CREATIVE COMMUNIT YINDEX

IN QUIRIES INTO CULTURE SERIESPublished by

C U LTURAL INITIATIVES SILICON VA L L E Y

Measuring Progress TowardA Vibrant Silicon Valley

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The purpose of the C r e a t i ve Community Index i s :

• To describe, based on quantitative research,the cultural landscape of Silicon Valley, withspecial emphasis on the arts.

• To illuminate correlations between SiliconValley’s cultural vitality and its capacity togenerate creative ideas significant to theregion’s economic and social well-being.

Silicon Valley has a tradition of gatheringobjective data on a wide range of regionalissues of public import. For many years, JointVenture: Silicon Valley Network has producedan annual Index of Silicon Valley, which presentsextensive data and analysis on the region’seconomy, environment, society and area stew-ardship. Joint Venture’s steady research hasbeen instrumental in several important region-al initiatives related to transportation, educa-tion, housing and the economy.

In 2002, Cultural Initiatives Silicon Valley,with major support from the John S. andJames L. Knight Foundation, published thefirst Creative Community Index. It presenteddata on cultural trends in Silicon Valley, thefirst since 20/21: A Regional Cultural Plan for the New Millennium in 1997. Following up onthe 2002 Index, Cultural Initiatives separatelycommissioned two anthropologists, Dr. PiaMoriarty and Dr. Maribel Alvarez, to conductfield research and write first-ever reports onthe condition of this region’s participatory(amateur) cultural activities. Dr. Moriarty’sreport was released in May 2004, and Dr.Alvarez’s work will be published this fall.

Welcome

I wish to extend my deep gratitude to thefunding sources and partners who have madethe 2005 Creative Community Index possible.The concept of including analysis on the cultural views and aspirations of local leadersoriginated with American Leadership ForumSilicon Valley, which also contributed gener-ously to the project. The release of the 2005Index coincides with a major conference on creativity in Silicon Valley for which the Forum was a key organizer. The James IrvineFoundation provided the initial grant support,and major funding was also provided by theJohn S. and James L. Knight Foundation, TheDavid and Lucile Packard Foundation, TheWilliam and Flora Hewlett Foundation, andAdobe Systems Incorporated. Garnering sup-port for research and analysis is usually diffi-cult, but these funders all expressed a keeninterest in the results of this effort.

A special thanks to Frederick Ferrer,Commission Chair of FIRST 5 Santa ClaraCounty, for the inspiration to collect data onpreschool children. Credit is also due to theSurvey and Policy Research Institute at SanJosé State University, whose staff conducted aremarkable random telephone survey of adultresidents of the Valley, and to the San JoséOffice of Cultural Affairs and Arts CouncilSilicon Valley for their assistance.

Susan HammerBoard PresidentCultural Initiatives Silicon Valley

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Susan Hammer, PresidentKim Walesh, Vice PresidentRobert Wayman, TreasurerMai BuiVirginia Chang Kiraly

Ann GralnekMichael HackworthChristine HarrisKim PoleseDr. Harry Saal

Copyright © 2005 Cultural Initiatives Silicon Valley Printed in the United States of America

Cultural Initiatives Silicon Valley1153 Lincoln Avenue, Suite ISan José, California 95125-3009Telephone: 408.283.7000, Facsimile: 408.283.2127www.ci-sv.org

This publication is made possible through the generous support of American Leadership ForumSilicon Valley, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The James Irvine Foundation, TheDavid and Lucile Packard Foundation, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and AdobeSystems Incorporated.

Cover Photo: Girls perform classical Indian dances for packed crowds at the Hindu Temple andCommunity Center, South Bay, in Sunnyvale. Photographer: Raj Bhanot

Creative Community IndexAdvisorsPaul Bains, Saint Samuels Church of God in ChristChris Block, Charities Housing Development CorporationDennise Carter, Carter McNultyAlexa Cortes CulwellDebra L. DunnPhaedra Ellis-Lamkins, South Bay AFL-CIO Labor CouncilChris Eyre, Legacy VentureJohn Ford, Stanford UniversitySusan Goldberg, San Jose Mercury NewsTeresa Guerrero-Daley, Superior Court, Santa Clara CountyAmmar Hanafi, Alloy VenturesTalat Hasan, India Community CenterMarc Jones, Visionael CorporationVani Kola, CertusDiane Savage, Cooley GodwardScott Seaman, Los Gatos Police DepartmentBryan Stolle, Agile SoftwareAmari Romero Thomas, United Way Silicon ValleyChui L. Tsang, San Jose City College

Authors John Kreidler and Philip J. Trounstine Contributing Writer Jessica ZenkTechnical Advisors Alan Brown, Brendan Rawson and Kim Walesh Editor and Production Manager Laura JasonSurvey Manager Vanessa ShiehDesign and Publication San Francisco Study Center D a ta Archive Cultural Policy and the Arts National Data Arc h i ve (CPA N DA), Princeton Un i ve r s i t y

Cultural Initiatives Silicon Valley Board of Directors

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We want leaders and residents to operate from an informed position in making Silicon Valley a more lively, satisfying, innovative place in which to live and work.

Contents

Welcome 1

Key Findings 4

What’s New in 2005 5

Why Art and Culture Are Important to Silicon Valley 5

The Cultural Ecology of Silicon Valley 6Cultural Literacy: Children and Youth 8Cultural Literacy: Adults 11Participatory Cultural Practice 12Professional Cultural Goods and Services: Nonprofit

Cultural Organizations 14Professional Cultural Goods and Services: Artists 17

Cultural Views and Aspirations of Regional Leaders 18

Recommendations 21

Sources of Data and Methodology 22

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KEY FINDINGSCreativity is widely valued in Silicon Valleywhere many residentsexercise creativity onthe job and in theirdaily lives

Overall, the regional “creativecommons,” the environment thatpromotes the generation of originalideas, appears to be strong.

• And yet, 58% of regional leaderssurveyed for the Index said thatSilicon Valley is slipping in itsability to attract new creative tal-ent, even though creative workerswant to live and work here andenjoy the region once they movehere. The data further suggestthat improvements in the arts,leisure opportunities, and vibranturban neighborhoods wouldmake Silicon Valley more attrac-tive to creative, talented people.

• A dramatic finding is just howmany residents of the region wantto learn more about the arts, andwant children to receive substan-tial arts training from preschoolthrough high school. Nine of 10adults said arts education shouldbe required in the schools, and themedian response was that theyshould be taught art three to four

hours each school week. A majoreffort to restore arts education inthe Valley’s K-5 schools is nowunder way in three-fourths ofSanta Clara County school dis-tricts as a result of Silicon Valley’s1997 20/21 Regional Cultural Plan.An independent evaluation of thiseffort shows strong results, but itwill take much more work toattain the three to four hours aweek of instruction favored by thesurvey respondents.

• Significant correlations werefound between adults employed in creative occupations and theirparticipation in the arts. TheIndex’s 2005 telephone survey of 1,010 adults identified 406employed in jobs requiring cre-ative skills. A significantly higherproportion of people in creativeoccupations, 41%, indicated thatthe arts played a major role intheir lives, compared with 34% for people in noncreative jobs.Creative workers consistently said they attended cultural out-ings more often than those whosejobs did not involve significantcreativity. For example, 33% of creative workers attended musicalconcerts, compared with 27% notengaged in creative work. Formovie attendance, the comparisonwas 63%/54%; for theater, 26%/21%;for museums, 21%/15%; and fordance, 23%/18%. Moreover, peoplein creative jobs favored mandatoryarts education at an exceptionallyhigh rate, 92%, and they favoredmore hours per week of arts education than people in non-creative jobs.

• Many Silicon Valley adults areamateur artists: 55% reported par-ticipating in some cultural genre.The leading form of expressionwas playing a musical instrument(30%), followed by creative writing(22%), dancing (19%), painting(18%) and drawing (13%). Theyaverage four to five hours perweek on these activities.

• The 52% of respondents who participate in some form of civicactivity and the 39% who volun-teer regularly were significantlymore likely to say arts play amajor role in their lives than thosewho do neither (43% for both civicparticipants and volunteers, 31%of nonparticipants and 33% ofnonvolunteers). These findingsare the strongest evidence amongthe 2005 data to support theassertion that the arts and cultureare correlated to enhanced civicengagement.

None of our data suggest that thecultural ecology of Silicon Valley is,as yet, in a state of crisis. Significantproblems are apparent in K-12 artseducation, nonprofit cultural organ-izations, and for professional artists.Significant opportunities are evi-dent in reaping greater public bene-fits from a robust tier of amateurarts practice, and fulfilling theregion’s aspiration to establish anauthentic cultural identity. Theseproblems and opportunities can beaddressed through intelligent lead-ership, a Silicon Valley tradition.

Arts and culture have vital practical relevance for the economyand civil society of Silicon Valley.

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WHY ARTAND CULTUREARE IMPORTANTTO SILICONVALLEY

Art and culture are rightfullyregarded as intrinsically valuable to a healthy community, but theCreative Community Index takes thatview a step further and posits thatculture also has vital practical rele-vance for the economy and civilsociety of Silicon Valley.

Silicon Valley is wo r l d - r e n owned as aleader in technological and businessi n n ovation, a reputation attributa b l eto key individuals and institutionssuch as David Packa rd, WilliamH e w l ett, NASA Ames Re s e a rc hCenter and Sta n fo rd Un i ve r s i t y. Italso draws strength from the broad-er “creative commons” that charac-terizes this region: a fe rtile env i r o n-ment that promotes the generationof original ideas, and is replenished,in turn, by the region’s social, eco-nomic and cultural vita l i t y.

Dr. Richard Florida, in his influen-tial 2002 book, The Rise of the CreativeClass: And How It’s Transforming Work,Leisure, Community and Everyday Life,ranks the San Francisco Bay Area asthe United States’ leading center ofeconomic creativity, scoring 1,057on the “Creativity Index.”

Dr. Florida regards the Bay Area,with Silicon Valley as a subregion, asresponsible for exceptional econom-ic and technological innovation. SanFrancisco has the most substantialconcentration of urban authenticityelements, while Silicon Valley andthe East Bay contain many of theuniversities and corporations thatserve as a focal point for businessand technological innovation.

D r. Florida’s research supports thea s s e rtion that exc e ptional regionaleconomies are the result of high con-centrations of creative wo rkers. Theconditions that attract these wo rke r sinclude urban authenticity and toler-ance, as well as pre-existing concen-trations of creative people, oft e nclustered around universities, corp o-rations and cultural institutions.

Extrapolating Dr. Florida’s findings,the perfect creative commons wouldbe an economically vibrant land-scape dotted with gritty coffee hous-

es and bars, converted studio lofts,eclectic restaurants, independentbookstores and basement jazz clubs,in which a mingling of eccentricartists, entrepreneurs, intellectualsand scientists of every nationalityand race would be sketching out the next wave of philosophy, science,art and technology.

This vision is not far-fetched when it is remembered that Watson andCrick first drew a diagram of theDNA molecule in a pub inCambridge, and Jobs and Wozniakdeveloped some of their early con-cepts of the personal computerwithin the Homebrew ComputerClub, which met at various venuesin the suburbs surroundingStanford University.

All of the top 10 regions in Dr.Florida’s analysis excel as bastionsof urban authenticity and tolerance,and contain major concentrationsof creative workers. The other nine

Regional leaders said Silicon Valley is slipping in its ability to attract new creative talent.

WHAT’S NEW IN 2005 More and Better Data in the Index

As in 2002, the 2005 Creative Community Index hasassembled data from original surveys and secondarysources to achieve a broad understanding of SiliconValley’s cultural ecology. Several new features havebeen incorporated into the 2005 edition.

• The 2002 study of adult residents was based on anintercept survey — “man-on-the-street” interviews —with 350 individuals. The 2005 research used a random telephone survey of 1,010 individuals toimprove statistical reliability.

• Recognizing that leadership is pivotal in any initia-tive aimed at improving the regional cultural ecology,the 2005 Index includes data from a new survey ofleaders in business, civic affairs, labor, education, religion and the nonprofit sectors.

• The 2005 Index examines cultural education andactivities for K-12 youth, and includes data on services for preschool children.

• The 2005 Index incorporates recent research on thecondition of local artists.

New emphasis should be placed on creating and supporting spaces for artists to work, exhibit and sell their products

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on his index, with their scores, are:Austin (1,028), San Diego (1,015),Boston (1,015), Seattle (1,008),Raleigh-Durham (996), Houston(980), Washington-Baltimore (964),New York (962), and Dallas andMinneapolis-St. Paul, tied at 960.

In contrast, regions that are ruraland mono-cultural may be greatplaces to live, but their creative com-mons are not robust. In last place in Dr. Florida’s rankings of creativemetropolitan places, with a score of73 on the “Creativity Index,” is Enid,Oklahoma. Although Enid may notbe a renowned center of creativity,it has been proclaimed “… the mostromantic destination in the world.”

The essential point is that the artsand culture make a difference in theeconomic life of a region by helpingto attract creative workers and sup-porting a yeasty environment forinnovation in many realms ofendeavor, including business andtechnology.

Beyond their significance to eco-nomic creativity, the arts and otherforms of culture, such as cuisine andfashion, are important vehicles forshaping the identity and socialcohesion of a region. Given thatSilicon Valley’s residents are highlymobile, the arts and culture can beinstrumental in preserving identityfor the region’s many domestic andinternational immigrants, while pro-viding bridges by which thesediverse populations can learn aboutand form associations with oneanother.

Given that Joint Venture’s annualIndex of Silicon Valley already provides

a substantial body of data andanalysis on the social and economicfeatures of the region, the CreativeCommunity Index dwells on the cul-tural sector, making frequent refer-ence to social and economic connec-tions, but not repeating the findingsof Joint Venture’s Index.

THE CULTURALECOLOGYOF SILICONVALLEY3 Keys to a CreativeCommunity

The analytic framewo rk of theC r e a t i ve Community Index r e c o g n i z e sthree interrelated elements of ah e a l t hy cultural ecology: cultural lit-e r a c y, part i c i p a t o ry cultural practice,and professional cultural goods ands e rvices.

• Cultural literacy is definedas fluency in traditions, aes-thetics, manners, customs,language and the arts,and the ability to applycritical thinkingand creativity tothese elements.Cultural litera-cy is acqu i r e dthroughformal

institutions such as schools, fra-ternal groups and religious con-gregations, and informal institu-tions such as the family.

• Pa rt i c i p a to ry cultural pra c t i c eis the engagement of individualsand groups in cultural activities in a nonp r o fessional set t i n g .D r awing, writing poet ry, cosmet i cm a keup, singing in a communitychorus, social dance, and garagerock bands are exa mples of part-i c i p a t o ry cultural practice (theterm “amateur” conveys a similarm e a n i n g ) .

• Professional cultural goods and services are the products of formally organized culturalproducers and individual profes-sional practitioners, whetherworking in the commercial ornonprofit sector. Examples of professional goods and servicesmight include a production of Tosca by Opera San José, a new video game produced by Electronic Arts, a public sculp-ture commissioned by the SanJosé Arts Commission, or a com-

puter graphic created by a localartist.

These three elements of thecultural ecology operate

as a structural hierarchy,as visualized in the

accompanying diagram.

The founda-tion of the

culturalecology

ProfessionalCultural Goods

and Services

Participatory Cultural Practice

Cultural Literacy

CULTURAL ECOLOGY

Significant correlations were foundbetween adults employed in creativeoccupations and their participation in the arts.

is cultural literacy: understandingthe basics of music, visual art, poet-ry, design, computer graphics, low-rider cars or fashionable clothes;appreciating the history of thesecultural genres; developing a senseof quality; and having the capacityto apply critical judgments.

The pyramid’s second level, partici-patory (amateur) practice, can beattained only by culturally literateindividuals and communities. Forexample, the creation of a quiltrequires mastery of sewing tech-niques and knowing the aesthetictraditions of quilt design.

The apex, the professional level ofgoods and services, depends on theunderlying foundation of participa-tory practice in at least three ways:

1. Most professional cultural workers begin as amateurs;

2. Participatory practitioners are the most frequent customers forprofessional goods and services;

3. Innovation in professional goodsand services often originates inthe domain of participatorypractice; new trends in music and fashion are good examples.

The operation of this structuralhierarchy is nicely illustrated byone of culture’s better-understooddomains: sports. Literacy in sports is acquired in a variety of formal andinformal settings, including schools,recreation leagues, private instruc-tion, television, and families’ back-yards. The participatory practice ofathletics also transpires in a broadrange of informal and formal set-tings, including after-school gamesof pick-up basketball, Little LeagueBaseball, Pop Warner Football, andNCAA sports.

At the level of professional athletics,a range of teams reflects the sportsliteracy and amateur practice foundthroughout any given nation or

region. For example, professionaland semi-pro baseball are found invirtually every part of the UnitedStates. In comparison, professionalsoccer, introduced in the UnitedStates in the last 40 years, thrivesonly in places with a history of amateur soccer, or where a sizeablenumber of immigrants from soccer-imbued nations reside. The averagefan at almost any professionalsports event knows the rules, normsand traditions of that sport; andmany play the sport as amateurs, ordid so at an earlier age. In addition,almost all professional athletesgraduated through the ranks ofamateurs, and acquired literacy intheir sport at an early age.

The pattern in sports is closely repli-cated in the arts. In the case of audi-ences for professional symphonies,approximately two-thirds of atten-dees can read music and about halfregard themselves as “critical listen-ers,” two aspects of musical literacy.Moreover, most symphony-goerscurrently play or previously played amusical instrument. Almost withoutexception, professional musiciansonce performed as amateurs, andmany continue to do so throughouttheir careers.

This pattern had real implicationsfor Silicon Valley’s most venerablecultural institution, the 123-year-oldSan Jose Symphony, which declaredbankruptcy in 2002. Over twodecades, the Symphony graduallydeclined in its ability to coverexpenses from ticket revenues, so itcame to rely heavily on donationsand grants. Over this same period oftime, music education (literacy) wasdeclining in the public schools, anda high rate of immigration wasbringing people from parts of the

world where there was no traditionof symphonic music. The Symp h o ny ’ sdemise is a complex story, but thiserosion of the underlying regionalbase of musical literacy and partici-patory practice was surely a con-tributing factor.

As the San Jose Symphony was failing, in Milpitas the IndiaCommunity Center was succeedingwith remarkable cultural vigor.The India Center is in an attractive,well-equipped building and offersan energetic set of programs thatprovide youth and adults with literacy in South Asian culture (languages, cuisine, yoga, perform-ing arts), opportunities for partici-patory engagement in cultural pas-times, and a schedule of profession-al exhibitions and performances.The center is in the midst of acquir-ing a larger facility, and already hasfull financing for the purchase andrenovation of a nearby building. TheIndia Community Center is con-nected to a culturally literate popu-lation, but it is noteworthy that thecenter intends to build upon thisfoundation within the South Asiancommunity while including partici-pants from other cultures.

When all of the tiers within thisstructural hierarchy — literacy, par-ticipatory practice and professionalgoods and services — are fully func-tional and reasonably in balancewithin a region, it can be said thatthe cultural ecology is healthy.Children are learning about the artsand culture in school, recreationcenters and at home. Adults haveample opportunities to take classes,develop artistic skills, then experi-ence the work of advanced profes-sional artists. A vibrant assortment

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Nine of 10 adults said arts education should be required in the schools.

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of amateur choral groups, ethnicdance ensembles, karaoke bars, read-ing circles and gardening clubs caterto a diverse and growing population.

At the professional level, repert o ryand experimental theater comp a n i e s ,c o m m e rcial art galleries, jazz fe s t i v a l sand popular music venues are readilyaccessible, we l l - c a p i talized and we l l -attended. Most imp o rta n t l y, thisassemblage of activities reflects thespectrum of the region’s culturalcommunities, reinfo rcing their iden-tities and spotlighting their individ-ual members, while helping to fo s t e ru n d e r s tanding among disparate cul-tural communities.

Cultural vigor and balance in thearts is not an academic abstraction.Throughout the world, manyregions manifest balanced culturalvitality; they are showcases forstrong economies and civil societies.Examples include Stockholm, Hong Kong, London, Vancouver,Wellington, Emilia-Romagna andSiena. Some of the leading U.S.examples are Minneapolis-St. Paul,

Austin, Portland and the Bay Area.Not all of these regions haveattained world-class status as centers of art and culture, but allhave achieved exceptional standardsof community living.

Data have limited ability to convey a complete understanding of anyregion’s cultural ecology. Acceptingthis inherent limitation, the CreativeCommunity Index measures a broadswath of indicators related to cul-tural literacy, participatory practiceand professional goods and services,as viewed by consumers (adult resi-dents), producers (artists and artsmanagers), and regional leaders(from business, religion, education,labor, government and nonprofitsectors). While no known methodol-ogy can precisely diagnose a region’scultural well-being, the CreativeCommunity Index seeks to sharpenpublic understanding of the under-lying dynamics.

We want leaders and residents tooperate from an informed positionin making Silicon Valley a more lively, satisfying, innovative place in which to live and work.

Children growing up in Californiain the 1950s and 1960s were accus-tomed to having a piano in everyhomeroom class from kindergartenthrough eighth grade. Not every K-8teacher could play the piano, butmany could. Until 1970, all teachersstudying for generalist credentials inCalifornia were required to takeundergraduate or graduate coursesin one or more art disciplines. Artseducation in California’s publicschools, if not typically outstanding,at least was respectable.

In 1970, California adopted theRyan Act, which eliminated therequirement for generalist teachersto have course credits in the arts.The trend in California and nation-

CULTURAL LITERACY: ARTS EDUCATION IN THE SCHOOLS

Do you think that arts classes should be required for schoolchildren, along with English, math, science and other courses?

ETHNICITY%

100908070605040302010

0

Whites Latinos Asians Blacks

% 90 8 86 13 89 7 86 14

All ethnic groups agree that the arts should be taught in schools.

YES NO

INCOME%

100908070605040302010

0

Under $50,000- Over$100,000 $100,000 $100,000

% 90 7 88 11 90 8

All income levels heavily favor requiring arts education in schools.

YES NO

THE CULTURAL ECOLOGYOF SILICON VALLEY

Cultural Literacy:Children and Youth

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wide was to place increasing empha-sis on subjects that were deemedimportant for the ultimate eco-nomic success of students, and onsubjects that could be evaluatedthrough objective tests. In both ofthese regards, the arts progressivelylost ground to the core subjects ofreading and mathematics.

The passage of state Proposition 13in 1978 compounded the de-empha-sis of the arts that was already wellunder way in California. Among themost immediate budget reductioncasualties were specialist arts teach-ers and programs, and the elemen-tary schools suffered the most dra-matic cuts.

The condition of arts education in California has been generally mirrored in Silicon Valley, exceptfor a few affluent districts.

In 1997, Silicon Valley formulated a regional cultural plan under theleadership of the San José Office of Cultural Affairs, CommunityFoundation Silicon Valley and Arts

Council Silicon Valley. In the courseof developing that plan, a poll ofadult residents found that 9 out of10 supported mandatory teachingof arts in the public schools. Thispoll was conducted again for the2002 edition of the CreativeCommunity Index with the sameresult. In the 2005 poll, the samequestion was asked: Do you think thatarts education classes should be requiredfor schoolchildren, along with English,math, science and other courses? Andthe same result ensued. In keepingwith results from 1997 and 2002,this exceptionally high support forarts education is the single mostdecisive finding in the survey ofadult residents, and this supportwas consistently high for all ethnici-ties, genders, educational levels andincome groups.

According to the Survey and PolicyResearch Institute at San José StateUniversity, these lopsided results areextraordinary on a question of socialand educational policy. They sug-gest an exceptional level of supportfor not just teaching the arts but forrequiring arts education in the class-

room. Moreover, the average lengthof time people say should be devot-ed to the arts in school is three tofour hours per week, with as manypeople suggesting five hours asthose who suggest two hours. Lessthan 3% of the respondents said notime should be devoted to teachingthe arts in school.

A separate set of questions wasaddressed to parents with childrenunder the age of 18, and to grand-parents whose grandchildren residein the region. About 17% of therespondents said they have childrenliving at home who are too young to attend kindergarten. More than 7 in 10 parents said their prekinder-garten children receive instructionin crafts, music, movement, draw-ing, or other artistic or creativeactivities. Interestingly, residents of San José (76%) were more likely

CULTURAL LITERACY: ARTS EDUCATION IN THE SCHOOLS

Do you think that arts classes should be required for schoolchildren, along with English, math, science and other courses?

PARENTS AND NONPARENTS%

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Parents Nonparents

% 94 6 86 11

Another indication that pretty much all adults believe arts in the classroom is essential.

YES NO

GENDER%

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Men Women

% 84 13 94 4

These results show great agreement, and the discrepancy between men and women is not unexpected.

YES NO

Many Silicon Valley adults — 55% — are amateur artists.

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to report that their young childrenare receiving early arts training thannon-San José residents (65%). Thes u b s tantial majority of respondentswith young children (68%) said theyh ave visited with their children atleast one of the region’s cultural insti-tutions offering children’s programs.Those least likely to have ta ken theiryoung children to a cultural institu-tion were Latinos and Asians, noncol-lege graduates, those earning lessthan $50,000 per ye a r, and thosee mp l oyed in the high-tech fi e l d .

Another 26% of the respondentssaid they have children living athome who are enrolled in school,kindergarten through the 12thgrade. Three in four of these parentssaid their children receive instruc-tion in the creative arts, at school orprivately. On this question, non-SanJosé residents (82%) were more likelyto report that their children arereceiving arts education than SanJosé residents (69%).

• Asians, college graduates andthose not employed in high-techwere among those with the high-est incidence of K-12 childrenengaged in the arts.

• Instruction in playing a musicalinstrument (38%) is by far themost common form of arts participation for these children,followed by painting (22%) anddrawing (20%).

• Of the 297 parents of school-agechildren, 52% said they havevisited a museum or attended acultural performance with theirchild or children in the past threemonths. Income is highly signifi-cant as a factor, with 72% of thosein the highest income brackettaking their children to culturalperformances or museums, com-pared with 40% of those in thelowest income bracket.

About 14% of respondents said theyhave a grandchild under the age of18 living in the area, but only abouta third of them visited a museum or attended a cultural performancewith their grandchild(ren) in thepast three months. However, 65% of the wealthiest grandparents tooktheir grandchild(ren) to a museumor cultural performance.

When asked the question, How doyou rate the community where you liveas a place for children to pursue culturalactivities and receive arts education?,20% of parents rated it excellent,47% good, 17% fair, 11% poor and3% very poor. Grandparents’responses to this question were virtually the same.

Many of the 111 nonprofit culturalorganizations surveyed for the Index offer regular educational programs for children and youth. In response to the question, Doesyour organization conduct a regular program of arts education in cooperationwith preschools?, 13% responded affir-

matively, whereas a much higherproportion, 65%, indicated that theyoffered programs in cooperationwith K-12 schools. In addition, near-ly half said they offered after-schoolarts training for children or youth.

Based on the high support for in-school arts education found at thetime of the 1997 regional culturalplan, Cultural Initiatives SiliconValley in 1999 launched a majorprogram backed by the PackardFoundation to upgrade standards-based arts education in K-5 schooldistricts throughout Santa ClaraCounty. This program, whichinvolves grants to school districts,on-site technical consultation andoff-site teacher training, has beenadopted by three-fourths of thecounty’s 27 school districts, andmost of the remaining districts saythey want to participate in thefuture. A total of 66,000 students in171 schools have benefited fromthis program. In early 2005, San JoséUnified, one of the county’s largestdistricts, received a major multiyeargrant from the Ford Foundation toupgrade its arts curriculum.

Significant gains in cultural education have been made by localelementary schools in recent years.Most districts have adopted stan-dards the state of California prom-ulgated in 2000, and have formulat-ed plans for improving the curricu-lum. This positive trend was rein-forced in 2001 by a state law rein-stating the requirement for new generalist teachers to take courses in the arts; however, it will takemany years to make up for the pre-vious 31 years when teachers wereexempt from this requirement. Byfar the most worrisome issue forcultural literacy in Silicon Valley isthe state budget cuts, which couldroll back the hard-won gains.

EDUCATIONALPROGRAMMING

Does your organization conduct aregular program of arts education in

cooperation with K-12 schools?

No35%

Yes65%

Arts and culture are correlated to enhanced civic engagement.

This 2:1 ratio is based on surveysfrom 111 arts organizations.

1 According to 2000 U.S. Census Bureau data, approximately 54% ofSilicon Valley’s population is white,26% Asian, 24% Hispanic, 3% black,0.3% Native Hawaiian or PacificIslander, and 17% of some other race or mixed races.

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The reasons for broad and deep support for arts education in SiliconValley are complex. Many adultsconsider the arts important to a balanced education; others arethemselves passionate about thearts, or believe the arts will helptheir children get admitted to prestigious colleges. The 2005 survey data make it abundantlyclear that a substantial majority ofadults is interested in the arts andculture and wants to learn more. So it’s no surprise that they view the arts as an important componentof the school curriculum.

Overall, 81% of adults are interestedin the arts, 40% of them very to

extremely interested. Only 18%express little or no interest. Womenare significantly more interested inthe arts than men (46% comparedwith 34%, very to extremely interest-ed), and whites, at 47%, are moreinterested than Latinos and Asians(35% each). Silicon Valley’s AfricanAmerican population is small, soour survey sample was tiny. Even so,43% of blacks said they were inter-ested in arts education.1

Interest in the arts is especially correlated with income: 51% ofthose with an annual income above$100,000 expressed strong interest,compared to 34% of those whomake $50,000 to $100,000, and 40% of those earning less than$50,000. College graduates, peopleaged 35-54, and nontech industryworkers are all more likely to beinterested in the arts than others.

O verall, 37% of adults said arts activities play a major role in theirl i ves; 51% said arts play a minor role.Women (41%) were considerablymore likely than men (34%) to saya rts play a major role in their lives,

as were Latinos (41%) and whites(40%) compared with Asians (30%).Blacks, at 48%, comprised a ve rysmall sample. Education appears to play only a small role in thisresponse but income is signifi c a n t ,with those earning $100,000 or moreper year considerably more like l y(51%) to say arts play a major role intheir lives compared to others. Age isa mixed picture: Those 55 and olderwere the least likely to say arts play amajor role in their lives (30%), com-pared with18- to 34-ye a r-olds (39%)and those aged 35-54 (42%).

The 52% of residents who partici-pate in some form of civic activityand the 39% of those who volunteeron a regular basis were significantlymore likely to say arts play a majorrole in their lives than those who do

THE CULTURAL ECOLOGYOF SILICON VALLEY

Cultural Literacy:Adults

ROLE OF ARTS IN ADULTS’ LIVES

Would you say that arts activities play a major role, minor role or no role at all in your life?

Women41%

Men34%

<$50K40%

$50-100K34%

>$100K51%

Did notgive income

3%

GENDER

Women are more likely than men to place high value on arts. Among the 1,010respondents, 41% of the women and 34%

of the men said arts play a major role in their life.

Minor role51%

No role at all11%

Major role37%

INCOME

Art appears more significant in the lives of higher income-earners. Among the 1,010

respondents, 51% of those making morethan $100,000 annually said arts play a

major role in their life; those making under$100,000 were less likely to consider

it a major factor.

Minor role51%

No role at all11%

Major role37%

AGE

Arts are most important to people in midlife. Significantly, of the 1,010 respondents, only 30% of those over

55 said arts played a major role.

Minor role51%

No role at all11%

Major role37%

18-3439%

35-5442%

55+30%

Did notgive age

5%

Most Silicon Valley culturalorganizations make do withslim resources.

12

neither (43% of civic participantsand 43% of volunteers compared to31% of nonparticipants, and 33% ofnonvolunteers). Likewise, 61% ofthose who said arts play a major rolein their lives participate in someform of civic activity compared to52% of those who said the arts playa minor role in their lives. Thesefindings are some of the strongestevidence found in the 2005 data tosupport the assertion that the artsand culture are correlated toenhanced participation in civicaffairs. And while parents (40%)were somewhat more likely thannon-parents (35%) to say arts play amajor role in their lives, this was nottrue for grandparents, only 28% ofwhom said arts were a major factorin their lives.

Among the 623 respondents whoare employed, 38% work in high-tech and 7 in 10 of the high-techworkers were men. Because men’srate of participation in the arts islower than women’s, it would not besurprising if high-tech workers wereless involved in the arts than non-tech employees. The survey found,however, that the arts play a majorrole in the lives of high-tech employ-ees at about the same rate as non-high-tech employees, and both areabout as likely to say they activelyparticipate in some form of artisticexpression such as acting, dance,painting, playing an instrument,woodworking, quilting or writing.Nearly two-thirds (65%) of employedrespondents said a fair amount to alot of creativity is required to dotheir work well, with high-techworkers saying their jobs requireeven more creativity than nonhigh-tech employees (69% compared to62%). Moreover, 84% of high-techemployees say creativity is impor-

tant to the success of their business,compared with 77% of nontechemployees.

The 406 respondents employed intech and nontech jobs requiring creative skills showed a pronouncedaffinity for the arts. A significantlyhigher proportion of people in cre-ative occupations, 41%, indicatedthat the arts played a major role in their lives, compared with 34% for people in noncreative jobs.Moreover, people in creative jobsfavored mandatory arts education atan exceptionally high rate, 92%, andfour or more hours per week of artseducation was favored by 43% of cre-ative workers, compared with 32%for workers in noncreative jobs.

Three-fourths (76%) of all respon-dents said Silicon Valley is a desir-able place for creative people to liveand work. And 83% of respondentswith nontech jobs agreed with thatassessment.

The data indicate that a large major-ity of respondents would like to bemore culturally literate. When askedif they had the opportunity to learna new artistic or creative activity,what would that be, nearly 80% ofthe respondents specified one ormore. This high response rate to anopen-ended question, not a multi-ple-choice question, is quite unusualfor random phone surveys, and indi-cates a deep vein of public interestin learning more about the arts. Themost popular answers were: paint-ing and drawing (26%), learning toplay a musical instrument (20%),dance (9%), photography/film/video(9%), and singing (6%). The responseto this question highlighted signifi-cant variations related to ethnicityand gender. For example, womenwere twice as interested in learningto dance as men, and blacksexpressed the most interest in learn-ing to play a musical instrument(37%), followed by Asians (25%),Latinos (21%) and whites (17%).

This tier of the cultural ecology hasnot been well-researched or appreci-ated. Government and philanthropyhave largely focused on improvingthe production of professionalgoods and services.

For four decades, beginning in themid-1950s, the emphasis was onimproving the quality of American“high culture,” in part to make upfor a perceived inferiority toEuropean and Soviet cultural goodsand services. The focus was onimproving major cultural institu-tions: museums, performing artsorganizations, and conservatoriesand universities that trained profes-sional artists. Gradually, some atten-tion was shifted to the matter ofcultural literacy, notably by theRockefeller and Getty foundations,the National Endowment for theArts, and the U.S. Office ofEducation, but little attention wasgiven to participatory cultural prac-tice. Indeed, in many quarters ofAmerican culture, the term “ama-teur” has become a pejorative.

The recent surveys conducted forthe 2005 Creative Community Indexreveal a rich and complex universeof participatory practice in SiliconValley. The survey of 1,010 adult residents found that 55% participatein some form of cultural expression,30% play a musical instrument, 22% engage in creative writing, 19% dance, 18% paint and 13% draw. Men were significantly morelikely to play music than women(36%/25%), and, among Asians,dance was nearly as popular a choiceas music. For those with the highest

THE CULTURAL ECOLOGYOF SILICON VALLEY

ParticipatoryCultural Practice

13

incomes, creative writing and danc-ing were more popular choices thanplaying a musical instrument.

The average time spent on arts andcultural activities was four to fivehours per week, but among Latinoswho participate in the arts, 42%spend eight hours or more per week— the most of any demographicgroup. In addition to artistic activi-ties, more than two-thirds of alladults said they have a culturalhobby or work activity that allowsthem to be creative. Gardening(27%), cooking (23%) and photogra-phy (16%) were the most frequentlycited examples.

Countywide, 59% of adults gavetheir home city good to excellentmarks as places to practice their

cultural interests. However, therewere stark differences among resi-dents of various communities. Allrespondents from Saratoga, forexample, gave high marks to theircommunity, as did residents ofCampbell, Palo Alto, Los Altos andLos Gatos. But people from Gilroy,the unincorporated area, SantaClara and San José were consider-ably less satisfied with their com-munities as places to engage in thearts. This finding is likely a reflec-tion of the relative wealth of thecommunities.

The survey of local cultural organi-zations also probed the amateurrealm with surprising results. Whenasked, Does your organization offeramateur artistic participation opportun -ities for children/youth?, 73% answered“yes.” When the same question was

asked about adults, 70% responded“yes.” While it was known that manylocal cultural organizations wereemphasizing education programsfor youth and adults, the results onamateur involvement indicated thateven more organizations offeropportunities for participatoryinvolvement by youth and adults.

The vast majority of respondents tothe organizational survey (89%) saidthat volunteer labor is significant totheir organization. The implicationis that many local cultural organiza-tions greatly depend on nonprofes-sionals to help produce their exhibi-tions and performances, as well asfor technical and administrativefunctions.

Play a musical instrumentCreative writing/poetry

DancePaintingDrawing

SingingPhotography/film/video

Cooking/bakingActing/theater

Gardening/landscapingGraphics/Web design

Sewing/quilting/needlepointCarpentry/woodworking

Knitting/weavingInterior design/decorating

SculptureCeramics/pottery

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

ARTS ACTIVITIES OF ADULTS

In which forms of artistic expresssion do you actively participate?

%30221918131211

9875544221

The percentages do not total 100% because some respondents engage in more than one art activity.

14

Historically, the South Bay region,along with the rest of the suburbanBay Area, depended heavily on SanFrancisco for professional culturalgoods and services: museums, com-mercial art galleries, jazz clubs,opera, ballet, modern dance, cham-ber music, fine art movie housesand other high-end culture.Although the assemblage of non-profit arts organizations has grownsubstantially in Silicon Valley overthe past quarter-century, they havealso proliferated in San Francisco.

Even though the South Bay popula-tion triples San Francisco’s, and SanJosé long ago surpassed SanFrancisco in population, the non-profit arts economy of SanFrancisco is approximately three

times larger than the $107,300,317total for the 111 groups thatresponded to the 2005 organiza-tional survey. In fact, the combinedoperating budgets of the SanFrancisco Symphony and the Operaexceed the total expenditures of all111 surveyed Silicon Valley culturalorganizations.

Of course, the opposite is true of thecorporate epicenter of the Bay Area.San Francisco has substantiallywaned as a corporate headquarterscity; the San Francisco Chroniclerecently reported that Silicon Valleynow claims nearly two-thirds of theBay Area’s 200 largest corporations.

Silicon Valley has a set of relativelynew cultural institutions, both non-profit and commercial, that havecontributed importantly to the cul-tural ecology of the South Bay,though they have not supplantedthe older, larger, and often better-capitalized cultural organizations inSan Francisco. The median organi-zation in the 2005 survey wasfounded in 1982 and has an annualbudget of $130,000. Slightly morethan one-third of all nonprofit cul-tural organizations in the surveywere founded since 1990.

Of the 111 organizations surve ye d ,6% reported sharply increased audi-ences, 45% a moderate growth, 36%s tayed about the same, 10% a moder-ate decline, and 3% a sharp decline.O verall, 41% increased their outputof artistic goods and services, whichincluded performances, exhibitionsand publications, 47% had level out-put, and 12% decreased output. Two -t h i rds also reported that they deve l-oped or premiered new wo rks duringthe past year — a good indication ofthe continued creative vitality ofthese org a n i z a t i o n s .

Joint Venture’s 2005 Index of SiliconValley contains an informative indi-cator on the financial health of theregion’s 15 largest nonprofit cultur-al organizations. This indicatortracked the number of organiza-tions reporting net surpluses of current assets from 1998 to 2004, ameasure of the liquidity and overallhealth of these organizations. As of2004, 71% of these organizationsreported overall surpluses of currentassets, down from 85% in the peakyears of 2000 and 2002. However,Joint Venture notes: “… arts and cultural organizations with enoughcurrent assets to meet their needs do so by a great margin.”

THE CULTURAL ECOLOGYOF SILICON VALLEY

Professional CulturalGoods and Services:Nonprofit Cultural

Organizations

PLACES TO PURSUE ARTS INTERESTS

Do you rate the community where you live as a good/excellent place to pursue arts interests?

%

100908070605040302010

0% 50 52 60 63 64 67 67 67 67 73 73 75 86 100

The range of ratings is significant, and reflects wealth, cultural literacy and identity of the communities rated.

15

Not surprisingly, given that mostare relatively small, Silicon Valleycultural organizations make do withslim resources. Slightly less thantwo-thirds own or rent a year-roundfacility used for their performances,exhibitions or other programs, andthey rate 75% of these facilities asgood or excellent public venues. Justunder two-thirds pay a senior man-ager, and two-thirds of those posi-tions are full-time. With 89% report-ing that volunteer labor was signifi-cant to their operations, the trendwas positive: 34% reported anincrease in volunteers, 56% nochange and 10% a decline.

The big news in the 2002 CreativeCommunity Index was that con-tributed income for Silicon Valleyarts organizations, especially fundsfrom governmental and foundationsources, had plummeted. In onerespect, the situation today hasbecome even bleaker with the recentnear-demise of the California ArtsCouncil. The Council’s grants budg-et has been all but eliminated, a

blow that falls hardest on the state’ssmall budget organizations. But 31%of recent survey respondents saidthe fundraising climate was more ormuch more positive; 41% indicatedno change; and 28% considered itdifficult. Even so, only 20 organiza-tions reported that their operatingdeficits had grown.

Residents of Santa Clara Countywere asked about cultural activitiesthey attended as social outings withfriends or family. The most popularchoice by far was “going to themovies” (58%), followed by attend-ing musical concerts (29%), theaterperformances (23%), museums(20%), and all forms of dancing(19%). Movie attendance was partic-ularly high among Asians (64%), andmost forms of cultural outings weremore frequently attended by collegegraduates and persons with annualincomes more than $100,000.

A significant finding from this ques-tion is that respondents whoworked in jobs requiring creativeskills consistently attended morecultural outings than those in less

creative jobs. (The survey definedcreativity as “the capacity to gener-ate original ideas.”) For example,63% of creative-job people attendedmovies, compared with 54% of thosenot engaged in creative work. Forattending musical concerts, theratio was 33%/27%; for theater,26%/21%; museums, 21%/15%; and dancing, 23%/18%.

Though college graduates tended to attend cultural outings morethan nongraduates, the differenceswere less significant. Consistently,however, people who made morethan $100,000 attended more fre-quently than those with incomesless than $50,000.

Asked to rate their community as a place for cultural outings, 21%responded “excellent,” 43% “good,”

ARTS ORG A N I Z AT I O N S’ AU D I E N C E SU P P O RT

During the past year, has your audience supportincreased, stayed the same or declined?

Stayed the same

36%

Grewmoderately

45%

Declinedmoderately

10%

Increasedsharply

6%

Declinedsharply

3%

OUTPUT OF ARTISTIC GOODS & SERVICES

Last year, did the amount of your artistic programming(performances, exhibitions, publications, etc.)

increase, level out or decrease?

Level47%

Increased41%

Decreased12%

Arts groups can take heart from this positive response: 87% said support was as good or better than the previous year.

The 12% decrease in artistic output correlates with the 13% of arts organizations whose audience

support declined.

Exceptional regional economies are the result of high concentrationsof creative workers.

16

22% “fair,” 6% “poor,” and 3% “verypoor.” San José residents gave slight-ly higher ratings to their communitythan residents of other parts ofSanta Clara County. These respons-es contrast with answers to the ques-tion that asked residents to ranktheir communities as places to pur-sue their own forms of artistic andcultural expression. Overall, peopleoutside San José rated their commu-nities as better places to engage intheir own pursuits than as places forattending cultural events. San José

residents ranked their city as a rela-tively weak place for participatoryactivities, but much better as a placefor cultural attendance.

Given the concentration of culturalassets in San Francisco, SiliconValley residents continue to commute north for many high-endcultural activities, though SanFrancisco is not a theater-rich city,so it is no accident that SiliconValley has four of the Bay Area’slargest theatrical institutions:TheatreWorks, American MusicalTheatre of San Jose, San Jose

Repertory Theatre and Opera San José.

Silicon Valley also has four of theBay Area’s largest nonprofit per-forming arts-presenting organiza-tions: Stanford Lively Arts,Montalvo Arts Center (venues inSaratoga and Redwood City), DeAnza College (Flint Center), andFoothill College. These programspresent touring productions, mostlymusic, dance and lectures fromlocal, national and internationalsources, and have the flexibility tobook programs in response tochanging local tastes.

One twist in the Bay Area’s culturalecology is that San Francisco has nolarge-scale performing arts presenter(comparable to Lincoln Center inNew York or the Kennedy Center in Washington), whereas the EastBay and Silicon Valley are relativelywell-stocked with presenters thatoften attract audiences from SanFrancisco. The South Bay also contains two major commercial presenting operations specializingin popular music: ShorelineAmphitheatre and The MountainWinery. A controversial plan for athird major facility at the countyfairgrounds has been in the worksfor several years.

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES AS SOCIAL OUTINGS

Which activities do you enjoy attending or participating in with friends or family?

%Movies 58

Musical concerts 29Theater performances 23

Museums 20All forms of dancing 19

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

The favorite cultural activity to enjoy with others — movies — is more than twice as popular as the runnerup, musical concerts.

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES AS SOCIAL OUTINGS

Which activities do you enjoy attending or participating in with friends or fa m i l y ?

CREATIVE AND NONCREATIVE WORKERS

%70605040302010

0% 63 54 33 27 26 21 21 15 23 18

Movies Musical Theater Museums All formsconcerts performances of dancing

The 15% to 25% disparity between creative and noncreative workers' preferences for socialoutings is a significant statement about the impact of creativity in our work lives.

CREATIVE NONCREATIVE

2 Silicon Valley is defined as the San JoseP r i m a ry Met r o p o l i tan Statistical Area(PMSA), an area equivalent to SantaClara County. Artists include the fo l-l owing U.S. Census occupation cate-gories: Artists and Related Wo rke r s(260) SOC 27-1010; Actors (270) SOC27-2011; Dancers and Choreographers(274) SOC 27-2030; Musicians,Singers, and Related Wo rkers, AllOther (276) SOC 27-2099; Writers andAuthors (285) SOC 27-3043; andP h otographers (291) SOC 27-4021.

17

“Artist” is a notoriously difficultoccupational category to study. Oneof the principal issues is, “Who is anartist?” Many individuals regardthemselves as professional artiststhough only a small proportion oftheir income is from the sale ofartistic goods and services. The typi-cal pattern of economics for artistsis that they:

• Hold multiple jobs; some are arts-related, others are not.

• Are highly educated, and oftencontinue to study their art formal-ly well into their careers.

• Are paid poorly compared withother categories of professionals,but as a class are not low-income.

In her recent master’s report forU.C. Berkeley’s Department of Cityand Regional Planning, graduatestudent Jessica Zenk notes:“Professional artists are by and largean urban phenomenon.” Given thatSilicon Valley is, by and large, a sub-urban environment, with a smallurban core in San José, it would be

surprising to find a major popula-tion of artists. Indeed, according tothe 2000 U.S. Census, only 4,180artists of all genres resided inSilicon Valley, a mere 0.5% of theregional labor force.2 Of these, 42%worked in the visual arts, 36% in theperforming arts, and 22% were writ-ers. In comparison, the 8,640 artistsin San Francisco comprise 1.9% ofthe city’s labor force, and LosAngeles’ 69,340 artists make up 1.6%of that county’s labor force.

Zenk’s research focuses on thecareer issues facing Silicon Va l l e ya rtists, suggests ways that art i s t scan secure a stronger base withinthe regional economy, and recom-mends policies that would assista rtists and, through them, enhancethe urban vitality of the City ofSan José.

Her research confirms the typicalpattern for professional artiststhroughout the United States.Silicon Valley artists derive theirincome from a variety of sources:11% cite the arts as a primary sourceof income, 20% cite arts-relatedwork, 34% cite nonarts-related work,5% cite other personal income, 20%cite spouse/family, and 7% cite pastinvestments or work. Also true toform, 56% reported having two ormore employers in the past year.While this pattern of diverse multi-ple-income sources and employersprevails in Silicon Valley, 76% saidthey would prefer to make their liv-ing entirely from their arts. The

artists generally liked living inSilicon Valley, with 83% of respon-dents calling it a good place to live.Asked whether it is a good place tolive as artists, they were somewhatless enthusiastic, yet more than half(56%) responded affirmatively.

The major problems Zenk’s researchreveals are the same as those ofartists who live in other high cost-of-living regions: low wages for artis-tic work, few work opportunities,high costs for studio and livingspace, and not enough space forproducing and showing art.

THE CULTURAL ECOLOGYOF SILICON VALLEY

Professional CulturalGoods and Services:

Artists

ARTISTS IN THE REGIONALLABOR FORCE

%2.00

1.80

1.60

1.40

1.20

1.00

0.80

0.60

0.40

0.20

0.00 % 0.50 1.60 1.90Silicon Valley Los Angeles San Francisco

Working artists in Silicon Valley are a relatively small proportion

of the labor force.

The survey of artists asked about factors important to them and howSilicon Valley ranks as a place for each factor.

Public interest in the artsLocal art consumersArt communitySmall-scale art organizations/institutionsMajor art organizations/institutionsInspiring natural environmentInspiring built environment

Factors citedas very

important to artists’

work

69%68%54%45%32%31%16%

Ranking ofSilicon Valleyas a very goodplace for this

factor

3%7%

17%15%10%27%

4%

The arts and culture make adifference in a regional economyby helping to attract creativeworkers and supporting an environment for innovation.

18

Of those for whom Silicon Valley isnot a good place to live, half said themain reason was that the area is tooexpensive. Others cited lack of workand, therefore, income as the No. 1problem. “Not enough career oppor-tunities” also was cited by 50% ofartists.

Local artists generally regard SiliconValley as a satisfactory place to liveand create, but certainly not one ofthe world’s leading centers of artis-tic production. This, however, doesnot prevent Silicon Valley artistsfrom selling, performing, exhibitingor publishing their work in otherparts of the globe, and some artistssurveyed were pursuing outsideopportunities.

Zenk concludes:

“San José and the surroundingSilicon Valley can rightfully claim agenuine art scene. Significantly …

the conventional wisdom is false:the Silicon Valley is not devoid ofthe arts or artists; it actually pos-sesses a vibrant group of art i s t s ,o rganizations, and art afi c i o n a d o swo rking diligently on their ow nprojects and, in doing so, grow i n gthe art scene in the region. It isentirely true that the scene centeredin San José is not as we l l - e s ta b-lished as those that exist in citiesmost frequently identified with thea rts; it thus does not function aswell or comp l etely for artists wo rk-ing within it.”

Zenk recommends several approach-es for developing San José’s down-town arts scene:

• Utilize artist cooperatives andland use/zoning restrictions topreserve existing artist work andlive spaces and create new ones.

• Create multifaceted art centersthat promote public interactionwith art and artists.

• Inform the public about the work of artists and arts organ-izations.

CULTURAL VIEWSA N D AS P I R AT I O N SOF REGIONALLEADERSEighty-four Silicon Valley leaderswere separately surveyed to examinetheir cultural attitudes, aspirationsand habits, and to ascertain howtheir views compare to the generaladult population. These leaders wereengaged in the following sectors:nonprofit (36%), business/corporate(26%), government/politics (14%),education (10%), religion (4%), labor(2%), arts (2%) and other sectors(6%).

As might be expected, these leaderstended to be high-income (the medi-an exceeded $150,000) and highlyeducated (the median respondenthad a graduate degree); 95% hadresided in Silicon Valley for eight ormore years. Racially, 82% were white,8% Asian, 7% black and 2% Latino.“Leadership” is subjective, and thereis no basis for determining whetherthis sample represents leaders inSilicon Valley, though it clearlyoveremphasizes the nonprofit sectorand probably underemphasizesbusiness/corporate.

SOURCES OF INCOME REPORTED BY SILICON VALLEY ARTISTS

%Nonarts-related work 34

Spouse/family 20Arts-related work 20

Arts 11Past investments/work 7

Personal income 5

% 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Only 31% of Silicon Valley artists report that arts or arts-related work are significant sources of income.

19

This group’s data suggest they areeven more culturally literate andactive than the Valley’s general population, not surprising giventheir high educational attainmentand incomes. Three in 4 said thatthey were extremely or very interest-ed in arts activities, compared with 4 in 10 for the general adult popula-tion; and 58% said the arts play amajor role in their lives, comparedwith 37% in the general adult popu-lation. Nearly two-thirds take partin some form of active culturalexpression such as painting, singing,dancing, and many spend three tofour hours weekly on these activi-ties. Of these amateur artists, 79%said their community is a good to excellent place to pursue theirinterests, compared with 59% for the general population.

Of the 84 surveyed leaders, 15% were parents of preschoolers, 31%had children in K-12 grades, and11% were grandparents. For the pre-school parents, 12 of 13 reportedthat their children were receivinginstruction in crafts, music, move-ment, drawing or other artistic orcreative activities, and the same high

numbers were frequent visitors tolocal cultural institutions such aslibraries, Children’s DiscoveryMuseum and Happy Hollow Park.Parents of school-age childrenreported similarly high numbers in both categories.

Overall, two-thirds of the full sam-ple of leaders in this survey ratedtheir communities as above average,though not outstanding places forchildren to pursue cultural activitiesand receive arts education.

Silicon Valley leaders are highlyactive in the region’s civic life. Allsurvey respondents, with one excep-tion, reported that they participatein educational, cultural, political,religious, civic or social organiza-tions, or activities. All but three saidthey regularly serve as volunteers.

The leaders surveyed exercise substantial creativity on the job:92% said they often or continuouslyare a source of creativity at work.Moreover, 71% said that half ormore of the positions in their com-

pany or organization require cre-ative skills. All respondents agreedthat “Silicon Valley’s leadership intechnology is highly dependent onthe creative talents of its workforce.”Nevertheless, they were ambivalentabout the availability of new jobcandidates with the requisite cre-ative skills. Only 32% of leaders indicated that qualified creativecandidates were always or usuallyavailable, while 53% indicated sometimes, and 15%, infrequently or never.

Perhaps as a consequence of theirhigh cultural literacy and creativework activities, leaders are nearlyunanimous about the importance of arts education. In response to the question, Do you think that artseducation classes should be required forschoolchildren, along with English, math,science and other courses? 83 out of 84respondents (99%) said “yes”; 89% of the general adult populationanswered “yes.” The medianresponse of leaders as to whetherschools should devote three to fourhours per week to the arts was thesame as in the general adult survey.Leaders also cited the primarysources of their own creative skills:67% said family, community orother informal sources; 46% said for-mal education at the K-12 level; and46% said formal higher education.

Leaders were asked to rate variouselements of the cultural ecology ofSilicon Valley, along with the natu-ral environment and affordablehousing. Further, they were askedwhether all these elements were significant in recruiting creative-skilled workers.

INTEREST IN THE ARTS

What is your level of interest in the arts?

%8070605040302010

0% 76 40 58 37

Extremely or very interested Plays major role in lives

Although adults in general have a significant personal stake in the arts, regional leaders feel the connection even more so.

LEADERS ADULT POPULATION

The arts and other forms of culture, such as cuisine and fashion, help shape the identity and social cohesion of a region.

20

The most lopsided findings fromthis series of questions are thatSilicon Valley leaders regard theregion as especially strong for itsnatural environment and diversepopulation, and especially weak inaffordable housing — and that all

three factors are significant inrecruiting job candidates for creativepositions. This is in keeping withSilicon Valley leaders who have beenvocal in advocating for increasingthe supply of affordable housing,maintaining flows of highly skilledimmigrant workers, and advancingenvironmental quality.

The less predictable finding is that82% to 51% of these Silicon Valleyleaders regard three cultural factors— leisure opportunities, vibranturban neighborhoods, and the arts— as significant for recruiting cre-ative workers, but when asked torank each of these three cultural ele-ments as “strong,” ratings rangedfrom 9% to 65%. This implies thatimprovements in these elementsmight enhance Silicon Valley’scapacity to recruit and retain cre-ative workers. Parenthetically, theleaders gave generally good ratingsto the region’s sports opportunities,but only 27% regarded sports as sig-nificant for recruitment. The qualityof architecture was rated as quiteweak, but, like sports, that was notseen as essential to recruiting.

The relevance of the findings onleisure opportunities, vibrant urbanneighborhoods and the arts wasamplified by another question inthe leaders survey: “Compared to otherglobal centers of technology, is SiliconValley’s ability to attract and retain creative talent increasing, decreasing orstaying about the same?” Only 7% ofthe surveyed leaders said the Valleyis gaining capacity to attract creativetalent, 58% said it is decreasing, and35% said it is about the same.

RECRUITING FACTORS FOR CREATIVE JOB CANDIDATES

%

100908070605040302010

0% 94 1 82 65 71 85 68 95 56 9 54 38 35 12 27 42

Affordable Leisure Quality of Diversity of Vibrancy Availability of Quality of Opportunitieshousing opportunities the natural nationalities of urban art exhibitions, architecture to attend and

environment and lifestyles neighborhoods performances, (built participatefestivals, etc. environment) in sports

SIGNIFICANT TO CREATIVE JOB CANDIDATES STRENGTH OF SILICON VALLEY

ABILITY TO ATTRACT ANDRETAIN CREATIVE TALENT

Compared to other global centers oftechnology, is Silicon Valley’s ability to

attract and retain talent increasing,decreasing or staying the same?

Staying about the same

35%Decreasing

58%

The majority of surveyed leaders believe that Silicon Valley’s ability to recruit

creative talent is declining.

Increasing7%

Silicon Valley leaders are highly active in theregion’s civic life. All, withone exception, said theyparticipate in educational,cultural, political, religious,civic or social organizations,or activities. All but threesaid they regularly serveas volunteers.

Recruitment of creative talent in Silicon Valley can be enhanced by improvement in the arts, leisure and urban neighborhoods.

While the evidence does not suggest that Silicon Valleyhas lost its position as a center of creativity, the warning data should notbe ignored.

21

Creativity is an elusive commodi-ty, and, since World War II, SiliconValley has cultivated more than itsshare. During this era, creativity, inthe form of technological and busi-ness innovation, has propelled fourmajor booms: defense electronics,integrated circuits, computers andthe Internet. Simultaneously, cre-ativity has been applied in the socialand environmental sectors toaddress regional problems related toeducation, housing, toxic waste andlivable cities.

In the cultural domain, creativity isevident in novel patterns of infor-mal work and leisure, developmentof a new generation of professionalarts institutions and facilities, athriving participatory cultural sec-tor, two major 10-year culturalplans, and the rise of energeticimmigrant cultural institutions.This creativity has implications notonly for Silicon Valley, but for theworld. In particular, local companiessuch as eBay, Hewlett-Packard,Google, Apple, Adobe andElectronic Arts are influencing eco-nomic, social and cultural trendsglobally.

While the evidence in the CreativeCommunity Index does not suggestthat Silicon Valley has lost its posi-tion as a center of creativity, thewarning data should not be ignored.The Valley will continue to rate highif it sustains two flows: importingcreative talent from around theglobe, and cultivating creativitywithin the residential population.Both flows strongly affect the vitali-ty of culture here and can bestrengthened through the followinginitiatives in the cultural domain:

• Silicon Valley is entering the finalyear of its second 10-year culturalplan, the 20/21 Regional CulturalPlan, with questions aboutwhether there is merit in formu-lating another new regional strate-gy. Fortunately, there are at leasteight highly competent, culturallyastute and influential leadershipinstitutions with the capacity toanswer this question: San JoséArts Commission, Arts CouncilSilicon Valley, the Packard andHewlett Foundations, AmericanLeadership Forum, First ACT,Community Foundation SiliconValley and Joint Venture SiliconValley. Individually and together,these organizations should con-sider whether a new plan is war-ranted.

• Though cultural literacy rateshigh among leaders and residentswho are active amateurs and availthemselves of professional goodsand services, Silicon Valley lacks aunique cultural identity. NewYork has Broadway; Las Vegas hasthe Strip; San Francisco hasNorth Beach and the Haight-Ashbury; Los Angeles hasHollywood; and Edinburgh,Venice and Cannes have majorarts festivals. Given the exception-al weather of the Valley and itsinformal lifestyle, festivals are anespecially promising avenue forgenerating a cultural reputationin the Bay Area, and nationally aswell as internationally. Some fineexamples already exist, includingCinequest and the San Jose JazzFestival. A new global festival,entitled ZeroOne, is being organ-ized for August 2006 in San José.Focusing on the intersection ofart and technology, this festivalwould be unique to NorthAmerica. It builds on Silicon

Valley’s pre-eminence in tech-nology, and is a recommended initiative of the 1997 20/21Regional Cultural Plan. ZeroOnehas the potential of establishing a global cultural identity forSilicon Valley and therebydeserves broad support.

• Given adults’ strong interest inlearning about the arts, artsshould be viewed as a lifelonglearning process that begins inpreschool and continues throughadulthood. Silicon Valley’s cultur-al and educational institutions —including libraries, recreation cen-ters, community colleges, universi-ties, museums and nonprofit per-forming arts organizations —could be better mobilized toadvance lifelong arts literacy. Insome cases, these instructionalprograms could operate largely on earned revenues, as do severallocal summer arts camps foryouth and adults.

• A substantial majority of the residents and leaders surveyedparticipate in some form of cul-tural practice, yet communitiescould do more to support andextract social value from this tierof the cultural ecology. In 2004,Cultural Initiatives released Dr.Pia Moriarty’s ImmigrantParticipatory Arts: An Insight intoCommunity-building in Silicon Valley,a major report on participatory

RECOMMENDATIONS

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performing arts groups organizedin immigrant communities, whichserve as strong vehicles for main-taining native-country culturewhile developing links to theValley’s broader cultural land-scape. This year, a second report,There’s Nothing Informal About It:Participatory Arts Within the CulturalEcology of Silicon Valley by Dr.Maribel Alvarez, will examine thealternative commercial, nonprofitand informal structures that par-ticipatory arts groups use to con-duct their activities. Preliminaryevidence suggests that greaterbenefit can be gained by connect-ing participatory arts groups tobroader audiences, for examplethrough festivals, by promotingtheir availability through themedia, and by providing access tospace for rehearsal, workshop andeducational activities.

• Silicon Valley should do more toadvance its own professional resi-dent artists and arts institutions,while recognizing that the Valleyexists in close proximity to SanFrancisco with its greater numberof major cultural institutions.South Bay arts organizationsnever fully enjoyed the fruits ofthe pre-2001 economic boom, butnevertheless were hit hard by thebust. Earned revenues, privatecontributions, corporate gifts,foundation grants, and govern-mental support all withered in theaftermath of September 11, 2001.While our data suggest that thefinancial environment has stabi-lized, most nonprofit arts groupshave been left in a poorly capital-ized position. There is no simplepalliative for this fiscally painful

situation, but there may be newrevenue prospects considering thisIndex’s finding of strong publicinterest in educational program-ming and participatory opportu-nities. Irrespective of any immedi-ate revenue gains, it is in the bestinterests of professional culturalorganizations to cultivate culturalliteracy and participation as ameans of building long-termdemand for their goods and services.

• Professional artists face the samerealities of high living costs asmany other middle-income work-ers in Silicon Valley. The biggestchallenge is to preserve housingand studio space for artists in themidst of a largely suburban high-cost housing market. The greatestopportunities for artists’ facilitiesprobably lie in Silicon Valley’sbiggest city, San José. Here and inother communities, new emphasisshould be placed on creating andsupporting spaces for artists towork, and to exhibit and sell theirproducts. San José desires toestablish an authentic and vibrantcity center, and many artists wishthey could live, play and work inmore affordable, urban neighbor-hoods. The possibility of symbio-sis exists.

• Globally, economic activity rootedin digital arts, design, culture andentertainment is growing. AsSilicon Valley considers its futurecompetitive advantage, it is timeto explore with area employers the nature of current and futuredemand for employees with digi-tal arts, design and fine arts skills,as well as the importance of cre-ative skills and creative educationmore generally. Will the emerging

global convergence of art, designand cultural content with engi-neering, science and technologyprove central to Silicon Valley’scompetitive edge, or will it remainthe province of only a select num-ber of companies operating here?This question deserves seriousregional exploration and public-private conversation.

SOURCESOF DATA ANDMETHODOLOGY

Original data for the Index wasgathered from four surveys con-ducted in early 2005:

1) Random telephone survey of1,010 adult residents of SantaClara County

The Survey and Policy ResearchInstitute (SPRI) at San José StateUniversity was commissioned toconduct this survey of the culturalhabits, attitudes and aspirations oflocal residents age 18 and over. Thesurvey was conducted April 11-15,2005, administered in English,Spanish and Vietnamese. The statis-tical margin of error for the county-wide results is plus or minus 3% atthe 95% confidence level. At least sixcallbacks were made to any house-hold where an answering machine,busy signal or no answer wasencountered. Selection at the house-hold level was managed by asking tospeak first to the youngest male athome and, if none was available,then to the oldest female. Thisapproach was used to assure an ade-

New emphasis should be placed on creating and supporting spaces for artists to work, and to exhibit and sell their products.

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quate number of young males andolder females, who are typically themost difficult populations to sur-vey. Survey results were weighted bygender, race and population for eachcity and the unincorporated area ofthe county to reflect the 2000 U.S.Census Bureau count of persons 18years of age and older. The resultingcases were within 1% of significantdemographic and geographic char-acteristics of the county, including509 men, 501 women, 465 whites,208 Latinos, 263 Asians or PacificIslanders, and 26 blacks. Re s p o n d e n t sincluded 554 residents of San José.Verbatim responses to all open-ended questions were recoded wher-ever possible to match precoded cat-egories. Philip J. Trounstine, directorof SPRI, managed the survey.

2) Survey completed by 111Silicon Valley nonprofit cul-tural organizations

The survey of nonprofit culturalorganizations began with the as-sembly of a mailing list of 381organizations compiled from listsmaintained by Arts Council SiliconValley, the San José Office ofCultural Affairs, and a list of par-ticipatory arts organizations com-piled by Cultural Initiatives.Organizations were given the choiceof completing a paper or an onlineversion of the 23-question survey.Organizations that did not respondreceived two phone calls urgingthem to do so. The survey was con-ducted in March and April 2005. Aspecial effort was made to obtaindata from larger-budget institutionsto assure that this survey capturedthe substantial majority of financialdata for the nonprofit cultural sec-tor. A conservative estimate is that

the financial data from this surveyencompasses at least 80% of thetotal expenditures of the nonprofitcultural organizations in SiliconValley. The participating organiza-tions are listed below:

Abhinaya Dance Company of SanJose

AblezaAlliance of Visual ArtistsAmerican Ice TheatreAmerican Musical Theatre of San

JoseArt Docents of Los Gatos, Inc.Arts Council Silicon ValleyAssociation for Viet ArtsAzahar Dance FoundationBallet Folklorico Las EstrellasBallet San José Silicon Valley Bay Area Glass InstituteBroadway By the BayCalifornia Youth SymphonyCambodian Culture Dance Troupe

of San JoseCampus Community AssociationCantonese Opera Association

Silicon Valley Cascada de FloresCatholic Charities, Santa Clara

Community & EducationServices

Catholic Charities, WashingtonUnited Youth Center

Children’s Discovery Museum ofSan Jose

Children’s Musical Theatre San JoséChinese Cultural Garden

Foundation, Overfelt GardensCinequestCity of Campbell, Heritage TheatreCity of Fremont, Fremont Cultural

Arts CouncilCommunity School of Music and

ArtsDance For His GloryDanzantes Unidos FestivalDe Anza College, Euphrat Museum

of Art

El Camino Youth SymphonyFirebird Youth Chinese OrchestraFlamenco Society of San JoséFLOW photography + designFountain Blues FestivalGamelan Sekar JayaGilbert & Sullivan Society of San

Jose, Lyric Theatre of San Jose History San JoséIndia Community CenterItalian American Heritage

FoundationIves QuartetKTEH Silicon Valley Public

TelevisionLos Lupenos de San JoséLos Mestizos de San JoséMenlo School, Music @ MenloMilpitas Alliance for the ArtsMontalvo Arts CenterMovimiento de Arte y Cultura

Latino Americana, Inc. (MACLA)Museums of Los GatosNorthside Theatre CompanyNova Vista SymphonyOkasan and Me, Inc.Opera San JoséOriki TheaterPalo Alto Art CenterPalo Alto Ballet, Inc., Mountain

View Ballet Company andSchool/School of Western Ballet

Palo Alto Chamber OrchestraPalo Alto PhilharmonicPeninsula Clef HangersPeninsula Symphony OrchestraPeninsula Women’s ChorusPeninsula Youth TheatrePoetry Center San JoséPortola Valley Theatre ConservatoryRaices de MéxicoRainbow Women’s ChorusSan Carlos Children’s TheaterSan Jose Chamber Music SocietySan Jose Downtown Association

Respondents who worked in jobs requiring creative skills consistently attended more cultural outings than those in lesscreative jobs.

Silicon Valley has four of theBay Area’s largest theatricalinstitutions and four of thelargest nonprofit performingarts-presenting organizations.

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San Jose Institute of ContemporaryArt

San Jose Jazz SocietySan Jose Jewish Film FestivalSan Jose Metropolitan BandSan Jose Multicultural Artists GuildSan Jose Museum of ArtSan Jose Museum of Quilts &

TextilesSan Jose Repertory TheatreSan José State University, ARTPATHSan José State University, Center for

Literary ArtsSan Jose Symphonic ChoirSan Jose TaikoSan Jose Wind SymphonySanta Clara University, de Saisset

MuseumSanta Clara Valley Performing Arts

AssociationSchola CantorumSchool of Art and Design, San José

State UniversityShady Shakespeare Theatre

CompanyShipp Dance TheatreSilicon Valley Ai-Yue ChorusSilicon Valley Children’s FundSouth Bay Guitar SocietySouth Valley Symphony, Inc.Stanford University, Stanford

Institute for Diversity in the Arts Tapestry ArtsTeatro VisiónThe Lace MuseumThe Mostly Irish Theatre CompanyThe Tech Museum of InnovationTheatre Angels Art LeagueTheatre in the MountainsTheatreWorksTown of Los Gatos, Los Gatos Arts

Commission

Triton Museum of ArtUnited Nations Associations

Midpeninsula Chapter, UnitedNations Association Film Festival

Vivace Youth Chorus of San JoséWest Valley/Misson Colleges

Foundation, Olympiad of theArts

Winchester Orchestra of San JoseWorks/San JoséYoung Audiences of Northern

CaliforniaYouth Science InstituteZohar Dance Company

3) Survey of 84 Silicon Valleyleaders

This survey was conducted with the active partnership of AmericanLeadership Forum Silicon Valley.Most of the respondents were indi-viduals carefully selected by theForum over the past 16 years inrecognition of their leadership inbusiness, government, labor, reli-gion, the arts, education, law, socialservice and philanthropy. The lead-ership survey, consisting of 63 ques-tions, was made available to mem-bers of all 16 previous classes ofAmerican Leadership Forum SiliconValley in both paper and online for-mats. The Forum compiles a largedatabase of local leaders fromSilicon Valley’s economic, civic andcultural sectors, from which itselects a representative group ofabout 20 to participate in a yearlongdevelopmental program. Although“leader” is not a precisely definedoccupational or census category, theForum has a distinguished historyof identifying and advancing local

leaders. In addition to members ofthe Forum, a special effort wasmade to obtain completed surveysfrom local mayors and city councilmembers. The survey was conductedin March and April 2005.

4) Survey of 172 local artists

Jessica Zenk, a graduate student atU.C. Berkeley’s Department of Cityand Regional Planning, completed a master’s report entitled “SupportSystems: Art & Artists in SiliconValley” in April 2005. In significantmeasure, this report was based onher survey of 172 artists, and directinterviews with 17 artists and repre-sentatives from arts organizations.The data were gathered through a30-question survey that was admin-istered online from January 25 toFebruary 6, 2005, and was open toall Silicon Valley residents who considered themselves artists. Manyof the artists participating in thissurvey were associated with localarts organizations, including SiliconValley Open Studios, PhantomGalleries, and Works/San José,which helped to make artists awareof the survey.

All of the summary data for 2002and 2005 editions of the CreativeCommunity Index are accessibleonline at the Cultural Policy and the Arts National Data Archive(CPANDA) at Princeton University(http://www.cpanda.org/).

Festivals are an especially promising avenue for generating Silicon Valley’s cultural reputation, nationallyas well as internationally.

Arts should be viewed as a lifelong learning process that beginsin preschool and continues through adulthood.

1153 Lincoln Avenue, Suite ISan José, CA 95125-3009

408.283.7000 www.ci-sv.org