On the List Again

Since 2015, SMU Data Arts, the National Center for Arts Research, has been publishing its list of the most vibrant arts communities in the country. Initially it was the top 20 most vibrant arts communities, but in 2018, the list grew to 40: 20 large communities; 10 medium communities; 10 small communities.

The process for determining which communities make the list is explained in this way in this year's report, which was released earlier this week:

Rather than base the list on popular vote or on our own opinion about locations, we take an empirical approach to assessing a variety of characteristics that make up a community’s arts vibrancy. . . . [W]e analyze four measures under each of three main rubrics: supply, demand, and public support for arts and culture on a per capita basis. We gauge supply as total arts providers, demand with measures of total nonprofit arts dollars in the community, and public support as state and federal arts funding. We use multiple measures since vibrancy reveals itself in a constellation of ways. 

Hudson made the list for the first time in 2017, taking the No. 5 position in the list of the Top 10 Arts Vibrant Small Communities. For reasons unknown, Hudson didn't make the list in 2018, but in 2019, Hudson is back on the list, as No. 6 in the Top 10 Arts Vibrant Small Communities.

Other small communities in the Northeast on the list are Bennington, VT; Vineyard Haven, MA; Oneonta, NY; and Greenfield Town, MA. Click here to view the entire report.