The Iowa Arts Council empowers Iowa to build and sustain culturally vibrant communities by cultivating creativity, learning and participation in the arts.

Established in 1967, the Iowa Arts Council serves as Iowa’s state arts agency and works in collaboration with its federal agency partner, the National Endowment for the Arts, and regional arts partner, Arts Midwest, to build the capacity of Iowa’s arts ecosystem. The Iowa Arts Council strives to create opportunities for the arts to flourish in Iowa by nurturing cultural leadership and investing in projects that provide access to arts experiences in communities and public spaces throughout Iowa.

The Iowa Arts Council’s 2022-2026 strategic plan reinforces these efforts and identifies goals that remain central to its ongoing work and updated priorities.