banks need your help! With volunteer groups cancelling and donations declining, food banks like Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin need people to help sort food at this time when demand will spike. If you are able and healthy, please consider volunteering. Reach out to your local food bank to see what their policies are to ensure the safety of their clients, food supply, and volunteers. If you would like to help in other ways, please consider donating cash rather than food. Due to their scale, food banks can buy more of the types of food they need with your cash donation than you can buy at the store with the same money.
- Sign up:
Person by person and community by community, the impact of COVID-19 is variable and rapidly changing. We will face this challenging time together, locally and nationally.