About the Arts Council for Chautauqua County

The arts are not new to this rural landscape. Chautauqua County has been rich in culture and creativity for well over a century. From the connections to the American Arts and Crafts movement and linkages with the Roycroft community, to the establishment of Chautauqua Insitution, to the energies of the spiritualist community at Lily Dale, this land, this Chautauqua land, has been a place where creativity has blossomed. Today, the community still holds its past with the rich summer offerings of the Institution and Lily Dale, but in addition, individual artists, theaters, museums and galleries, arts education and other educational institutions have found the nourishment to succeed. We are rural and we are vibrant in ways that are surprising.

The Arts Council for Chautauqua County was formed in 1979.
Within five years, the Council started to grow into a county wide agency with services to arts organizations and artists, as well as starting its first arts newsletter, Artifacts.

The Council’s growth into Arts in Education, Community Services, Arts Services and Property Management and Development has been a story of opportunity and committment to its mission:

Recognizing that a community which encourages, supports and fosters the arts empowers its citizens to think, work and live creatively, the Arts Council for Chautauqua County works to provide an enviroment in which the arts thrive.

Arts Council's Strategic Plan

The Arts Council for Chautauqua County is supported by a grant from NYSCA