National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson is on a two-day tour of Maine, as a guest of Congresswoman Chellie Pingree.
The pair first visited Waterville to see the Paul J. Schupf Art Center, which opened in December.
Pingree says she wanted Jackson to witness the ways in which the arts have been a driver of the local economies in the state.
"And that also means other businesses around arts facilities — restaurants — bringing tourists into a community, bringing kids from schools into arts facilities," Pingree said. "They're just really great examples of what is going on in Maine."
Jackson says it's important for the NEA to understand what's happening in arts communities, especially in small rural towns.
"We're coming out of a very difficult time, nationally and in communities all over the country," she said. "So there's a lot of evidence of innovation and also need, as people try to either build back or build differently, and think about the next version of the sector."
Pingree and Jackson also traveled to Rockland today and will wrap up the trip with stops in Portland Friday.
