"This report, Tech as Art: Supporting Artists Who Use Technology as a Creative Medium, presents findings from a field scan commissioned in 2019 by the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Ford Foundation and the Knight Foundation. The purpose of the scan was to more fully understand how artists are incorporating digital technologies in their creative work and to learn more about the current and prospective sources of support for these artistic practices. Funders reading the report then can make smarter decisions on how to enhance support for this field. The research is grounded in literature reviews, interviews, and group discussions with artists and practitioners across the United States.

The report shares detailed findings; identifies challenges; and ends with recommendations for different stakeholder groups, including funders, arts practitioners, policymakers, and educators."

...

"This report offers insights for the broader arts and cultural sector, and also the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), to discover shared goals and priorities with tech-focused artists and related practices. For example, the artists profiled in this report have established a range of culturally relevant arts projects and organizations that bridge digital divides and build 21st-century skillsets—services of profound importance to communities with limited access to training and education. In addition, they increasingly embrace the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in their work, while routinely exploring ethical issues around technology—such as data privacy, artificial intelligence, and representation—valuable topics for those seeking to build a more equitable and diverse future.

The backdrop to this research is the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the closure of public gathering spaces around the world in 2020. Artists and cultural organizations had no choice but to pivot practices to reach audiences virtually. As the shutdowns demonstrated, audiences are more than ready to engage digitally—yet many of the practitioners in this report view cultural organizations as underprepared to support the growing digital and virtual needs of artists and audiences. This context magnifies the role of the present report and suggests that more strategic investments are needed to boost the cultural sector’s capacity to serve artists and the public both in physical and in virtual spaces. While the need for these investments was evident prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it has certainly become a preeminent concern today."

— Excerpted from About This Report, pg. 1 & Jax Deluca's Preface, pg. 7 https://www.arts.gov/sites/default/files/Arts%20and%20Tech-final.pdf

"In 2020, libraries of all types stepped up to meet the needs of their communities as they responded to the impacts of COVID-19, a national financial crisis, and social unrest. They were at the center of some of our nation’s most consequential work, including supporting accurate counts in the US Census, fighting political disinformation, and facilitating free and fair elections.

Libraries also extended necessary lifelines to community members facing job losses, healthcare crises, and remote work and learning during an unprecedented and uncertain time. As we assess the state of America’s libraries, we find 2020 was a year when library professionals answered the call to serve amid multiple emergencies and a year when library workers again proved to be essential “first restorers” or “second responders.”

Read more about libraries' response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2020 in the State of America's Libraries 2021 Special Report: COVID-19."

— Excerpted from https://www.ala.org/news/state-americas-libraries-report-2021 Full Report: https://bit.ly/soal-report-2021

"A field study deployed in partnership with the American Alliance of Museums and captures anonymous data from 480 museums of all sizes across all 50 states. This data includes art museums (30%), historic institutions and sites (38%), science museums (11%) and others. A total of 65% of the institutions who responded with size information were defined as small museums, meaning they have annual budgets of $5 million or less, or have fewer than 49 employees.

As these data were collected prior to the spread of COVID-19, findings shine a light on the status of digital innovation in the field prior to the crisis, but also identify both challenges and opportunities that might exist in building capacity for resiliency as the cultural landscape changes.

Key takeaways:
• Dedicated digital staffing is severely limited: Half of the institutions who responded, including 43% of art museums, had either no dedicated digital staff or this department was represented by a single individual. Medium-size institutions ($5–20 million annual budget) were twice as likely to report digital development teams in-house as smaller institutions.

• Digital strategies are still emergent: When asked, 31% of museums admitted they had no digital strategy while another 29% said theirs was in development. Only 25% have a shared digital strategy or incorporate one into their overall strategic plan.

• Digital projects are mostly siloed and outcomes poorly tracked: Approximately half (51%) of museums report that individuals or single departments conduct planning focused on a single project. Only 7% report projects being driven by a cross-functional group, but 18% say their planning is starting to bridge across areas. In addition, 41% of museums do not have any defined goals, KPIs or outcome measures for digital projects, and another 37% do so only on an ad hoc basis.

• Leadership support is high for digital projects: Just under half (44%) report strong leadership knowledge of and support for digital projects, including that digital leaders are a part of senior leadership teams. Across all museums, 11% say digital leaders are a part of senior leadership teams, which drops to 9% for art museums.

• Audience insights are shallow or poorly integrated: While 54% of museums report capturing basic feedback or demographics, only 18% are using audience data to shape efforts and offerings."

"This edition of TrendsWatch presents five critical issues that face museums and their communities in 2021. The format is designed to be practical and immediately actionable, providing a scaffold for discussions and decision- making by the museum’s staff, board, and stakeholders. Each chapter:

• Introduces the issue

• Suggests critical questions for museums

• Describes the challenge

• Summarizes how society, and museums, are responding

• Presents a framework for action

• Documents examples of museums tackling these issues

• Provides additional resources

Introduction to Chapter 2: Digital Awakening: Essential technologies for pandemic survival and future success

"When museums across the country began shutting their doors during the COVID-19 pandemic, it quickly became clear that those which had invested in digital platforms and content were pre-adapted to engage with the public and with staff under the circumstances. In some cases, such digital engagement was essential to fulfilling their core responsibilities—for example, supporting college instruction or providing access for researchers. But other initiatives, although welcomed by a public desperate for distraction, did not have a clear place in museum strategy in the long-term. Furthermore, even though museums were starved for income, there were few examples of how digital engagement could be used to replace or supplement revenue tied to physically interacting with the museum—admissions, space rentals, events, and onsite sales.

The field faces a long hard slog before the pandemic fades and attendance income rebounds. Smart investments in digital practice may help sustain museums during the hard times to come and position them to rebound as the pandemic passes. But even before the COVID crisis, museums struggled with how and when to integrate digital technologies into their work. Now they have less capital to invest, a smaller margin for error, and a lower tolerance for risk. How can museums make wise choices about adopting or maintaining digital technology that will help them survive in the short term and thrive in the coming decade?"

— Excerpted from the TrendsWatch 2021 Report, found at bit.ly/trendswatch2021 and aam-us.org

Also, check out the Center for the Future of Museums Blog:
https://www.aam-us.org/category/future-of-museums/