Without Art

Last week, Kate Mueth, a fixture of and firebrand for the East End arts scene, widely passed along an email asking people to send emails to U.S. senators, asking them to restore funding for the arts.

The Performing Arts Alliance was the source of the request. It noted that on July 15, the U.S. House Appropriations Interior Subcommittee had proposed, in draft bill for the fiscal year 2026, cutting funds for the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities at $135 million each, cutting funding by almost a third. That’s severe — but President Donald Trump, the alliance noted, has proposed eliminating both agencies. “While that proposal is symbolic,” the alliance said of Trump’s plan, “the Interior Subcommittee holds real authority over arts funding, and their draft reflects the first formal number put into play.”

Certainly, arts funding is likely heading for the chopping block, despite the fact that it would amount to less than .005 percent of the federal budget — pocket change. But the push to cut spending in Washington, D.C., is no longer about the bottom line; it’s about fighting the cultural wars. And one side does not see art as a worthwhile use of public money.

Why should we spend tax money on the arts? It seems sad to have to defend such a simple notion, but here goes:

There are economic benefits to the community. Imagine the South Fork without its vibrant arts organizations and history as a mecca for artists, many of whom have been supported by federal grants. Art is in this region’s blood — and it generates capital. Both are good reasons to support it. Jobs are created, culture is preserved and enhanced.

The arts also provoke, which engages, which means more civic engagement and deeper thinking. It offers shared experiences that can bring a community together, or spark conversations that divide it in a way that is necessary and healthy. Making art shouldn’t be something only the wealthy can do — the diversity of experiences deserves a voice.

Mueth, the founder and artistic director of the Neo-Political Cowgirls, in her email, put it succinctly: “Without artists, our country is a cesspool.”

Some others have shared similar sentiments.

“Without art, the crudeness of reality would make the world unbearable” — George Bernard Shaw.

“Without art, we should have no notion of the sacred” — W.H. Auden.

“There is no depth to education without art” — poet and activist Amiri Baraka.

“Without art, our world would be void of beauty, creativity and human expression” — Rachelle Pimentel, fine art consultant.

“Without art we would be nothing but foreground and live entirely in the spell of that perspective which makes what is closest at hand and most vulgar appear as if it were vast, and reality itself” — Friedrich Nietzsche.

“The Earth without art is just eh” — comedian Demetri Martin.

As the nation continues down a path where priorities are being rearranged, it’s crucially important for people to speak up in favor of things that matter to them. If art, music and theater mean anything to you — if you will attend a play or a concert or a movie anywhere from Montauk to Westhampton Beach and beyond this summer — make your voice heard. Because a world without art is no bargain.