In North Adams, the walls of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA) form a dividing line between the highminded art within and the struggling postindustrial city without. ; But outside the 13-acre complex, the erstwhile mill town boasts its own arts community, comprising...

On the first Friday evening of every month, residents and visitors fill the streets of Brattleboro, a 12,000-person community located on the Connecticut River in Vermont. Considered one of the top 10 small “Art Towns” in America, Brattleboro shows how the arts can boost a region’s economic...

Until recently, arts and culture data collected as part of urban revitalization planning focused on large institutions. The Urban Institute’s Arts and Culture Indicators Project provides a richer understanding of communities’ cultural strength and how it can boost economic development.

Whether artists' lofts lure tourists or graphic designers enhance manufacturing, the benefits of the creative economy are everywhere. Today New England is learning the value of fully integrating this source of growth into economic-development agendas.