Arts district
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An arts district is a demarcated urban area, usually on the periphery of a city centre, intended to create a 'critical mass' of places of cultural consumption - such as art galleries, dance clubs, theatres, art cinemas, music venues, and public squares for performances. Such an area is usually encouraged by public policy-making and planning, but sometimes occurs spontaneously. It is associated with allied service-industry jobs like cafes, printers, fashion outlets, restaurants, and a variety of 'discreet services' (see the back-page small-ads of almost any cultural events-listings magazine).
There may also be some artists' studios located in nearby back-streets. But, as Richard Florida has found from his research, cultural production facilities are often better sited some miles away from cultural consumption facilities - except in some very tolerant cities and in countries where a boisterous alcohol-based nightlife scene does not lead to aggressive and anti-social behaviour.
In the UK the term sometimes used is "Cultural quarter" or "Arts quarter".
Notable arts districts in the USA include:
- Arts District, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Arts District, Dallas, Texas
- Arts District, Portland, Maine
- Crossroads Arts District, Kansas City, Missouri
- Cultural Center Historic District, Detroit, Michigan
- Downtown Arts District, Las Vegas, Nevada
- Gateway Arts District, Hyattsville/Mount Rainier/Brentwood/North Brentwood, Maryland
- Midtown, Atlanta, Georgia
- Noho Arts District, Los Angeles, California
- Ray Street Arts District in North Park, San Diego, California
- Pearl District, Portland, Oregon
- Short North, Columbus, Ohio
- Uptown, Oakland, California
- Miller Beach Arts and Creative District, Gary, Indiana
Art districts in London include:
