The Value Of Culture

Five years ago, North Adams, Massachusetts, was your typical depressed, rustbelt town. The factories had moved out, and with them, had gone the cash, leaving only empty buildings behind.

But five years ago, with the help of numerous foundations, the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA) was created. Williams College professor Stephen Sheppard, the founder, renovated an aging electric plant turning it into a successful center for the arts, and cultural events through out the year.

In five years, there have been 45 art exhibitions at Mass MoCA, and 300 performances, films and works-in-progress’s presented. The museum has attracted well over 100,000 visitors each year.

The more important contribution, however, has been the overall revitalization of North Adams. A new study has found that, among the other benefits that Mass MoCA provides, it has raised local property values, revitalized the downtown district, and helped new businesses sustain a substantially higher rate of success.

By creating a center for culture in a depressed area, Stephen Sheppard and local government officials have effectively reversed the free fall that North Adams had found itself in.

I believe this is a model that the larger north east, and indeed, the rest of the country, can take note of. As free trade increases, and manual labor moves increasingly overseas, we are found in a precarious position. “The market” does not care what destruction it leaves in its’ wake. And if this trend is inevitable, we must meet it head on, and adapt. If our urban centers can not be centers of manufacturing, of industry, they then must be centers of culture, and of the arts.

I believe our society as a whole, needs a new emphasis on the liberal arts. We are moving from an industrial nation to a post-industrial one, and this change need not be negative. Let’s stop subsidizing failing industries, and start investing in education, in the higher pursuits of life. Art, music, film – in short, culture – is America’s largest export. Why don’t we realize this, and capitalize on it?