2025 Arts & Culture Outlook: Leslie Forrester

What mindset do people have about the arts, specifically in southwest Missouri?
We have a very supportive community of the local arts. We have a lot of patrons who are supportive across the board of arts and culture broadly, so we have a lot of shared audiences that are passionate about seeing the arts succeed in Springfield and throughout the region. A lot of folks have gone through educational programs, or have seen a production that was especially meaningful, or saw a painting in a gallery. They become really dedicated patrons, donors and champions.

How has the Springfield Regional Arts Council promoted arts and culture as an economic driver in the region?
We completed a yearlong study of the arts and culture in Springfield. We do this about every five years through a partnership with Americans for the Arts. They are studying it nationally, and there are about 320 other cities that are contributing data to this larger project. We now know from that report that the arts generate about $89 million in economic activity in Springfield from 39 different arts and culture organizations. We have some hard data to talk about. The way we are talking about is helping to market and tell people about what is going on because we have such a sizeable arts and culture community here. There’s a lot to do and see and experience, and that’s something that is unusual for communities our size. We rival a lot of larger cities, and that is something we are so proud of.

How are those in the industry trying to address challenges such as diversifying funding, leadership challenges and creating more physical infrastructure?
Those are definitely big challenges. The area we’ve made at least some progress in is helping to diversify funding. We brought together funds from the tourism tax, which was increased for arts, culture and sports. We collect a piece of that – I believe it’s 4.5% – that we put into this grant fund along with contributions from the Musgrave Foundation and the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. We had previously been granting between $40,000 to $60,000 a year, and so in 2024, we increased that to $215,000, which we hope to recreate and hopefully grow in the new year.

What are some local needs that are looking to be filled in 2025 within arts and culture?
Physical infrastructure is a real challenge. There are several projects underway in the fundraising cycle of projects. Some are getting ready to turn dirt, and they are very expensive, so that is going to be a challenge for us to see how we can expand spaces. We can prevent some of the brain drain for students at Missouri State. What if we have spaces and studios for them to move into after they finish their degree program so they can continue to practice their art? You need space to be loud and messy and create, and we don’t have a lot of those spaces right now. There is definitely a big call for that type of investment.

Any other projections?
There is a very bleak projection about what may happen with public broadcasting. There are pretty grave concerns about public funding for things like PBS, as well as the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Those things are critical for this larger idea of culture and America, and they’re often easy punching bags. So, keeping an eye on that, engaging with our elected officials that hold those positions, and be very clear about why we need to support those for our community and for the strength of our city.