The Asheville Area Arts Council’s mission is to keep the arts at the heart of our community. We firmly believe the arts are the cornerstone of what makes the Asheville area such a great place to live in and visit. Founded in 1952 as the Civic Arts Council, the Asheville Area Arts Council was the second arts council formed in North Carolina and is one of the state’s oldest arts council.

The Asheville Area Arts Council supports local artists and arts organizations through advocacy, professional development, and business services. The arts council’s advocacy efforts include being the Buncombe County lead for the Americans for the Arts economic impact study and presenting an annual Creative Sector Summit in partnership with the City of Asheville since 2010. The Asheville Area Arts Council is also a partner of the state’s North Carolina Arts Council and Department of Cultural and Natural Resources. Since 2014, over $382,000 in grants has been distributed from the Asheville Area Arts Council to arts and culture organizations and individual artists in our area.