Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis or RAC is an organization located in St. Louis, Missouri, United States promoting arts and culture in the region. Regional Arts Commission is the largest funder of arts in the St. Louis region. RAC has awarded more than 7,000 grants totaling more than US$300 million. In 2018, the commission received $6.4 million in tax money. $3.8 million were awarded through a grants process to the arts community including 125 organizations, including the largest grantee at US$413,276 for the St. Louis Symphony, and the smallest grant of US$500 to an individual working the arts. Another portion of that money is used for a program called the Community Arts Training Institute, a program with a 22 year track record which trains both artists of all disciplines and community members in how to use arts to effect change in their community. RAC also supports local conferences, events, workshops, and public art projects. The remainder of the funds support operations including salaries and building costs as well as a reserve fund. RAC has 15 full and part-time employees. The Commission's board is appointed by the Mayor of St. Louis and by the County Executive and is made up of 13 civic volunteers. The current director is Felicia Shaw who was hired by the Commission in 2015. She worked previously at San Diego's Commission for Arts and Culture as a program director and then for Young Audiences San Diego. She is originally from St. Louis and moved back to St. Louis in 2015 to lead RAC.
History
The Regional Arts Commission was founded in 1985 through a state charter and functions as a grantor and leader in the arts. RAC receives its primary funding from a portion of the hotel/motel tax collected from both St. Louis City and St. Louis County giving it an annual budget of about $6 Million. In 2015, Felicia Shaw took over as the director from Jill McGuire. McGuire was the first director of the agency and made a number of innovations in her 30 year tenure including adding grants to community-based organizations with arts programming; providing direct funding for artists; and increasing the national profile of the local agency through conferences and research studies.
Criticism
Shaw arrived on the job in 2015, and made it a priority to improve the transparency of the granting process and make a more fair system for dispersal of funds:
Evoke, The Big Reveal and Creative Vision for St. Louis
In 2018, RAC led a series of sessions to get feedback from the local St. Louis community, called "Evoke", or the "Evoke Sessions". In 2018, RAC announced in press event titled, The Big Reveal, the first comprehensive creative vision for St. Louis, a 90-page report and website, created through a US$250,000 study paid for from RAC's marketing budget and corporate donations. In 2018, effects of the change in granting process effected some groups.
In September 2018, with the last minute cancellation of the annual St. Louis music festival, LouFest, The Kranzberg Arts Foundation, Urban Chestnut Brewing Co., Gaslight Records, Venture Cafe, Regional Arts Commission, Fabricatorz Foundation, and Express Scripts sponsored a showcase called The Sound of St. Louis featuring over 15 local musical acts at The Grendel in Grand Center Arts District, St. Louis. The acts performing at the Sounds of St. Louis include Ben Reece's Unity Quartet, Bob DeBoo, The Burney Sisters, DJ AgileOne, Dracla, Grace Basement, Jesse Gannon, Kasimu-tet, Kevin Bowers' Nova, The Knuckles, Mo Egeston, Owen Ragland, Ptah Williams, The River Kittens, Scrub & Ace Ha, and Tonina.
St. Louis Art Place Project
In 2018, along with the Kranzberg Arts Foundation and the Incarnate Word Foundation, RAC created the St. Louis Art Place Project as a way to provide inexpensive housing and studio space to artist's in the St. Louis Gravois Park neighborhood.
Current
In 2018, Theatre Communications Group received a grant from RAC in support of the Third Round of Rising Leaders of Color program. In 2018, the RAC received a grant from the Gateway Foundation to help students who want to get into arts administration. In 2018, RAC received a US$1 million grant from Wells Fargo to develop new curriculum under the Lincoln Center plan.
