A nonprofit that says the arts are almost as big of an industry as agriculture in Wyoming is gathering community feedback on how to build the state’s arts economy.

A report by the Wyoming Arts Alliance (WyAA), commissioned from the University of Wyoming’s Center for Business and Economic Analysis, showed that arts and culture amounts to 2.7% of the state’s GDP. Agriculture is 2.4 %.

“ What that says to me is that that's an unexpected outcome for the creative economy and that maybe our state hasn't engaged in enough conversation and recognition about the role that we are playing in supporting the economy,” said Ryan O’Neil, the alliance’s interim director.

Economics professor Jason Shogren is a member of the Wyoming Arts Council. He worked with the alliance to help get the report underway. He says building the arts economy could help the state deal with brain drain and attract more people to move here.

“ My motto has always been ‘arts attract smarts.’ So if you want to get some place rolling, you want to make sure you have the cultural amenities that keep them there. And the cultural amenities are not just, you know, niceties. They are a fundamental part of any economy. They provide huge benefits, dollar benefits, and non-market benefits to the community,” he said.

The alliance is hosting listening sessions in Sweetwater and Lincoln counties this month. More information can be found at this link.

O’Neil said feedback from artists, art educators and other stakeholders, as well as survey data, will be shared in a report presented at the Wyoming Art Council’s summit in Casper in October.

In a later phase of the WyAA Data Roundup Project, the group hopes to bring people together to eventually create a statewide strategic plan to build the arts economy in Wyoming.