“Partially Funded by the National Endowment for the Arts”

The chapter examines the role of state support for the arts and its impact on performance in museums. In the context of the unique historical relationship between the state and the arts in the US, the chapter demonstrates how the government’s intensive cultural and arts funding that began in the mid-1960s was instrumental in the emergence of performance art and the diversification and dynamization of museum programming. The golden age of performance art and its integration into museum spaces were closely tied to these funding initiatives, though they were not their primary objective. Notably, this historical moment saw the realms of art, society, and politics converge in a shared conviction that art and creativity were essential to a free and robust democracy.