The Arts Index Netherlands is a comprehensive database of facts and figures on arts and culture in the Netherlands, ranging from the number of cinema tickets sold and the total income of public libraries, to the percentage of people that practices amateur arts. Our aim is to shed light on long-term trends and developments in different art worlds.
Initiated by the Boekman Foundation, in cooperation with The Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP), the index presents reliable, relevant, and longitudinal data on the Dutch cultural field. We cooperate with over 30 organisations that have information available, and bring their figures together on a single, easily accessible platform.
To compile an index, we calculate index numbers for all our data, by comparing values for 2007 and later years, with their base value of 2005. The data are then grouped in ‘core indicators’ that encompass different themes in arts and culture, such as attendance, revenues, labour market. Core indicators are subsequently grouped in four pillars, that represent different dimensions to the cultural sector: capacity, participation, financial flows and competitiveness. Calculating the average index number of different categories, we are able to elucidate complex, long-term developments. While examining the data in greater detail, distinct developments become visible.
Figure 2. Arts Index Netherlands, index numbers of pillars 2005-2015
While we review new facts and figures on a daily basis, every two years all data in the Arts Index Netherlands are updated, and trends and developments are analysed in-depth by a team of (research) experts on arts and culture. The research findings are described in De Staat van Cultuur (‘The State of Culture’), as well as in Boekman, a quarterly journal on trends related to arts and culture. The introductory texts of each edition of the Arts Index Netherlands, where key findings are discussed, are translated for international audiences:
Are you curious about the data? We have an overview of all data available: