Creating Arts Connections

By Jim Speirs, Executive Director Arts South Dakota

The biennial State Arts Conference earlier this summer in Sioux Falls brought together champions of the arts from across South Dakota for two days of meaningful workshops, dynamic speakers and the exchange of creative ideas. But the most important aspect of the conference was creating a place where person-to-person arts connections could happen.

This year’s conference had a strong focus on advocacy, reminding participants that they are the frontline activists for the arts and creativity in South Dakota — and that advocacy can be as simple as sharing the message that the arts matter! Representatives of the state’s Community Arts Councils flocked to Sioux Falls, as 30 leaders from 19 communities traveled a combined 8,000 miles to share their stories of success and their passion for our cultural environment. They joined over 100 other conference attendees. The local integration of creative programming into the everyday lives of South Dakota residents was another powerful theme of the conference, shared by city leaders from Yankton to Hill City. You will read more about the arts conference in this issue of Arts Alive. If you joined us at the conference, thank you, and if you couldn’t make it this year, plan to attend in 2026. Everyone is welcome!

We were reminded that the arts drive our local and state economies with jobs, ticket sales and tax revenues. People came away from the conference energized to share their advocacy, re-educated on the sheer power of cultural connections and convinced that ours is a culture rich in history, potential, legacy and creativity. Most of all, those of us who attended were linked in the knowledge that all of us — and everyone who shares our belief in the arts as vital to modern life — are the future of cultural growth in South Dakota.

This partnership is made possible with funds from the State of South Dakota through the Department of Tourism and from the National Endowment for the Arts.