Supporting Local Artists Since 1959

Inspiring a Vibrant Toledo

Featured

• Art Loop: Poetry Slam

  Friday, November 8

  Get ready for a night of powerful poetic performance! This celebration of spoken word and poetry – held in the historic Collingwood Arts Center – spotlights talented local and regional performance poets and spoken word artists. The evening’s centerpiece is a live poetry slam competition, complete with guest judges and top prizes. Participate or cheer on your favorites!

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• Merit Awards

  Applications Open Now - November 3

  The Arts Commission's Merit Award program recognizes outstanding local literary, performing, and visual artists, rewarding the many hours and personal resources each artist dedicates to their artform. Artists living within a 30-mile radius of Downtown Toledo may be eligible to apply.

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• Intersection of Art and Industry

  Exhibition Open September 18 - October 27

  Intersection is an exhibit of glass art like no other. The 2024 Exhibition features work from Gabriel Peña, Matthew Hutchinson, and Davin Ebanks. Their work will be on display at the Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion, 2444 Monroe St.

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Impact on Our Community in 2023

100+

Volunteers Engaged

106

Locations Activated

$100K+

Paid to Local Artists

Inspired

The Arts Commission advocates to Inspire a Vibrant Community in Toledo. We believe support for artists and creatives in our region is essential to the greater Toledo area's revitalization, sense of place, and commitment to a brighter future. Through collaboration and community conversation we achieve innovative resources and programming that serve Toledo.

Creative

The arts are the heart and soul of our community. By fostering access to arts, creativity, and professional development for all artists and creatives in our area, at all skill levels, and from all walks of life, we encourage a more honest, diverse, and engaging interaction with our city, for residents and guests alike.

Relevant

Our work is vital to helping build a new and better future for our city. From creating a more fertile ground for the arts to grow and develop, to providing access to fun, creativity, and new opportunities, Toledo's art and artists are at the center of driving a sense of community and enriching our neighborhoods, while fostering a creative economy that contributes to our sense of revitalization.

The Arts Commission strengthens our community, fosters creativity and celebrates life through art.

Featured Projects

Broadway Street Corridor

The Arts Commission, in partnership with City of Toledo Transportation Division, the Broadway Corridor Coalition and the Sofia Quintero Arts and Cultural Center, is commissioning artistically designed infrastructure enhancements for a new construction project along the Broadway Street corridor in the Old South End, Toledo.

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The ABC's of Public Art Book & Field Guide

As part of continued education efforts The Arts Commission’s Art in Public Places program two new books have been published and are now available for public request and pick up. Both books are available for free to the public as both printed and digital versions. The Art in Public Places Field Guide, designed by Madhouse Creative, features nine zones and over eighty works of art to explore. The ABC’s of Public Art, illustrated by Merrill Rainey, is geared toward ages 3-5 as they follow Artimus the Owl throughout Northwest Ohio from A-Z. This is the second edition of the popular book. Both editions have now been distributed to over 15,000 children in the area.

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