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Arts and Culture

COVID-19 update: Our office is closed to the public. For more information, please read the Mayor's letter to the arts community. We also created a way for you to view and promote ongoing virtual arts and cultural events in the City. If you have questions, email arts@boston.gov.

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Our office enhances the quality of life, the economy, and the design of the City through the arts. The role of the arts in all aspects of life in Boston is reinforced via equitable access to arts and culture in every community, its public institutions, and public places.

Key areas of work include support to the cultural sector through grants and programs, as well as the production and permitting of art in public places.

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Contact
arts@boston.gov
1 City Hall Square
Room 802
Boston, MA 02201-2029
Temporary COVID-19 hours
City Hall is only open to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
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Current Opportunities

Current Opportunities
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Opportunity Fund

The Opportunity Fund provides grants of up to $1,000 to support individual artists and local arts events planned by artists.

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Virtual Event Listing

We are providing a way for residents to find and spread the word about virtual arts events and programs organized by groups in Greater Boston.

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Call to Artists: Roxbury Branch Library

The City of Boston invites artists to apply to create a permanent public artwork for the Roxbury branch of the Boston Public Library. 

Latest news

News
Photo of Boston Cultural Council grantee and Modeling Equity Organization award winner Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center - Pao Arts Center.

$485,000 awarded to 145 arts organizations in Boston Cultural Council grants

Arts and Culture
Photo of artist Destiny Palmer

Artist Destiny Palmer selected for public art project in Roxbury

Arts and Culture
Image for Phase 3 reopening guidance for indoor fitness, outdoor events and performances, and tourism industry issued

Phase 3 reopening guidance for indoor fitness, outdoor events and performances, and tourism industry issued

Economic Development
Image for $1 million Arts and Culture COVID-19 fund to support nonprofits

$1 million Arts and Culture COVID-19 fund to support nonprofits

Arts and Culture
More Arts news

Upcoming Events

Events
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Aug 10

Boston Cultural Council

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Aug 11

Boston Art Commission meeting

Artist Resource Desk

Find out about resources and services available for artists in the City of Boston.

Artist Resource Desk

Public Art

We commission artists for both permanent and temporary public art projects in the City.

Photo Credit:
Photo of Don Rimx's "Powerful Knowledge" mural courtesy of Chris Gaines.
Learn more about public art in Boston

Strand Theatre

The theater in Dorchester serves as a cultural and educational resource to artists and audiences.

Strand information

Boston Creates Cultural Plan

Boston Creates is the City of Boston's ten-year long cultural plan. The goal is to enhance arts and culture in the City. It was established through an extensive community engagement process. This included a town hall meeting and a citywide online survey. Some goals highlighted in the plan include:

  • providing fertile grounds for a vibrant and sustainable arts ecosystem
  • keeping local artists in Boston and attracting new ones here
  • making arts accessible to everyone
  • ensuring that all cultural traditions are respected, and
  • integrating arts and culture into all aspects of civic life.

 

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Learn about Boston Creates

Our Grant Opportunities

Contact: Arts and Culture
Artist Fellowship Award
The pilot grant invests in individual artists living and working in Boston.
Arts and Culture COVID-19 Fund
This fund will support cultural nonprofits that have had to drastically reduce and change their programs as a result of COVID-19.
Boston Cultural Council Organizational Grants
The BCC organizational grants provide awards of up to $5,000 to local arts organizations.
Fay Chandler Emerging Artist Awards
Every fall, the City recognizes fresh, original, and contemporary work made by Boston artists.
Opportunity Fund
Apply for a grant to help continue your development, build skills, share your artistic work, and teach others.
Project Partnership Grant
This grant is intended to elevate recurring events and programs that create opportunities for artists in Boston.
Radical Imagination for Racial Justice
This regranting program distributes funds to artists seeking to advance racial justice through collaborative projects in their communities.

Other Programs

Alternative Space Pilot Project for Artists
We partner with local businesses and institutions to make underused private spaces available to artists.
Artist Resource Desk
Find out more about services for artists in the City of Boston.
Boston AIR
In the program, artists, community members, and City employees work on projects that help reframe social conversations. These artists explore the ways they can use art and media to improve and bolster City initiatives.
Boston Cultural Council
The council awards grants that help artists and arts organizations thrive.
City Hall Galleries
Boston City Hall is home to several galleries that promote and exhibit the work of Boston artists.
Creative Commercial Space Connector
We created a form to help match those seeking spaces and spaces looking for long-term tenants.
Cultural Districts
Cultural districts are well-recognized areas that help strengthen local economies and add vibrancy to local culture.
Current open calls and applications
See what public art projects the City has planned and submit your proposals.
Finding space as an artist in Boston
We want to help artists of all disciplines find spaces in Boston.
King Memorial
We're working with nonprofit MLK Boston to help bring a memorial honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King to Boston.
One Boston Resilience Project
We're beginning a citywide community engagement process to envision our collective strength after violence, as illuminated by the Boston Marathon Bombing.
Open Studios
Talk to and buy art directly from artists, see demonstrations, listen to music, and more.
PaintBox
Local artists can paint a City of Boston-owned utility box with their original designs.
Percent for Art
The City sets aside one percent of its annual capital borrowing budget for the commissioning of public art.
Poet Laureate
The Poet Laureate works to raise the status of poetry in the everyday lives of residents.
Raining Poetry
The Mayor's Mural Crew works with the Poet Laureate and Mass Poetry to create invisible poems on the streets of Boston.
Transformative Public Art Program
We commission several murals and temporary projects every year as part of the Transformative Public Art Program.

Meet the Staff

Meet the Staff