The North Carolina Arts Council is the state arts agency that brings the arts to all people in all communities. The North Carolina Arts Council launched its work in 1967 as awareness for the importance of arts to all citizens was becoming a national movement. In the ensuing nearly 50 years the arts in North Carolina have come to be valued as one of our state’s most durable and productive assets. We reach into all 100 counties through one of the most highly developed and effective networks of local arts councils in our nation. Artists and institutions improve quality of life, educate and inspire our youth, and stimulate an extraordinary amount of economic activity.