The National Arts Council (NAC)’s mission is to champion the arts in Singapore, from facilitating the growth of a diverse arts sector with a distinctly Singaporean flavour, to driving audience recognition, appreciation and engagement in the arts as an integral part of our daily lives.
As part of its on-going efforts to monitor the state of the arts in Singapore, NAC has been conducting the Population Survey on the Arts on a biennial basis since 2009. The purpose of the survey is to track and understand:
- How Singaporeans perceive the value of arts and culture in Singapore,
- How the level of engagement in arts and culture has changed in Singapore; and
- What the motivations and barriers to embracing arts and culture events and activities in Singapore are.
Apart from mapping the broader perceptions towards the arts, the survey also examined the different forms of arts engagement across the art forms – Music, Dance, Theatre, Visual Arts, Literary Arts, and Heritage, as well as across key audience segments – Students, PMEBs, Families and Seniors. This provides a comprehensive look at the full range of sentiments towards the arts, how they are different or similar, and provides arts groups, practitioners, researchers and administrators with insights on the needs of Singaporeans with respect to the arts and arts offerings.
Please see the infographics for a summary on the 2023 Population Survey on the Arts findings as well as download the full reports of past years’ surveys below:
_png.png?sfvrsn=e8ef391d_2 "Pop Survey of the Arts 2023")
- Population Survey on the Arts 2022
- Population Survey on the Arts 2021
- Population Survey on the Arts 2019
- Population Survey on the Arts 2017
- Population Survey on the Arts 2015
- Population Survey on the Arts 2013
- Population Survey on the Arts 2011
- Population Survey on the Arts 2009
- Population Survey on the Arts 2005
Emerging from the Pandemic – A Special Report with Highlights from the 2019 Population Survey on the Arts
The emergence of COVID-19 brought sudden and widespread changes to the way we lived, worked and played. In Singapore, this came after physical arts attendance had risen to a high of 69% in 2019. NAC’s COVID-19 Arts Consumption Study, which examined people’s online engagement with the arts during the pandemic, revealed that 88% of Singaporeans engaged with the arts online, motivated by novel experiences and for their mental well-being. This report explores how difficulties can be transformed into innovation, for the arts to thrive post-pandemic.
Download the report here: Emerging From the Pandemic