About us

Artists’ Insights

What is it?
Artists’ Insights aims to unlock the artists’ professional potential and develop the arts throughout England to the benefit of everyone.

Our research shows that artists working in all artforms face many obstacles to their creativity and careers. With Artists’ Insights, Arts Council England is working with some of its key partners to develop the tools an artist needs to meet the professional challenges they face.

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Why are we doing it?
Because artists make a vital contribution to the social, cultural and economic landscape across England. Making sure their status is valued, and professional achievements acknowledged, will mean they can continue to illuminate our lives with work that is challenging and innovative.

How are we doing it?
We are listening to what artists are telling us, and our partners, about their professional needs and responding to what we learn. Six action-based initiatives are already under way to benefit artists’ work and artists’ lives, and to make sure they can:

  • Interact through innovative placements in research and industry contexts

  • Invigorate their careers, through opportunities for creative renewal

  • Interpret the law as it affects them, through expert legal guidance

  • Influence their future wellbeing, through long-term financial planning

  • Inhabit affordable, sustainable workspaces in which they can create and experiment

  • Inform the wider world of the professional, social and economic value of their skills

Our approach to Artists’ Insights is a long-term one. We are investing now in solutions that will continue to provide support long after our financial commitment ends.

Where does it all begin?
It all starts with artists and what they have told us through research and consultation. Beyond this there is no defined starting point.

Working with and on behalf of artists has always been part of Arts Council England’s core business, and it is central to Our Agenda.

What’s next?
More information about each of the six initiatives will be available from this website soon.

We will also publish a downloadable newsletter providing updates on each area.

Subscribe to the Artists' Insights newsletter

If you have any queries in the mean time please contact us at artistsinsights@artscouncil.org.uk.

To download the latest Artists' Insights update, Autumn/ Winter 07 edition, click here for the screen version, and here for the print version.

Previous updates are listed to download below. The screen versions contain functional hyperlinks. The print versions have no hyperlinks, and are much smaller to download:

Edition 1: Artists' Insights update (autumn/ winter 06) screen [PDF 453.26kb]
Edition 1: Artists' Insights update (autumn/ winter 06) print [PDF 380.57kb]

Edition 2: Artists' Insights update (spring/ summer 07) screen [PDF1.94mb]
Edition 2: Artists' Insights update (spring/ summer 07) print [PDF344kb]