Performance art on Bogart Street during Bushwick Open Studios 2016 (photo by Hrag Vartanian/ Hyperallergic)
Quartz has published an analysis of the US cities with the densest concentration of artists, compiled from US Census data spanning five years from 2011 to 2016. Unsurprisingly, the results show that artists tend to congregate disproportionately in major metropolitan areas and cultural hubs —and that many, many artists are (still) moving to Brooklyn.
But still, there are some interesting details. The study uses categories for “artist,” defined by the NEA, and these extend beyond what might initially come to most people’s minds. In addition to all the usual suspects (photographers, fine artists, dancers, musicians), the study also accounts for less expected métiers, like PA system announcers, ad copy writers, floral designers, and ventriloquists.
In the final analysis, New York claimed two of the top spots in drawing artists, with Manhattan at number one and Kings County (i.e. Brooklyn) as number three. San Francisco (number two), LA (number four) and Portland (number five) rounded out the top five.
