Study Findings
Study Findings
The study, authored by IWERC research associate and project lead, Dr. Aisha Motlani, dives into data about arts graduates from Illinois and their access and success to jobs in the arts, breaking down the data into demographic characteristics like race, gender, and disability status, to examine equity and justice in professional careers in arts in Illinois.
From the Report: “This spotlight issue has shown that among arts graduates in Illinois, the likelihood of working in the arts is highest if you are White, able-bodied, and male. Black, Latino, and disabled arts graduates are underrepresented in art jobs in comparison to the Illinois workforce, and this is true across most majors. Female arts graduates are underrepresented in comparison to the major population across most degree fields, and a smaller percentage of all female arts graduates end up in arts jobs. While the barriers preventing more arts graduates from gaining access to employment in the arts will be explored in subsequent reports, the data presented here makes it clear that these barriers seem to be amplified for arts graduates who either belong to a historically minoritized community or have a disability. Further research is needed on how the intersection of race, ethnicity, gender, disability, income, as well as other factors such as spatial equity or immigration status, impacts employment opportunities for arts graduates in our state.”
The full report is available here.
The partnership is a collaboration between Arts Alliance Illinois and three entities within the University of Illinois System: Discovery Partners Institute (DPI), the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts at the University of Illinois Chicago.