The Nevada Arts Council (NAC) was established as a state agency in 1967 to enrich the cultural life of the state by supporting, strengthening, and making excellence in the arts accessible to all Nevadans. The Nevada Arts Council is one of America’s 56 state and jurisdictional arts agencies that ensure that every community in the U.S. receives the cultural, civic, economic, and educational benefits of the arts. The Nevada Arts Council supports Nevada’s rural communities, enlivens its public spaces, promotes health and healing, sparks economic growth, drives educational success, fosters inclusion and equity, reaches low income communities, creates opportunities for artists, and serves the public. The Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Tourism and Cultural affairs, receives funding from the State of Nevada, the National Endowment for the Arts, and other private and public sources.
The arts are a vital asset that improve the quality of life throughout Nevada communities. The arts foster critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, and connections to our rich culture and heritage. The Nevada Arts Council, through its programs and many partnerships, actively works to connect diverse art, artists and arts organizations to audiences in the streets, galleries, museums, theaters, and classrooms found throughout our urban and rural communities.
The Arts Learning Program supports lifelong learning in the arts by promoting and expanding quality arts education opportunities for all Nevada citizens through statewide initiatives, grants and professional development opportunities.
The Artist Services Program encourages the work of Nevada’s literary, performing and visual artists. With a focus on the needs and concerns of the individual artist, the program components serve artists through grant funding, programs supporting the work of artists, professional development opportunities and technical assistance.
Community Arts Development Program (CAD) supports Nevada’s nonprofit arts and culture organizations, municipalities, public institutions and communities with a variety of programs and services aimed to build vibrant communities statewide. CAD works to:
The NAC Folklife Program promotes appreciation of Nevada’s folklife and traditional arts by producing projects, publications, exhibitions, recordings, and films; documenting living traditions; maintaining the Nevada Folklife Archives of photographs, recorded interviews, field notes, and folk art objects; and supporting the folk and traditional arts activities of individuals, organizations, and communities through grants, consultations, and technical assistance.
The Grants Program reflects a significant commitment by the State of Nevada to support the creation of art and access to the arts for its citizens. NAC grants support the efforts of nonprofit arts and community organizations, public institutions and individual artists to make cultural activities and experience widely available to those who live in or visit Nevada.
Nevada’s first Arts License Plate is available at DMV field offices statewide. The plate, designated by DMV as the “Children in the Arts” license plate, is available in a standard or personalized format. If you are interested in a standard format, the initial cost will be $51 dollars with an annual renewal fee of $20 in addition to all other registration fees.
