Office of Cultural Affairs - Overview & Mission

Established in 1977, The City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs (OCA) is responsible for providing access to the arts for all citizens. It advocates the work of local artists, performers, and writers; supports and serves as the municipal interface/convening agency for local arts organizations; and maintains partnerships with Charleston County Schools to provide arts education opportunities and facilitate City-sponsored special events and youth Artreach programs. The office also compiles the Arts in Charleston calendar, a monthly events listing posted on several Internet websites and published in The Post and Courier.

Overall, the OCA’s activities reach residents in the tri-county area that include over half a million residents. Since its inception, the Office of Cultural Affairs has developed a major arts in education component which carries out a variety of special projects. All OCA festivals and special events include an arts education and/or outreach component to further connect our community through the arts.

Each year, the OCA produces and directs two major festivals: the MOJA Arts Festival and the Piccolo Spoleto Festival. Established in 1979 to celebrate African-American and Caribbean arts and culture, MOJA is an annual 10-day festival of visual arts, classical music, theater, poetry, storytelling, dance, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, children's activities, and traditional crafts for an audience of 58,000; it celebrates cultural harmony within the community and encourages participation in and access to a rich variety of traditional arts and cultures, as well as educational programs.

The OCA's largest project, Piccolo Spoleto, was launched in 1979 to complement the international scope of Spoleto Festival USA by showcasing rising artists from the Southeast over the course of its 17-day schedule; it offers an exhilarating mix of visual arts, music, dance, theater, and ethnic cultural presentations, providing broad access to the Spoleto experience, as well as a venue to present over 5,000 artists in some 700 events to an audience of 180,000 of all ages, ethnicities, economic strata, and educational backgrounds.

Other Projects of the OCA include: Holiday Magic in Historic Charleston; City of Charleston Tree Lighting Ceremony; Holiday Parade of Boats; Happy New Year, Charleston!; Charleston Farmers Market; Lowcountry Quarterly Arts Grants Program; The New Perspectives Gallery; City Gallery at Waterfront Park; and a variety of other special events.

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