IN THIS ISSUE: pARTnership Movement | Arts Admin Internships | Public Art Network Year in Review ArtForce Iowa | National Arts Marketing Project Conference | Arts and Business Partnership Awards
Americans for the Arts
THE SOURCE FOR ARTS PROFESSIONALS IN THE KNOW
LINK
arts
SUMMER 2019
LINK
xarts
AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS 2019 CALENDAR OCTOBER
Arts Link Mission Delivered quarterly to the professional membership of Americans for the Arts, Arts Link’s mission is to help you meet your professional goals and do your job better by bringing you the latest trends, resources, tools, and ideas in the field of local arts agencies and arts professionals. By sharing the aspirations, challenges, and solutions of your peers and leaders in the field, Arts Link aims to educate, inspire, and equip you with the means to create a world in which the arts can thrive.
National Arts & Humanities Month (NAHM) AmericansForTheArts.org/NAHM
03 Arts and Business Partnership Awards The Central Park Boathouse New York City
Arts Link Editor Linda Lombardi
AmericansForTheArts.org/Events/Arts-And-Business-
Arts Link Editorial Committee Carolyn Bartley Allison Beck Logan Busacca Lauren Cohen Elisabeth Dorman Graham Dunstan Isaac Fitzsimons Nicole Goodman Peter Gordon Ruby Lopez Harper Danielle Iwata Cristyn Johnson Graciela Kahn Pam Korza Amalia Kruszel Clayton Lord Christine Meehan Emma Osore Christina Ritchie Susan Saloom Ami Scherson Jessica Stern Rei Ukon Inga Vitols Patricia Walsh Ann Marie Watson
Partnership-Awards
21 2019 National Arts Awards Cipriani 42nd Street New York City AmericansForTheArts.org/Events/National-Arts-Awards
NOVEMBER 15 –18 National Arts Marketing Project Conference InterContinental Miami Miami, FL NAMP.AmericansForTheArts.org/Get-Smarter/Conference
Advertising Opportunities Arts Link now accepts advertising. For information about rates, schedules, and discounted advertising packages, please contact us at exhibits@artsusa.org. Copyright 2019, Americans for the Arts. Printed in the United States.
be em
QUICK LOOK
M 19 20
Tell Us What You Think At Arts Link, we value the input of our readers and are always interested in hearing your comments about what you’ve read or topics you would like us to feature. By telling us what you think, you help us deliver a publication that better meets your needs. Please email your ideas, recommendations, and remarks to ArtsLink@ artsusa.org. We look forward to hearing from you.
r
Arts Link Design Studio e2
Member Briefings
Be Inspired. Be Informed. Be Connected.
4 The monthly Member Briefings, a member exclusive benefit, give staff the opportunity to talk to you about what’s happening on advocacy, diversity, equity, inclusion, tools and resources, and more. Our #AFTAmember network is one of our strongest resources, so after staff updates, we open the floor to your questions, comments, and lessons learned. To learn more about the briefings, visit us at ArtsU.AmericansForTheArts.org/Members.
Upcoming dates (All times are 3:00PM EDT): August 19, September 17, October 15, November 20, December 17.
ON THE COVER: Vessel Project at POP Art in Unexpected Places, Scottsdale, Arizona. Photo courtesy Southern Arizona Arts & Cultural Alliance.
SUMMER 2019
04
10
09
15
contents
FEATURES
DEPARTMENTS
02 From the President
03 Working for You
The pARTnership Movement and Arts & Culture Leaders of Color Fellowship
04 Building a Bridge Between Business and the Arts
08 MemberCenter
How art can help students process trauma and feel empowered
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
You Belong Here
Arts Administration Internships,
LA County Department of Arts and Culture, Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission
When arts and business partner, everyone profits
10 Life Changing: Transforming Trauma to Resilience Through Art in Des Moines
Americans for the Arts News
Public Art Network Year in Review, NEA and NEH Funding Increase, Texas Arts Funding Victory
14 Leadership in Practice
Inspiring Leadership Through Example
Leadership Awards, National Arts Marketing Project Conference, Arts and Business Partnership Awards
16 The Toolbox
Information to Help You Succeed
Artists at the Community Development Table, National Field Scan, Teaching Artist Guide
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 1
From the President
F
rom the creativity reflected in the growing partnerships between the arts and business to the passion of the arts and culture leaders of tomorrow, your partnership with us inspires all we do.
n
Americans for the Arts
SINCE OUR RELEASE of the Arts + Social Impact
Also key to this positive change is the pipeline
President and CEO
Explorer, I have given much thought to strategic
of new leaders who will be taking on the charge.
Robert L. Lynch with the
partnerships and how all of us work together to
Americans for the Arts is proud to partner with the
inaugural class of the
build stronger communities through the arts.
Joyce Foundation and American Express to launch
Arts & Culture Leaders of
Time and time again, I have seen the impact of
the inaugural Arts & Culture Leaders of Color
what happens when leaders from multiple sectors
Fellowship. The selected cohort of 12 emerging
come together to use the arts to address com-
and mid-career fellows embarked on a year of
munity issues. This subject was core to our 2019
personal and professional learning and growth
Annual Convention, which brought together close
that kicked off at our Annual Convention.
Color Fellowship. Photo by Sylvain Gaboury.
to 1,000 arts leaders to Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, this past June.
This fall, we will continue to highlight partnerships in upcoming events such as National Arts in
The notion of various sectors working together to
Education Week, and a packed October featuring
advance communities through the arts is embed-
National Arts and Humanities Month, the Arts
ded in the updated pARTnership Movement web
and Business Partnership Awards (formerly the
portal, highlighted in this issue. The pARTnership
BCA 10), and the 2019 National Arts Awards. As
Movement shows how businesses who partner
always, I appreciate our partnership with you.
with the arts build an inclusive work-
Thanks for all you do.
force and encourage employees to gain better understanding of diverse cultures and ideas. In the business sector and beyond, leveraging the arts to advance diversity, equity, and incluQUICK LOOK
sion initiatives creates a platform for
Save the Date
tive change can best be accomplished
4
connectivity and cohesiveness. Posithrough working together.
National Arts in Education
Week is September 8–14, 2019.
2 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS NEWS
WORKING FOR YOU PUBLIC ART SNAPSHOT
PUBLIC ART NETWORK YEAR IN REVIEW THIS JUNE, AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS honored the 2019 Public Art Network (PAN) Year in Review projects, which were unveiled at our Annual Convention in Minneapolis. PAN Year in Review is the only national program that specifically recognizes the most compelling public art. Fifty outstanding public art projects created in 2018 were chosen by two independent public art experts—artist Seitu Jones of Saint Paul, Minnesota, and Aaron Ott, Curator of Public Art at Albright Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York.
FEDERAL/LEGISLATIVE SNAPSHOT
NEA and NEH Funding Increase IN MAY, THE U.S. HOUSE Appropriations Committee increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) by appropriating $167.5 million in funding for fiscal year 2020! This is an increase for both agencies of $12.5 million over the fiscal year 2019 funding level and matches the 2019 National Arts Action Summit ask. For the third year in a row, President Trump has proposed a termination of both the NEA and NEH in his budget proposal to the U.S. Congress. However, Congress has repeatedly rejected
Jones and Ott reviewed the 361 applications—the largest submission pool in
that proposal on a bipartisan basis by increas-
over five years—and selected 50 projects from around the United States and
ing funding for the agencies. The U.S. Senate
one from Canada as the most exemplary, innovative, permanent or temporary
Appropriations Committee is due to consider
public art works debuted in 2018.
these funding bills this fall.
New this year, Americans for the Arts’ Research team will examine the data collected through the 2019 submissions, including the responses to a volun-
STATE/LOCAL LEGISLATIVE SNAPSHOT
teer survey from applicants on the breakdown of the budget expenditures, to better understand public art project spending. The final report will be launched this fall, but a preliminary review of the data shows that the total of the budgets is at just over $119 million, with budgets ranging from $100 at the minimum to over $23,000,000. Visit AmericansForTheArts.org/YIR for more about PAN Year in Review and to view the 2019 projects.
Texas Arts Funding Victory DRIVEN BY THE ADVOCACY leadership of Texans for the Arts, Governor Greg Abbott signed the 2020–2021 budget of the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) into law on June 15, 2019,
Open House, a temporary public art installation by Havel Ruck Projects, located in Downtown Houston’s Sam Houston Park. Photo by Morris Malakoff.
adding $250,000 in new public funding for the Arts Healing Grants for Active Service Members and Veterans, administered under the state’s Arts Respond program. Ft. Hood, Texas, is currently one of eleven sites for Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network; while Killeen, Texas, houses two Creative Forces Community Connections Projects, providing increased arts opportunities and programs via VSA Texas’ Ink Stick Project and Texas Folklife’s Workshops. Also included in TCA’s budget is restored funding for the Cultural Districts Project Grants, as well as $5,000,000 in fiscal year 2020, providing a grant to the Flower Mound Cultural Arts Commission to construct a community cultural and performing arts center.
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 3
BUILDING A BRIDGE BETWEEN BUSINESS AND THE ARTS by Jessica Stern, Private Sector Initiatives Program Manager, Americans for the Arts
“
The pARTnership Movement has elevated our leadership’s ability to envision new, innovative ways to leverage the arts in any sector, and provides functional examples of how businesses, both large and small, are working with artists. It shows how to unlock the power of the arts through dynamic employee development, creative teambuilding, community led marketing initiatives, as well as opportunities for the arts to lead conversations from within.
”
—Kate Marquez, Executive Director, Southern Arizona Arts & Cultural Alliance
B n
Jiffy Lube of Indiana’s mural, The Bird, The Hook and The Worm by Carl Leck. Photo by Jiffy Lube of Indiana.
orn out of a desire to bring the arts and business communities together, Americans for the Arts’ pARTnership Movement program and online platform builds the capacity of the arts field to cultivate mutually beneficial partnerships with businesses, and makes the case to businesses why partnering with the arts creates a competitive edge. CREATING RECIPROCAL RELATIONSHIPS
As the philanthropic landscape rapidly shifts—often away from traditional support of the arts—the pARTnership Movement explores the unifying nature of arts and business partnerships through real stories, tools, and engagement opportunities that flip the conversation between arts organizations and current or potential partners from ‘how can you help me?’ to ‘how can we help each other?’
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
Using the 8 Best Reasons for Businesses and the Arts to Partner as our framework, we divided our offerings into three categories, mirroring how business generally approaches community partnerships: Employees, Company, Community. A core reason—that the arts Cultivate Diversity & Empathy—permeates throughout and is central to any approach. Beginning at the high level of why arts and business make a great pairing, and using briefing papers, partnership success stories, thought leadership, research, toolkits, and how-to workbooks on employee engagement strategies, we drill down into how each of these reasons comes to life in a business context; providing the right resource for sparking, cultivating, evolving, and scaling arts and business partnerships.
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 5
BUILDING A BRIDGE
QUICK LOOK
Creatives@ Work Who are the Creatives@Work in your area? Now you can create your own pARTnership Movement ads and shareable images using a fun and engaging tool. All you need is a high-quality headshot (neutral backgrounds preferred) and a little creativity to pick your artistic inspiration. Our site will generate an image for you. Use this to celebrate a business professional, engage new recruits, or to highlight the creative in everyone. 4
n
Candy Crawl at Oro Valley Marketplace, Oro Valley, Arizona. Photo by Matt Rolland.
6 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
On the new website, pARTnershipMovement.org, which re-launched on July 1, arts organizations and businesses can search for specific examples to support their case or project as it relates to one or more of the 8 Reasons or submit their own story to celebrate local partners. PARTNERSHIP IN PRACTICE
It’s these real stories of putting the values into practice that animate the work. Southern Arizona Arts & Cultural Alliance’s Executive Director, Kate Marquez, uses the pARTnership Movement resources— particularly the success stories—to build business collaborations. “The most impactful tools on the website are the success stories, which bring conversations and ideas to life,”
says Marquez. “They provide exemplary samples of arts-based programs in communities and sectors of all sizes and types. They are not only inspirational, but meaningful learning opportunities, provided in digestible ways to which businesses can relate. The success stories provide businesses with creative problem solving for each of their top challenges and priorities as defined by their individual organizations. They also provide a benchmark of innovation in the arts which can be replicated and modified for each individual business culture.” Recognizing that her board of directors is her closest circle of advocates with far reaching connections in the community, Marquez trains her board—a diverse cross section of business leaders, entrepreneurs, and creatives, many of whom have never served on an arts board—on the fundamentals of the pARTnership Movement as a foundation for community outreach. “The pARTnership Movement provides our leadership with a broad understanding of how the arts impact a range of our community’s capacity with inspiring success stories, statistics, and meaningful content, which helps broaden their ability to communicate and cultivate new and innovative ways to not just support the arts, but to use them as an active partner for change in our community.” It’s not just arts organizations leading the charge. Steve Sanner, president of Jiffy Lube of Indiana, has become a vocal advocate for the pARTnership Movement. For decades,
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
“
Colorado Business Committee for the Arts (CBCA) frequently uses the pARTnership Movement in conversations and presentations to business and professional groups. We include a slide and/or print out of the 8 Reasons, which helps educate and adds credibility from a respected national source. We are excited to utilize the new pARTnership Movement website tools and individual fact sheets!
”
—Christin Crampton Day, Executive Director, CBCA
the company marketed primarily to men, often through sports sponsorships. After his business was repeatedly tagged with graffiti, Sanner had a mural painted on the wall; launching the company’s shift to partnering with the arts. One of this year’s Arts and Business Partnership Awards recipients, Sanner has been amazed at how much the 8 Reasons accurately describe what he experienced at Jiffy Lube of Indiana. “It’s opened our eyes to a whole new world,” Sanner said. “I have seen how much our local communities have embraced the mural project. More impressively, I have seen what it has meant to our own people. We’ve been in business since 1985, yet I had no idea
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
how many of our employees were into art and how much they would appreciate what we are doing.” It doesn’t end there for Sanner. “We are hoping to see more local retail businesses follow our lead in Indianapolis, and we definitely have the attention of Jiffy Lube owners around the country. They laughed at us when we started this, but they now see the results, both externally and internally, and are asking questions about how they can start doing the same thing.” The need for cash in arts organizations is real. However, our approach with the pARTnership Movement and what it offers is broader. pARTnerships can exist in as many ways as there are creative ideas. Use the inspiration you’ll find on the pARTnership Movement website and the tools as a guide to unleash your creativity in conversation with new and current business partners as you endeavor to build a more vital and vibrant place to live and work.
4
Visit pARTnershipMovement.org today.
QUICK LOOK
Host a Workshop Bring The pARTnership Movement to your community! Americans for the Arts staff offers customizable in-person workshops that address the basics of building business and arts partnerships, exploring and activating the 8 Reasons, addressing common business challenges through the arts, and how to frame the arts as part of a solution to community-wide challenges together with business. Contact our team at privatesector@artsusa.org to learn more. 4
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 7
YOU BELONG HERE
MEMBERCENTER “soft” skills that are strongly sought Rising high school seniors complete the Bloomberg Arts Internship and share their experiences through presentations. Photo by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
after by employers across disciplines. Future Workforce Skill-Building
Creativity is reported to be one of the top personality traits most crucial to career success alongside problem-solving and critical-thinking—attributes practiced heavily in arts administration internships.3 Through challenging projects in departments like development, programming, or marketing, rising leaders develop and practice skills integral to career advancement while working in a high growth sector. RAC and Jacob’s Pillow are just two of the many programs available for students that allow creativity and business acumen to be the MEMBERCENTER
WHAT’S THE BIG IDEA?
thinking, coveted future workforce skills, and greater equity and access.
driving forces behind their work. Equity and Access
Community Leadership
Internships are not only limited to
An Americans for the Arts study of the
undergraduate students. The Bloomberg
future of the field found that “arts and
Arts & Culture Internship Program
culture are essential to healthy, vibrant,
provides New York City high school
equitable community development.”2
seniors a chance to intern at arts
Erika Fiola, coordinator of the new
organizations. Andrew van Dusen, teen
Gyo Obata Fellowship Program at the
programs manager at Studio Institute,
Regional Arts Commission (RAC) in St.
emphasizes raising awareness about
Louis, Missouri, describes how an emerg-
opportunities in the arts, as many
ing local interest in the arts led to the
students “simply don’t know” about the
program’s development. “More and more
different professions in the field. Iwata
THOUGH INTERNSHIPS are an ideal
people are realizing the transformative
was unaware of arts administration as
gateway to become familiar with the
impact the arts can have on communi-
a field prior to college, but now has a
arts management field, there are
ties,” she states, and hopes the program
position at Americans for the Arts thanks
many not-so-obvious reasons why arts
can open more doors to arts careers.
to her Jacob’s Pillow internship.
Entrepreneurial Thinking
Through internship programs, arts and
Danielle Iwata, a 2015 development
cultural organizations have a unique
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
intern of the Jacob’s Pillow Summer
opportunity to leverage the expanding
found employment in the arts rose
Festival Intern Program in Becket, Mas-
benefits of arts administration work, build
2.5 percent, with the number of jobs
sachusetts, says her time there covered
young leaders’ creativity and business
reaching 5 million.1 In this growing field,
a wide breadth of skills. She believes arts
savvy, and secure the future of the field
there has been a significant appearance
administration internships require “more
by creating an access point to the grow-
of, and interest in, arts administration
entrepreneurial thinking” due to their
ing industry. Find out more about these
internships across the country.
place at a crossroad between arts and
and other arts administration programs
Internships in our field can foster
business. Arts administration internships
at AmericansForTheArts.org/About-
community leadership, entrepreneurial
push participants to leverage “hard” and
Americans-For-The-Arts/Internships.
Arts Administration Internships: Now Trending
administration internships are becoming more relevant.
“Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account, U.S. and States 2016”, US Bureau of Economic Analysis, March 19, 2019, bea.gov/news/2019/arts-and-cultural-production-satellite-account-us-and-states-2016 (accessed June 10, 2019).
1
AmericansForTheArts.org/by-program/reports-and-data/research-studies-publications/new-community-visions-initiative
2
3
“Arts + Workforce Development”, Americans for the Arts, AmericansForTheArts.org/socialimpact (accessed June 10, 2019).
8 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
MEMBERCENTER
Spotlight MEMBERCENTER
Member Article LA County Department of Arts and Culture Releases Open Source Design Resource to Spur New Affordable Housing by Iris Anna Regn, Civic Art Project Manager, Los Angeles County Arts Commission
Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission Arts Advocacy Win ON JUNE 11, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and council members voted in favor of a budget to increase the 2019–2020 funding for the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission (an Americans for the Arts Organizational Member) to a total of $2.2 million. This total is an increase of an additional $1.476 million from the previous fiscal year. The multi-year advocacy effort was led by Dennis Mangers, a long-time Sacramento arts
PART OF THE SOLUTION: YES TO ADU stems from the LA County Department
supporter and advisor to Mayor Steinberg. Arts
of Art and Culture (formerly the Arts Commission) Civic Art Program’s
advocates and leaders attended a city council
unprecedented partnership with the Homeless Initiative on the Second
meeting on May 21, where nearly 20 speakers
Dwelling Units Pilot Program. The Pilot Program supports the development
made the case for the $2.2 million for the
of granny flats, also called Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), as one of the
Metropolitan Arts Commission to provide
strategies to help alleviate LA County’s housing pressure.
adequate funding for the city’s cultural plan,
The multi-year project, in collaboration with the LA County Department of Regional Planning, the Community Development Commission of the County of Los Angeles, and the LA County Department of Public Works, catalyzed
The Creative Edge. The plan works toward a long-term vision to make Sacramento an equitable, vibrant, world-class arts destination.
architects, designers, planners, and creative strategists to reimagine the potential of ADUs by means of an architectural design competition. The competition assembled a tangible index of possibilities that can help policy makers, architects, and homeowners implement ADU’s in their neighborhoods. Select competition proposals were exhibited in a year of community events and workshops with partnering organizations including East Los Angeles College; the Institute for Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the LA Forum for Architecture and Urban Design; and Open Engagement, Queens Museum, New York. Some of the design proposals can even serve as strategies instead of single projects: strategies to build homes, strengthen communities, and sustain neighborhoods for generations to come. The corresponding publication is designed to raise awareness about ADUs, stimulate constructive dialogue, and serve as a resource for planners, policymakers, homeowners, advocates, and communities. It can be found in all 85 LA County libraries and accessed online at LACountyArts.org/ADU. “The unique talents of artists and cultural organizations can develop, guide, and amplify innovative solutions to social and civic issues,” says Kristin Sakoda, executive director of the LA County Department of Arts and Culture. “We are proud to be part of the solution.” Mayor Steinberg addresses the residents in attendance at the Creative Edge Last Call Town Hall. Photo by City of Sacramento.
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 9
LIFE CHANGING: TRANSFORMING TRAUMA TO RESILIENCE THROUGH ART IN DES MOINES by Clayton Lord, Vice President of Local Arts Advancement, Americans for the Arts
T
n
Self portraits created by youth in detention. Photo by Clayton Lord.
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
he co-founder of ArtForce Iowa grew up in a family well-versed in armed robbery and murder. He was batted about by the juvenile justice system, and in the early 2000s, was convicted of attempted murder and sent to prison. While in prison, he hand-wrote three novels and discovered his artistic talent. After being paroled, he became friends with Yvette Hermann, a creative writing professor, and came to believe that if he had had a mentor like Yvette, his life would have turned out very differently. This “what could have been” inspired the two of them to co-found ArtForce Iowa in 2012. The organization engages 13–18-year-olds involved in juvenile or family court, kids who are being disruptive in school, and first-generation immigrants who have been victims of crime. They work to transform youth through art by helping their students process trauma and feel empowered.
“Trauma is so prevalent among these kids,” says ArtForce Iowa Executive Director Christine Her. “Dealing with that trauma and finding resiliency only works when there’s a community of support around the young person. So, we’ve created a community, based in art, to help.” Through an arts-based process, students express themselves in a safe way; recognize what’s going on internally; and learn to express themselves freely, regulate, and let things go, all in a two-story poured concrete hunk of a building across the street from North High School, right in the middle of Sixth Avenue, in an area called Birdland. ArtForce predominantly serves the larger surrounding area; which is the most racially diverse area in the city, with major populations of refugees and immigrants living alongside long-term African American families and white transplants who recently moved to town.
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 11
LIFE CHANGING
Painting by Ava, created at ArtForce Iowa.
QUICK LOOK
Consistency “Ava creates beautiful paintings. She’s gone through a lot of hardship. She is what we call a dual case—court-involved through juvenile court and also a child in need of assistance. Her home wasn’t safe and she had anger issues. She would lash out at teachers and get down on herself. But she’s always been this amazing artist—a writer, singer, visual artist. Before ArtForce, there was no consistency for Ava. And if her time with us gets disrupted, a lot of things will start to spiral down for her. When she has the art, and the consistency, she can keep going. The moment she would come back to ArtForce, she would start to flourish. It’s all about consistency. Consistency with art can really help a young person get through a lot of instability.” — Christine Her, ArtForce Iowa Executive Director 4
n
Right: Bravo Greater Des Moines Executive Director Sally Dix (L) discusses some of the student work with ArtForce Iowa Executive Director Christine Her. Photo by Clayton Lord.
12 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
“They’ve got all the challenges of a small nonprofit plus some,” says Sally Dix, executive director of Bravo Greater Des Moines, the local arts agency. She references flooding and equipment loss, school system bureaucracy, and a mysterious incident where their water got disconnected for a week. “It can feel to an outsider like they are always taking three steps backward before they can take one step forward.” Despite those challenges, the ArtForce team perseveres and thrives. Her and her team execute their mission with what can only be described as steady joy. In that, ArtForce joins the
other businesses and nonprofits, many of which are owned and run by people of color, that populate the Sixth Avenue corridor. The area has a long history of being predominantly black and suffers from disinvestment the way that many such neighborhoods have historically done. As Her puts it, “No one wants to drop their money here. They see it as a place that isn’t thriving. But it’s precisely because of the barriers that I know we’re in the right place. We’re bridging the gap. We’re bringing the hope.” As an example, she tells the story of December, a young refugee from Thailand who, when she first arrived at ArtForce, was a shy eighth grader who wouldn’t talk to anyone, regularly arrived late, and gave up on projects rather than try. Her and the ArtForce team paired December with some of the local artists that form the “Artist-Mentor Team,” and over time, December blossomed. “Now she creates these amazing projects,” says Her. “But it’s more than that. We call her the “art director,” because she’s not that shy, timid girl anymore—now she pulls people into her projects, creating meaningful work that has to do with who she is and where she comes from.” Each year, ArtForce’s students create an exhibition called KnowJustice. In 2018, the theme was “manifesto,” and
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
n
the goal was to encourage the young people to think about what they believed complex created by in and what they wanted to see change. youth artist, December, depicting her complex In December’s case, she lives in a nearby as it was and as she apartment complex owned by a slumlord hoped it could be. Artist and populated almost exclusively by refuStatement: “Where I live gees and immigrants. It is a hellish place looks trashy and I want to make it better.” Photo that smells constantly of fish and trash. by Clayton Lord. The buildings have broken windows, the heat doesn’t always work, and the parking lot is pockmarked and lineless. When it rains too much, the whole first floor floods. QUICK LOOK December made her manifesto in the form of side-by-side architectural models of her complex as it was and as she hoped 4 Youth who participate in the it could be. Through her arts improve social and emotional art, she replaced the learning skills like conflict resolution, future orientation, critical downed trees, trash, response, and career readiness and debris, the unlined by 25 percent or more. parking lot and neglected Kids who take part in arts probuildings, with a vibrant, gramming during or after school are five times less likely to drop well-cared for, inviting out of high school and two times community space. As part as likely to graduate college. of ArtForce’s commitment Find more data points like this in to mentorship, December the Arts & Social Impact Explorer learned about landlord at AmericansForTheArts.org/ SocialImpact. responsibilities and tenants’ rights and worked with a local architect to make sure the models were built to scale— a particularly happy experience for her, as she dreams of becoming an architect herself. Below: Present & Future,
3-D models of apartment
What Art Can Do
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
“I want to show people what I want the complex to look like so that other refugees who come to Des Moines like I did can have a better home,” December told Her. Walking through ArtForce’s space, the walls pulse with the artwork of the kids. Her guides me to a table and pulls out a fan of narrow slips of paper, all the colors of the rainbow. She shows me how to fold the simple paper, with all its possibility, into a perfectly shaped star. “There are lots of organizations doing incredible work here in Des Moines,” says Dix, who joined us in making stars. “But what I see from the kids at ArtForce is unique.” Dix pauses, then says with certainty, “What they’re doing here—it’s literally life-changing.”
QUICK LOOK
Funding Transformation Is ArtForce Iowa an arts organization or a social services organization that uses the arts? This was an important question for Sally Dix and the grants panels at Bravo Greater Des Moines. After initially being unable to fund the organization, Dix and her team created a new pilot program with broader parameters that allowed them to support ArtForce and 25 other organizations doing similar “arts and” work. They’re now analyzing what they learned and will be launching a next step in 2020. 4
“We are evolving as an organization,” says Dix, “to make sure that more people from more cultural backgrounds doing different types of work are seen as an important part of the cultural tapestry.”
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 13
INSPIRING LEADERSHIP THROUGH EXAMPLE
LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE says Reese. “That’s good and helpful sometimes, but my advice is to focus on how you make people feel welcome and that they have a voice.” She stresses that the heart of DEI work is not just structural change but ultimately helping others understand there is “value in what they might say or contribute.” When it comes to her leadership style, Reese says, “My highest and best contribution to the field right now is to be an enabler— to enable young leaders to take a chance knowing that I have their back. I’m not going to let you fall on your face, but I am going to let you try it and when you have exhausted all Americans for the Arts Board Chair Julie Muraco, Margie Reese, and Americans for the Arts President & CEO Robert L. Lynch. Photo by Sylvain Gaboury.
QUICK LOOK
possibilities you’ll either be grandly successful or you will have learned in the process that a different way might have been better.”
LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE
SPEAKING OF LEADERSHIP Energizing the Field
Reese learned early on in
Culture in Texas, Margie Reese was an ideal choice for the 2019 Americans for the Arts’ Selina Roberts Ottum Award recognizing an arts leader who has made a meaningful contribution to their
crisis that leadership isn’t just “jumping up with your palms on the table,” but instead “understanding the power you have to bring other voices into the conversation. be the messenger. You can facilitate the conversation by bringing together other assets and power.”
local community and who exemplifies extraordinary leadership
“We have to be comfortable
qualities. According to her board president Paul Clark, Reese
giving our dreams away, let-
“brought energy to Wichita Falls. I think her mission all along
ting someone else take charge
was to bring our community together through the arts, and that
of our dreams. Dream making
is exactly what is happening. The arts are powerful, and we are
is a very personal thing, but
proud to see the impact that they are making in our city.”
the realization of that dream
Reese’s 30+ years in arts leadership also includes work in Dallas, Los Angeles, at Goucher College, and serving 23 years as a board member of Americans for the Arts, where she has spearheaded several of our initiatives on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), including the new Arts & Culture Leaders of Color Fellowship program.
requires a team. It requires help. Arts administrators love our work to death. We kill a good idea because we won’t let somebody else in on the secret. Leadership is about sharing the podium, sharing
When it comes to DEI work, Reese points to the need for orga-
the dream. Giving somebody
nizations to take a human point of view rather than creating a
else a piece of it knowing they
step-by-step tactical process. “People focus on the concept of
can probably implement that
DEI as though it is a project you have to plan for, get buy in for,”
piece of it better than you.”
14 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
Each year, Americans for the Arts celebrates field leaders who have demonstrated excellence and leadership. This year’s honorees are: George Tzougros, Executive Director, Wisconsin Arts Board, Madison, Wisconsin (Michael Newtown Award); Matt Wilson, former Executive Director, MASSCreative, Boston, Massachusetts (Alene Valkanas State Arts Advocacy Award); Roberto Bedoya, Manager of Cultural Affairs, City of Oakland, Oakland, California (Public Art Network Award); Julie Garreau, Executive Director, Cheyenne River Youth Project, Eagle Butte, South Dakota (Arts Education Award); and Stephanie JohnsonCunningham, Founder and Creative Director, Museum Hue, Brooklyn, New York (American Express Emerging Leaders Award). 4
Los Angeles during a budget
You don’t always have to
AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of the Wichita Falls Alliance for Arts and
2019 Honorees
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE Attendees at NAMPC 2018 enjoy a networking break during the conference. Photo by Robert Wade.
Change Agents The 2019 Arts and Business Partnership Awards Go To: AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS is excited to announce the recipients of the 2019 Arts and Business Partnership Awards, which will be presented at a black-tie gala, Thursday, October 3, 2019, at the Central Park Boathouse. Visit AmericansForTheArts.org/ Partnership-Awards for more details.
LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE
Committing to the Arts National Arts Marketing Project Conference Goes to Miami DID YOU KNOW THAT ALMOST 600 arts marketing professionals gather annually to explore the latest trends and connect with one another to discuss the newest technologies, strategies, and tactics to activate and engage arts and
n
David Machado Restaurants (Portland, OR)
n
Doyle Coffin Architecture (Ridgefield, CT)
n
Erie Insurance (Erie, PA)
n
Grounds for Thought (Bowling Green, OH)
n
Jiffy Lube of Indiana (Indianapolis, IN)
n
Nokia Bell Labs (New Providence, NJ)
n
Northwestern Mutual (Milwaukee, WI)
n
Omaha Steaks (Omaha, NE)
n
The Marcus Corporation (Milwaukee, WI)
n
Warby Parker (New York, NY)
n
The David Rockefeller pARTnership Award:
culture audiences? No? Well, they do. And you can, too! This year, we’re going to Miami! Home of one of the most vibrant and culturally rich communities, the National Arts Marketing Project Conference (NAMPC) will showcase Miami’s unique cultural offerings and highlight new trends in digital marketing with an outstanding opening keynote speaker, Carlos Gil. Gil hails from Los Angeles and will share his journey, views on social media, and trends to watch in 2020. Rounding out the keynote lineup this year will be Jeffrey Bowman, Founder of Reframe, and Laurie Woolery, Director of Public Works at The Public Theater.
Gensler + Access Gallery (Denver, CO) n
The Leadership Award: Michael Martella,
President of Boar’s Head and Chairman of Van Wezel Foundation YoungArts winner Julius Rodgrizuez. Photo by Rana Faur.
NAMPC has always been at the forefront of arts and culture marketing and audience engagement discussion and this year will be no different. One preconference will explore journalism’s place in modern society and the other will take attendees through developing an accessibility plan. Off-site sessions will include visits to the Wynwood and Lincoln Districts. Join us in Miami, November 15–18, 2019, at the InterContinental. Feeling FOMO? Don’t worry! Registration is now open! For more information visit NAMP.AmericansForTheArts.org. Can’t make it to NAMPC this year? Join the Arts Marketing Network listserv and join the NAMPC Facebook page or LinkedIn group to stay connected to your peers in the field and get the latest news and updates.
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 15
INFORMATION TO HELP YOU SUCCEED
THE TOOLBOX THE TOOLBOX Artists at the Community Development Table Local Workshop, Augusta, Georgia
Did You Know? Celebrate National Arts & Humanities Month OCTOBER IS NATIONAL Arts & Humanities Month (NAHM), a nationwide celebration of the role culture plays in our communities and our lives. Americans for the Arts is proud to collaborate with our members on this annual celebration elevating the arts and humanities in America. Whether you’ve participated before or want to get involved for the first time, now is the perfect time to start planning!
THE TOOLBOX
BUILDING BLOCKS Artists at the Community Development Table
Here are four easy ways to bring NAHM to your community this October. Get access to these (and more) ideas and resources at AmericansForTheArts.org/NAHM.
+ Join our 31-day Instagram challenge—and
encourage others to join, too! Find our daily themes online and post along with us all month long using #ShowYourArt2019. + Ask for a local government proclamation.
IN A TIME WHEN COMMUNITIES are facing ever-changing needs and an
Your mayor, city council, even your governor
increased demand for creative problem-solving, interest in arts-based
can officially declare National Arts & Humani-
solutions to community development issues is growing among both arts and
ties Month—and our sample proclamation
non-arts stakeholders. As recognition of this shift, and support for the value
will help get them started.
of creative work in addressing core community issues has grown, many of
+ Get the word out to the media—even if
our nation’s 4,500 Local Arts Agencies (LAAs) have evolved from arts-centric
you’ve never spoken to the press before!
to community-centric organizations. To support this opportunity, Americans
Download our press release template and
for the Arts has launched the Artists at the Community Development Table
customize it for your community.
program. Through this program, we aim to deepen the capacity at the local level to pursue arts-based solutions to community development.
+ Host a Creative Conversation in your community. Gather local leaders (make it
Created alongside leading artists and arts administrators in the arts-based
formal, or not!) to discuss how the past is
community development field, this program focuses on four core areas:
shaping the future of the arts.
Community + Culture + Equity, Artist Agency, Partnerships & Collaborations, and Assets & Support; delivers direct and indirect educational trainings and resources such as trainings for LAAs, an online course, and resource guides, that are needed to encourage deeper, varied, and sustained partnerships among artists, arts leaders, and other sectors with the common goal of addressing community issues. Check out AmericansForTheArts.org/ACDT for more information.
16 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2019
The Source for Arts Professionals In the Know
THE TOOLBOX
Reporting from the Field National Scan on Supporting Art in the Public Realm IN THE SPIRIT OF ADVANCING FIELD DIALOGUE about the broadening range of art in the public realm—public art, socially engaged art, artist residencies— Programs Supporting Art in the Public Realm: A National Field Scan provides snapshots of 28 programs supporting and building capacity for artists to work in the public realm and highlights overarching themes. Detailed summaries from interviews with seven selected programs provide additional insights useful for funders and the public art field. Developed to inform the New England Foundation for the Arts’ Creative City program, the scan is published by Americans for the Arts and The Barr Foundation. Download the National Field Scan at AmericansForTheArts.org/Node/102532.
THE TOOLBOX
E-Resources Teaching Artist Guide on Arts for Change TEACHING ARTISTS are engaging youth in art-making as a way to ask questions, imagine new possibilities, and promote action for positive change in communities. This companion to Aesthetic Perspectives: Attributes of Excellence in Arts for Change shares how teaching artists and institutions that support them are activating the 11 values in the Aesthetics framework. The Companion shares how teaching artists and supporting institutions embody and activate the values in the framework. It includes examples and a rubric for observation and assessment. Developed by Animating Democracy/ Americans for the Arts in collaboration with WolfBrown, and written by Dennie Palmer Wolf and Jeannette Rodríguez Píneda. Download the guide at AnimatingDemocracy.org/ Companion-Guides.
www.AmericansForTheArts.org
SUMMER 2019 | ARTS LINK | 17
1000 Vermont Avenue NW 6th Floor Washington, DC 20005 T 202.371.2830 F 202.371.0424 ArtsLink@artsusa.org AmericansForTheArts.org