(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Cultural Coalition’s first “Create in Iowa” report shows more than 42-thousand Iowans work in arts and culture, across more than 58-hundred arts and creative businesses. Coalition Vice President Matt McIver says the number of people working in arts and culture is equivalent to some of Iowa’s largest employers. “The number that struck me the most in the report is that roughly one in two Iowans engage in making some kind of art,” McIver says. He says it is revealing for someone who works in the field.

“That was a degree of participation that really warmed my heart, but also opened my eyes to how deeply entrenched arts and culture are across our state,” he says. The report finds that arts and culture work generates nearly five billion dollars in annual economic impact on the state. Iowa Cultural Coalition President Lindsay Bauer (BOW-er) says she hopes the report can show how investment in creativity can support growing Iowa’s population.“We just identified this need of needing to communicate how impactful the arts are in Iowa, as the Iowa Legislature and Iowa business leaders around the state were beginning to plan their next steps for the growth of Iowa,” she says.

The report found that rural counties with performing arts organizations see faster population growth and recover faster from economic recessions. It calls for the expansion of funding for rural and small-scale projects. It recommends better aligning the creative sector with strategies led by foundations, chambers, cities, and tourism organizations to drive rural, community, and economic development efforts. Bauer and McIver made their comments on Iowa Public Radio’s “Talk of Iowa” program.