In 1971, a city ordinance established the Seattle Arts Commission to promote development of and public interest in the arts, as well as to advise the city on cultural and artistic development. The Commission was given cabinet-level status in the city government in 1976. In 2002, the department’s name was changed to the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs (OACA), and it was brought into the Executive Department. There continues to be a 15-member advisory group called the Seattle Arts Commission.

The office supports arts groups, community festivals, and neighborhood arts councils; funds and promotes public art, and promotes Seattle as a cultural destination. It also oversees the One Percent for Art program (one of the nation’s first), where one percent of Seattle’s capital improvement project funds are reserved for public art. Since the program began in 1973, it has acquired nearly 3,000 artworks.

In 1991, the office sponsored "In Public: Seattle 1991," an international public art project that brought local and international artists to Seattle to create new artworks in sites around the city, including neighborhoods, schools, media, and the new Seattle Art Museum. Related public programs included a symposium, educational events, performances, and an exhibition in the Security Pacific Bank gallery.