Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom celebrate 50th anniversary of the California Arts Council

What you need to know: California is a global cultural powerhouse, home to immeasurable potential and creativity. Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom joined the California Arts Council celebration of the arts through a ceremony with artists whose creativity strengthens and enriches our communities.

Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom standing alongside honorees of the night.

SACRAMENTO - Governor Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom this week celebrated the 50th anniversary of the California Arts Council (CAC), joining founding members, artists, and cultural leaders from across the state. For five decades, the Council has helped artists and communities thrive - supporting creativity, preserving culture, and fueling a powerful economic engine.

Art reflects who we are. It connects us, challenges us, and helps us understand each other - especially in difficult times. For 50 years, the Arts Council has supported California's creative community and strengthened our economy. Its impact is only growing.

Governor Gavin Newsom

Art, in any form, is an avenue for storytelling and community building. The California Arts Council has helped tell the Golden State's story for five decades by strengthening art and culture, healing our communities and cultivating a stronger California for all.

First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom

Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom with Roxanne Messina Captor (CAC Chair) and Rick Stein (CAC Councilmember)

At the anniversary event, the state honored artists and leaders who have preserved cultural traditions, expanded representation, and pushed creative boundaries.

Honorees included:

• Luis Valdez - Luis is a pioneering American playwright and director who founded El Teatro Campesino in 1965 during the Delano Grape Strike, setting the foundation for modern Latino theater in the United States through socially engaged performance rooted in labor and civil rights movements.

• Mildred Howard - Mildred is an acclaimed Berkeley-based artist whose sculptures and installations exploring memory, identity, and social justice have transformed public spaces across California for over five decades.

• San Jose Taiko - San Jose Taiko has been a world-class ensemble since 1973, performing globally for tens of thousands annually and earning wide recognition for its artistic excellence and leadership in promoting cultural diversity in the arts.

• Magic Theatre - Magic Theatre has produced groundbreaking plays in San Francisco since 1967 that have gone on to global stages, and now under Sean San José centers Indigenous, Black, and other underrepresented voices to advance inclusivity in the Bay Area arts scene.

• Cheech Marin - Cheech is a cultural icon best known as half of Cheech & Chong and for his film and television work, as well as a leading advocate for Chicano art whose renowned collection anchors The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture.

• Josie S. Talamantez - Josie is a Chicana/Yaqui cultural leader and public policy consultant whose work spans arts administration and historic preservation, including founding the Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center, leading programs at the California Arts Council, and helping secure Chicano Park's National Register and National Landmark recognition.

• Sage Romero - Sage is a member of the Big Pine Paiute and Taos Pueblo tribes and a cultural leader, artist, and educator who, through AkaMya Culture Group and his work as a master hoop dancer and filmmaker, promotes Indigenous identity, empowers Native youth, and advances cultural preservation locally and internationally.

• Barbara Kruger - Barbara is a prominent California artist known for her bold text-based works critiquing power, gender, and capitalism, as well as her influential teaching at UCLA and major site-specific works at leading Los Angeles museums.

• Charles Ray - Charles is a defining California artist whose technically masterful, conceptually rigorous sculptures have reshaped contemporary practice, earned international acclaim, and, through his influential teaching at UCLA, helped shape generations of artists and L.A.'s artistic identity.

• David Geffen - David championed artists like Joni Mitchell, Eagles, and Jackson Browne while bridging music, film, and art-and made a historic impact on Los Angeles through record-setting philanthropy, including the largest gift in Los Angeles County Museum of Art history.

Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom with the founding CAC council and former Governor Jerry Brown

California's investment in the arts

The California Arts Council was established by Governor Jerry Brown under the Dixon-Zenovich-Maddy California Arts Act of 1975. Over the years, the Council has supported artists across the state and built up the infrastructure to nurture emerging talent. Today, California's creative economy is a global powerhouse in this sector, and the state has released its first-ever Creative Economy Strategic Plan to continue building momentum.

The Governor, in partnership with the Legislature, has championed key programs to support this creative talent through one-time allocations, including through the California Creative Corps Program - a statewide program that partnered with artists to deliver public messaging on health, climate and conservation, emergency preparedness, civic participation, and community engagement. The Governor has also launched the Arts in California Parks program with State Parks to support art installations in state and local parks, and expanded cultural art districts statewide, focusing on expansion in underserved areas.