Museums should share knowledge: DataArts has launched to do just that

A prominently funded effort to get more data into the hands of museums and theaters in the region officially launches today after a months-long reorganization.

DataArts wants to become the standard for data collection in the cultural nonprofit sector, and its leadership says the new platform will bring it one step closer to that goal. Cultural nonprofits like museums, theaters and cultural centers can use the platform’s new and improved data collection and analysis tools to make data-informed decisions, apply for funding and track performance and impact.

Museums and cultural nonprofits using DataArts just spent two weeks without being able to see their historical data. Today, that archived information got a spit-shine from DataArts’ new platform.

It’s all part of a massive organizational overhaul that began last October when the nonprofit dropped the name Cultural Data Project and announced upcoming changes to its business model that would streamline its services — namely its flagship data collection service, Data Profile.

Those improvements have been funded by a number of high-profile foundations, including Bloomberg Philanthropies, The William Penn Foundation and most recently, the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. DataArts was one of five cultural institutions to land an advancement grant from Pew last month. That grant will be used to hone to new platform and lower costs for users. The funding approach was to create a shared resource that can help make cultural nonprofits operate with greater intelligence — things like where to market your tickets, whom to ask for money and the like.

The new platform officially launches today, though further tweaks to the technology are in the pipeline.