THE SOURCE FOR ARTS PROFESSIONALS IN THE KNOW IN THIS ISSUE: Creative Greensboro | The Black Genius Foundation | Johnson Fellow Charya Burt Membership Corner | AEP6 Community Engagement & Equity Work | Arts & Cultural Equity Studio ar Americans for the Arts tsSUMMERLINK2022
arts LINK Arts Link Mission Published three times a year for our Professional Members, Arts Link provides insight and expertise on the latest trends, resources, tools, and ideas in the field of local arts agencies and arts professionals. Written by Americans for the Arts staff and guest contributors, Arts Link brings together arts advocacy news, member spotlights, and highlights of artists and arts organizations from across the country so that our members can continue to create a world where everyone has access to the arts and their transformative power. Arts Link Managing Editor Linda Lombardi* Arts Link Editorial Committee Michael Chodos* Jay AnnPatriciaIngaToosharGennaJessicaMarissaDanielJoshuaTeraLauraMitalMandiMaryannPamJerelleHeatherDanielDick*Fitzmaurice*FlanaganJenkins*Korza*KwakwaLee*Lyons-WarrenMartinProbyReynoldsRichtmyre*ShadburnSternStyles-Lyas*SwainVitols*WalshMarieWatson * denotes content contributor this issue Arts Link Design Studio e2 Cover Kings Forest community member Ms. Ophelia paints basketball court mural, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro. Inside Cover Blooms by Lead Artist Bruce Munro; Scottsdale Waterfront; Scottsdale, Arizona; photo by Sean Deckert. Copyright 2022, Americans for the Arts. Calendar SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy SEPTEMBER 22–23, 2022 National Arts Policy Roundtable OCTOBER 1–31, 2022 National Arts & Humanities Month OCTOBER 17, 2022 National Arts Awards
SUMMER 2022 | ARTS LINK | 1 SUMMER 2022 Contents FEATURES 06 Greensboro Models Power-Sharing in Neighborhood-Based Arts Reflections on the first year of Creative Greensboro’s Neighborhood Arts Residency Program 14 The Black Genius Foundation: A Hub for Creative Excellence Centering Black artists and the Black Creative Ecosystem in the conversation around genius DEPARTMENTS 04 Working for You Americans for the Arts News AEP6 Community Engagement & Equity Work, Elections Checklist for Arts Advocates, Strategic Realignment Process Update 12 Member Center You Belong Here Member Spotlight Carol Gibson, Meet Senior Membership Manager Mandi Lee, Membership Corner 20 Leadership in Practice Inspiring Leadership Through Example Johnson Fellow Charya Burt, NEA’s Dr. Jackson and NEH’s Shelly C. Lowe, Call for Artwork: NACo’s Arts Calendar Competition 22 The Toolbox Information to Help You Succeed Social Impact Explorer 2.0, Arts & Cultural Equity Studio On-Demand Video 02 From the President Message from President and CEO Nolen V. Bivens 03 Editor’s Note Preview of stories this issue, trivia, highlights from the bookstore, and web features
IT FEELS LIKE A REFRESH for us all. This is especially true as we continue to see signs of a return to community gatherings.
In May, Americans for the Arts hosted our first in-person Convention since 2019. Attendees reported that it felt good to be together and also that it felt different, like a new day for us all. At Convention, we continued the work of gathering your input and direction through our Strategic Realignment Process (SRP). You can read more about that in this issue and stay up to date with our progress on the SRP webpage We’re excited to see so many artists focusing on the contributions they can make in communities across the country. It’s inspiring to see the various cross-sector partnerships making places healthier and more equitable as we reconnect and rebuild. I’m thrilled that we can feature the work of Creative Greensboro in this issue and the innovative ways they’re bringing artists and community together. We applaud this approach—especially since August is American Artist Appreciation month!
From the President T he end of summer always reminds me of back to school and fresh starts. Many arts organizations and artists are currently pre paring for their new season of performances, installations, and neighborhood activity.
Americans for the Arts celebrates all the artists, culture bearers, and organizations making a difference in their communities. We are committed to shining a spotlight on the transformative role the arts can play and the value of the arts in all places and for all people in this nation. When visiting Alaska for an arts and healing summit during my military career, my hosts took me to a metal pour at Arctic Fires Studio in Palmer, where the artist and owner had studio space for Veterans to work with various metal processes. I heard a remarkable story from a Veteran who was, like many others, attracted to the art and heat of metal pouring. He said that for so long, he’d thought of his hands as something he had to use to destroy things, even though he knew that this was done to uphold freedom and democracy. He finally felt relief from the trauma of war because through this art, the metal pouring, he could instead see his hands as a way to create something beautiful. It’s through that power of the arts that we are able to connect in new ways and build com munity. As summer turns to fall, I’m looking forward to National Arts and Humanities Month in October, and the opportunity to celebrate the arts as a national asset. Americans for the Arts is glad to provide a platform to strengthen and amplify the creativity in our lives and to appreciate the difference the arts and artists make in communities. This year—with all that is changing and all that you are doing to support the arts in this time—the change of season feels like a meaningful shift. I, the staff, and board at Americans for the Arts are grateful to be in this work with you all. Sincerely, The Arts as a National Asset It’s through that power of the arts that we are able to connect in new ways and build community. As summer turns to fall, I’m looking forward to National Arts and Humanities Month in October, and the opportunity to celebrate the arts as a national asset.
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Photo by Jendayi Asha Creative.
BOOKSTORE
Online IN JUNE, the
MY OWN DEVICES: TRUE STORIES FROM THE ROAD ON MUSIC, SCIENCE, AND SENSELESS LOVE BY DESSA is an uncompromising and candid account of a life in motion, in music, and in love. Dessa is as compelling on the page as she is on stage, making for a striking debut of a unique and deft literary voice. Buy your copy today
HANDMAKING AMERICA BY BILL IVEY reaches back to the arts-and-crafts roots of progressive thought, confronting the way right-wing ideology and the power of postindustrial capitalism have undermined work, government, our very way of life; advancing a practical, achievable vision for a good society that can use the capacity of government to recover the essential strength of the American idea. Buy your copy today
Trivia ARGUABLY James Joyce’s most famous (or infamous) novel, Ulysses turns 100 this year. Published in its entirety in 1922, Ulysses was banned in the U.S. until 1933. Today, public schools and libraries face increased calls to ban books, including Beloved (Toni Morrison), Gender Queer: A Memoir (Maia Kobabe), Maus (Art Spiegelman), and more. Banned Books Week is September 18–24. What will you read to celebrate?Photo by Louis Velazquez on Unsplash
I hope you’ll find that the stories in the sum mer edition of Arts Link capture that spirit of adventure and risk-taking. We look at the work so far on Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6); spotlight Charya Burt, one of this year’s Johnson Fellows for Artists Transform ing Communities; and introduce the updated Arts + Social Impact Explorer. Our feature stories explore the first year of work from two organizations dedicated to the intersection of art and community. In Greensboro Models Power-Sharing in Neighborhood-Based Arts, guest author Karen Archia shares her experi ence as Creative Greensboro’s coordinator of community partnerships and the first year of the Neighborhood Arts Residency Program. In The Black Genius Foundation: A Hub for Creative Excellence, I had the pleasure of collaborating with Founder and Chief Genius Officer Simone Eccleston to share the origin story of The Black Genius Foundation. I hope you enjoy this issue of Arts Link. Please email and let me know what you thought of the stories or take the survey mentioned on the back cover. I’d love to hear from you! Linda Lombardi, Managing Editor llombardi@artsusa.org
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Editor’s Note AS A CHILD OF THE ‘70s and ‘80s, summer always meant long days and nights of playing outside and running around the neigh borhood. No rules, no supervision, no bicycle helmets. Complete freedom. I’m also an August baby, so summer meant my birthday. There were vivid sunsets, fireflies in the dark, and the stars felt close enough to touch. As children our imaginations ran wild. We made up games and songs and it didn’t matter if things didn’t make sense. As adults, it’s too easy to lose that sense of play and get caught up in being responsible or scared of looking silly. That’s one of the things I love most about the arts— they ignite our imagination, encourage us to take risks, and give us the freedom to fall down, skin our knees, and get back on the bike.
thesevenandFY23monumental$207fundingciesEnvironment,AppropriationsHouseInterior,andRelatedAgenCommitteerecommendedfortheNEAandNEHatmillioneach,followingahearingontheBudgetRequestfortheArtsHumanities—thefirsttimeinyearsthatahearingwithNEAandNEHtookplace.
IN MAY, Americans for the Arts launched Arts & Economic Prosperity® 6 (AEP6), the sixth national study of the economic impact of the non profit arts and culture industry. Building on its 25-year legacy, the AEP series will document in unprecedented scope and detail the economic power that the arts and culture wield in 395 participating communities representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Local and state research partners will assist with the collection of surveys from audiences and organizations—in return, they will receive a customized report on the unique findings for their community. We are committed to focusing on equity to produce the most comprehensive and inclusive AEP study possible. Specifi cally, we are centering the participation of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and ALAANA (African, Latinx, Asian, Arab, Native American) identifying communities—a segment of the cultural sector that has been underrepresented in past studies. That’s where I come in! My position, director of AEP6 community engagement & equity, was created to implement the study’s equity and inclusion initiatives. I engage with our research partners, develop tools to help encourage the participation of their BIPOC arts com munity, track the success of local data collection efforts, create training and enhancement opportunities, and eval uate the outcomes of the study. I have talked individually with 200 partners and counting. Hearing directly from partners provides the opportunity for Americans for the Arts to be more collaborative, responsible, and responsive to each of these diverse communities. We also gained the support of Miles Partnership as equity consultants and created an AEP6 Equity Task Force that includes research partners, individuals representing some of the BIPOC orga nizations that will be surveyed, funders, researchers, and other arts leaders. One of the first steps toward inclusivity was translating the audience survey into 23 languages. The next step was requiring each community to gather at least 25% of their surveys from the audi ences of BIPOC cultural organizations. We quickly learned, however, that this method did not account for the unique characteristics of each community, and a few lacked the demographic diversity to fulfill that requirement. In fact, some communities may not be home to a sin gle BIPOC arts organization—and that’s an interesting finding on its own! We consulted with the Task Force and revised our methodology. A key to success is being intentional with representation throughout the data collection. I’m proud to share that many of our research partners have already made new connec tions; resulting in stronger and deeper relationships within their communities. Connect with us online for updates and look for results in the fall of 2023.
INSIDE AEP6 Genna EngagementDirectorStyles-Lyas,ofCommunity&Equity
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Elections Checklist for Arts Advocates Illustration by Alana Ladson (alanaladsonart on Instagram).
Highlights to date of the process, conversations, outreach, and initial summary findings can be found on the SRP webpage
Photo by EPNAC.com, courtesy of Americans for the Arts.
Following an Appreciative Inquiry process, the SRP consists of five phases: Definition, Discovery, Dream, Design, and Delivery. Each phase has evolved from the one before and delves deep into essential questions and findings. This process will lead to transformational change for Americans for the Arts and the communities we serve.
WHILE HEADLINES about the national midterm elections are filling your news feed, don’t forget the local elections happening in your city or town that are critical for your community. The candidates vying to become your next selectperson or join the school board are working hard to win that position. Why wait until after the election to build a relationship with them? The campaign season is the ideal time to forge a close connection with candidates seeking to represent you and fellow artists and creative workers.
ProcessRealignmentStrategicUpdate
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Learn about the candidates from all parties running for public office where you work and where you live. Email these candidates to personally introduce yourself and your creative work. Invite them to your next event or class, online or in person, so they can experience your work. Attend events that the candidates are hosting and make sure to say ‘hello!’ to them. Include voter registration deadlines and information in your newsletter and social media platforms.
n A DEIA Blueprint that centers diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility across our work—a cultural shift at Americans for the Arts that will transform internal operations and external programming and services.
The SRP will provide Americans for the Arts with two essential pieces of equal importance: n A Strategic Framework to guide organizational decision-making and new approaches to services, programs, and administration, while enabling greater adaptability to shifting trends, policies, and industry needs.
LAST SUMMER, Americans for the Arts began a Strategic Realignment Process (SRP) to redefine its role as a service organiza tion to the arts and culture field, and to move to a future where the mission of the organi zation is central to the advancement of arts and culture. We engaged the services of three consulting organizations to guide us through the process—Arts Consulting Group (ACG), The Hewlin Group, and Hope Nation. They have worked tirelessly with each other, the staff, board, members, constituents, stakeholders, and partners; conducting and analyzing hun dreds of conversations, focus groups, surveys, and interviews with thought leaders.
Even if you only have a few minutes to spare, that’s plenty of time to cross a few actions off the checklist below. One important tip before you get started—the most effective local candidate engagement is nonpartisan. Simply reach out to everyone who is running for a particular position, regardless of political party, and you’re all set. And don’t just focus on incumbents or the person you hope will win—everyone who takes a chance to run for office is already a leader in your community and will likely run again next time. Here’s a quick checklist to get started.
Dudley Heights artist-in-residence Darlene McClinton (right) and local artists work on mural at Dudley High School, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro.
by Karen Archia
GREENSBOROMODELSPOWER-SHARINGINARTSNEIGHBORHOOD-BASED
I am a visual artist whose art practice centers making art in community and in public spaces as an effort to liberate, encourage, and affirm the creative spirit in all people. I bring these values to my work as an arts administrator because that’s why I am here—to translate that approach into art administration work for a municipal office. It’s all part of the plan for change—deep change through an equity lens.
I work in the newly formed Office for Arts and Culture in the city of Greens boro, North Carolina, which came to life a month before the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down. We call ourselves Creative Greensboro, and we are tasked with leading the implementation of a Cultural Arts Plan, which was completed in 2018. Greensboro is a growing and vibrant community, and the Cultural Arts Plan aims to create a foundation to advance and support creative life in a way that centers equity and reflects the history and resi dents—past and present—of our city.
I was encouraged when I learned the communities chosen for the inaugural program—the Dudley Heights, Glenwood, and Kings redliningasunderinvestedhadwereselectedneighborhoods—wereForestbecausetheycommunitiesthatbeenhistoricallyin,sometheresultofracistpractices. 8 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2022
GREENSBORO MODELS POWER-SHARING IN NEIGHBORHOOD-BASED ARTS
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Our many efforts to support, ensure access to, and drive awareness about Greensboro’s creative community means we are a grant-maker, cultural marketer, and direct provider of cultural programming. The Creative Greensboro plan features four overarching goals that guide our work: n Provide sustained support for arts and culture by enhancing and expanding resources. n Foster cultural equity and arts participation for all. n Create a prosperous environment for artists and arts and culture organizations. n Support development of a vibrant city by raising awareness and enhancing visibility of the arts. As a new entity, we are uniquely posi tioned to build from the ground up and center learning in all that we do. When I initially came on staff in June 2021 as a Kenan Fellow, I worked 20 hours a week with a new program called the Neighborhood Arts Residency Program. The Program’s stated goals are to bring arts opportunities close to home, to invest in and beautify communities that had been historically underserved, and to do all of it in a way that was community-engaged and artist-led. We began the program with three, six-month residencies of $22,500 each, originally funded from the City of Greensboro’s Neighborhood Development department and moving forward will be funded by Creative Greensboro. We designed a framework for residency deliverables and launched an artist call to invite local artists or nonprofit arts organizations to apply for the residencies. Applicants were asked to submit narratives about how they would approach connecting with residents to provide neighborhoodbased arts programming and create one culminating street, crosswalk, or sidewalk mural.
Most importantly, the Call for Artists outlined qualities we were looking for in artists, in addition to skills and experience with community engagement and the creation of outdoor visual arts. Listed first was the desire to be a relational leader, allowing neighborhood input, priorities, and realities to shape residency activities. In practice, this approach places people ahead of projects, emphasizes relationshipbuilding and shared leadership over specific outcomes, and is foundational to building trust and a sustained presence within our communities.
Glenwood community members participate in a draw-and-dialogue session at the Glenwood Recreation Center, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro. Art activities at the Glenwood community’s National Night Out, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro.
Darlene Creativecenter,atteachingMcClintonartanddesignBarkerParkeventphotocourtesyGreensboro.
Sunny Gravely-Foushee painting a sidewalk mural at Kings Forest Park, photo courtesy TAB Arts Center.
For the artists, the money was theirs to budget and spend as they saw fit, and we also let them decide if and how much of their monies they wanted us to spend on their behalf for materials and support rather than expecting every expense to come out of their pockets first.
What I saw at Creative Greensboro was a focus on process rather than control, and an authentic effort to build trust. So I was not surprised when the first question I got asked was: How would I describe my role with the program? Where I ultimately land on that question, in retrospect, is it was a negotiated process where I embodied the challenges, constraints, and opportunities of the program itself. I serve as an advocate and an artist-leader, a facilitator, a supporter, a documentarian and celebrator, a catalyst and listener, all from a perspective of learning and growing and feeling my way through it all. I was as new and novel as the program, and we grew together. The program was designed for the artist-in-residence to provide twice-monthly, community-engaged arts activities close to home and complete at least one culminating street, crosswalk, or sidewalk mural, but throughout the six-month residencies, the artists pushed those boundaries. All of them immediately busted out of the limitations of street, crosswalk, and sidewalk murals as their only choices for culminating projects, including submitting initial ideas for a parade, a mural park, and the installation of artwork on nearly every portion of a neighborhood park. It was exciting stuff for me as an artist to experience. I brought every idea back to my Creative Greensboro leadership, who took the ideas to the funders and internal partners. I did end up having to say “no” to some of the initial ideas, mostly based on feasibility, but the artists did more than a single project in each residency. We ended up with two basketball court murals in two different parks, a free-standing mural at a local high school, artwork installed on a picnic table and two benches,
I accepted a full-time position with Creative Greensboro in January of 2022. As the coordinator of community partnerships, I approached this writing process as part of my job to broaden and deepen what it means to have a Neighborhood Arts program. What follows are my questions, reflections, and affirmations after the program’s first year. ARE YOU GIVING AWAY POWER? If you are a dominant-culture institution, lead with giving away decision-making power and an attitude of respectful curiosity. I underscore this question as central to anti-racist work and how it translates into concrete practice. I was encouraged when I learned the communities chosen for the inaugural program—the Dudley Heights, Glenwood, and Kings Forest neighborhoods—were selected because they were communities that had been historically underinvested in, some as the result of racist redlining practices. We were off to a decent start. When I learned neighborhood leaders were not only asked if they even wanted an arts program, but were the ones who reviewed all of the artist-in-residence applications that were submitted— unfiltered—ranked them, conducted the interviews, and chose an artist to invite into their community—I was even more hopeful. That process yielded three artist-residents who were all connected to and/or invested in the neighborhoods where they were working: Harry Turfle, Glenwood artist-in-residence; Darlene McClinton, Dudley Heights artist-inresidence, and Sunny Gravely-Foushee, executive director of Greensboro-based arts nonprofit, TAB Arts Center, was chosen for Kings Forest.
Harry Turfle painting the Steelman Park basketball court mural in Glenwood, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro.
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a historically ofimportantthemurals,incommunityhadsixresidentsartistneighborhood,Blacktheconnectedwithtoselectpeoplewholiveorbeenraisedinthetohonoraseriesofsidewalkillustratingcommunity’shistoryaccomplishment. 10 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2022 The Source for Arts Professionals in the Know
Kings Forest basketball court mural installed by TAB Arts Center and community volunteers, photo by Dale Briggs. Brenda Bishop sidewalk mural in Kings Forest Park by Greensboro artist Wonhye Chong, photo courtesy TAB Arts Center. Kings Forest,
GREENSBORO MODELS POWER-SHARING IN NEIGHBORHOOD-BASED ARTS In
What stands out to me is one particu lar community member who said the residency program in her neighborhood felt like Creative Greensboro and the artist-in-residence cared about and were invested in the community. So that’s my last question: Are you invested?
I have more curiosity about the people who call Greensboro home and the neighborhood identities we co-create. I see that artist-as-leaders means a shift away from art FOR people, and toward art WITH and BY people. When I look back at each residency, and reflect on the feedback collected, I see the beautiful uniqueness of each and the importance of bringing new experiences to people rather than expecting them to come for them, to centering their voices and histories, and shared emotional, cognitive, and physical labor between the artists and community members.
11 sidewalk murals, two crosswalk murals, and artwork that will be installed on an upcoming bus shelter. As an artist myself, I struggle with feeling like the resident artists, given their broad artistic visions, may have done too much. I am completely bullish on paying artists for their professional work, includ ing cognitive labor, and for artists to balance vision with capacity. As program lead, I felt proud and happy to see so much artwork that deeply reflected and honored communities. In Kings Forest, a historically Black neighborhood, the art ist connected with residents to select six people who live or had been raised in the community to honor in a series of side walk murals, illustrating the community’s important history of accomplishment. Additionally, the framework of the program made space for each residency to have its own unique flavor. The community-engaged arts programming was different in each neighborhood, ranging from skills-based workshops like t-shirt printing to draw-and-dialogue sessions about neighborhood identity to paint-in-the-park sessions during the warm summer months. As a result, I see my work as program lead to be one of supporting artists to achieve program goals in a way that continues to honor unique artistic visions linked with community voices and history, and under scores artist leadership and appropriately values their work.
COMMUNITY-ENGAGED, COMMUNITY-BASED, OR COMMUNITY-LED? Many of us tend to use these terms interchangeably, but I recommend we stop. I think fleshing out community-led is the richest, most powerful territory. Community-based speaks of location and where all the action happens, and possibly decision-making. What does community-engaged mean? How does it speak to power relations? When I look up the words, I see collaboration, inclusiveness, diversity, and consid eration, which are all nice words, but does community engagement lead to embodied equity, liberation, autonomy, and mutual support? We need to interrogate these concepts we toss around. We need to interrogate ourselves. And we need to also name our points of privilege within them. This uncomfortable process will inform our efforts to have the arts lead the way in fundamental shifts away from suprema cist ideologies and practices, and toward irreversible structural change. I begin with self-reflection. That’s the artist as liberator in me, always returning to the fundamental questions of who am I, why am I doing this, and where and with whom am I doing it?
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The first three residencies demon strated to me the importance of artist leadership and community leadership driving the process at all levels. Creative Greensboro took on a facilitation and administrative support role, but we stayed out of the way as much as possi ble and prioritized learning and a desire for communities to ask “what’s next” after the residencies.Kings Forest community members participate in paint-in-the-park, photo courtesy Creative Greensboro.
KAREN ARCHIA (she/her) is a visual artist and the coordinator of community partnerships for Creative Greensboro, in Greensboro, North Carolina. Read more
ARE YOU INVESTED?
Working with a residency program has re-enforced for me how important it is to let whatever happens emerge naturally.
COMPASSIONATE ARTISTS, a nonprofit in Long Beach, California, brings music, dance, and art to financially disadvantaged seniors living in residential care facilities in Southeast Los Angeles County. Founder and Executive Director Carol Gibson launched Compassionate Artists in 2016. For six years, the team has offered live performances and activities, bringing joy and creativity to seniors. In a recent Member Spotlight, Gibson shared her reasons for focusing on seniors, the facilities Compassionate Artists partners with and participants served, and how the organization pivoted during the pandemic. Read the full Member Spotlight on ARTSblog Interested in being featured in the Member Spotlight series or want to highlight a coworker? Fill out this suggestion form to get started! Compassionate Artists participant, photo by Daniel Wilson (@danielwilsonpix).
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
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Carol Gibson Carol Gibson, photo by Daniel Wilson (@danielwilsonpix).
In her later years, my mother-in-law lived in high-end assisted living facilities. She was very depressed. The only time she came alive was when there were live music performances. She would dance and sing and twirl around, and we glimpsed the woman she was before her illnesses. I thought to myself, the folks who can afford $3,500+ a month have an opportunity to enjoy live entertainment; what’s happening in the facilities for financially disadvantaged seniors, those who rely on Social Security and Medi-Cal to survive? I discovered that many of these low-end facilities have almost no budget for activities.
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YOU BELONG MEMBERHERECENTER
Meet the New Senior Membership Manager Mandi Lee HELLO MEMBERS! My name is Mandi Lee, and I am delighted to be the senior membership manager here at Americans for the Arts. I am a performing artist, producer, and arts administrator with a passion for community arts engagement. I come to Americans for the Arts after two years serving as the development and external relations director of Synetic Theater in Arlington, Virginia. Before coming to arts administration, I was an actor and teaching artist working in the Southeast. I received my BFA in acting from Webster University and my MFA in theater from the University of Central Florida in partnership with Orlando Shakes. My years as a freelance actor as well as my time in arts administration have made me keenly aware of the issues facing both individual artists and art-affiliated organizations. This is an exciting moment of transformation and growth here at Americans for the Arts, and it is essential that the work we are doing in the Strategic Realignment Process is reflected in our membership program. I am actively soliciting feedback on our current membership structure and benefits with the goal of launching a new and improved membership program by 2023. Be on the lookout for member surveys and feel free to reach out to me directly at mlee@artsusa.org! I am honored to serve you in this role and must leave it to the Bard to express my gratitude: “I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks.”
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2022 Annual Convention attendees, photo by EPNAC.com, courtesy of Americans for the Arts.
Membership Corner
OUR MEMBERSHIP TEAM has been busy working to revitalize the membership program. Be on the lookout for exciting changes coming your way in 2023! In the meantime, save the date for our fall/winter Member Briefings: n October 11 at 3:00 p.m. ET n December 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET Missed a Member Briefing? You can access the recordings of previous conversations on our Member Briefings webpage on ArtsU Looking ahead, renewal season is coming up in September, so watch your inbox for info from us starting next month. We hope you will rejoin us in 2023! Have questions or ideas? Reach out to us at membership@artsusa.org. We’d love to hear from you. All the best!
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Mandi Lee, Senior Membership Manager Michael Chodos, Marketing and Membership Coordinator 2022
Photo courtesy The Black Genius Foundation.
W hat does genius mean? How is it recognized, celebrated, nurtured, and supported? Who decides what genius looks like? During the pandemic, as many arts and culture organizations were forced to pause or alter their creative work, reduce programming, or even close their doors, Simone Eccleston found inspiration in the Toni Morrison documentary, The Pieces I Am. Moved by how the Black writing community galvanized in support of Morrison via a 1988 New York Times piece, “Black Writers in Praise of Toni Morrison,” a seed was planted for Eccleston and served as the catalyst for The Black Genius Foundation (TBGF).
THE BLACK FOUNDATIONGENIUS A HUB FOR CREATIVE EXCELLENCE
by Simone Eccleston and Linda Lombardi
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Simone Eccleston, Founder and Chief Genius Officer, The Black Genius Foundation, photo by André Chung. Black Genius
Photo courtesy The
Foundation. 16 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2022 The Source for Arts Professionals in the Know “Our investment in an artist, organization, or scholar is an investment in the creative health and imagination of our theirsustaindecisionsthesupportProvidingcommunities.unrestrictedgivesrecipientsfreedomtomakethatwillhelpthemandfuelcreativity.”
Simone Eccleston, Founder & Chief Genius Officer, The Black Genius Foundation
THE BLACK GENIUS FOUNDATION: A HUB FOR CREATIVE EXCELLENCE
The Black Genius Prize for Arts Organi zations celebrates and invests in arts organizations and creative enterprises that have committed their mission to serving and amplifying Black artists.
As founder and chief genius officer, Eccleston took a unique approach to the leadership structure and approach for TBGF. First, she connected with Community Initiatives to launch the Foundation as a fiscally sponsored project. She assembled an advisory committee of four leaders and changemakers— Indira Goodwine, Courtney N. McMillian, Alison T. McNeil, and Sadeeka Porter—whose diverse areas of expertise range from philanthropy and organizational strategy in the arts and culture sector to human resources and law in the tech and impact sectors. Together, they assembled a community of over 20 artistic leaders with representation across disciplines and created the Black Genius Brain Trust. Members of the Black Genius Brain Trust serve as advisors and ambassadors, contribute to programmatic initiatives and partner with TBGF to bring greater awareness and visibility to the Foundation, its work and programs, and the overall Black Creative Ecosystem. Eccleston and team aren’t afraid to explore and experiment and try new things. Informed by the artistic process, their approach is a continuous process of exploration, experimentation, and evolution.
The Black Genius Prize for Scholars and Journalists honors scholars and jour nalists making vital contributions to the arts ecosystem by using their work to center Black artists in the conversation of genius.
Launched in 2021, TBGF both honors and creates legacy by celebrating and investing in the intellectual and creative genius of Black artists, arts professionals, and arts organizations committed to creating and supporting work dedicated to and rooted in the African Diaspora. “We’re committed to transforming the conversation around genius by placing Black artists and the Black Creative Ecosystem at the center,” said Eccleston. “It’s about giving artists their flowers in real time. This is our opportunity to sing a praise song for new generations and to advance the legacy that our ancestors and elders have so boldly created for us to carry forward.”
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While there are organizations already funding them, we can always use more.” Black artists have created and/or revolutionized every art form from music to literature to theater, dance, film, television, visual arts, and so much more. From The Harlem Renaissance to The Black Arts Movement to today’s artistic renaissance, Black artists have transformed culture time and again.
“Since the beginning of time Black ingenuity has pushed civilization forward in creative and innovative ways, shaping our culture and our understanding of the world around us,” said Sade Lythcott, CEO of the National Black Theatre and member of the Black Genius Brain Trust. “Simply put Black Genius is the Soul of this country, and yet there is little to no recognition of our impact and contri bution. Until now! The Black Genius Foundation is singular in its focused dedication to the recognition and cultiva tion of Black ingenuity all over America. Our vital mission is the aggregate of our ancestors’ wildest dreams and the Afro future yet to come. I could not be more excited to be a part of the Brain Trust.”
The Black Genius Prize for Arts Professionals focuses on the creative and administrative genius of curators and presenters.
The Black Genius Prize for Artists recognizes Black artists that have dedicated themselves to their craft, innovated within their field, significantly contributed to culture through the creation of art, and generated a substantial body of work.
“We wanted to be holistic about our focus,” said Eccleston, “and acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of Black artists and the creative ecosystem. Our investment in an artist, organization, or scholar is an investment in the creative health and imagination of our
The Black Genius Prize for an Outstand ing Work is a special recognition for an outstanding work released within the award year that is emblematic of genius.
PROGRAMS & INITIATIVES Through granting and awards, pub lic programs, and digital initiatives, TBGF elevates the past-present-future continuum of how the African Diaspora continues to define genius. The Foun dation’s signature initiative and main programmatic anchor is The Black Genius Prize for Artistic Excellence and Accomplishment in the Arts, also known as The Black Genius Prize. With multiple categories representing the range of expertise within the Black artistic ecosystem, this series of annual unrestricted awards honor and invest in artistic excellence and accomplishment.
The Black Genius Foundation is the culmination of Eccleston’s 15+ years of experience uplifting Black genius at renowned organizations like Harlem Stage, where she served as director of programming, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where she currently serves as the inaugural director of Hip Hop Culture and Contem porary Music. A lifelong champion for Black artists, Eccleston has spent her career honoring and investing in the cre ative genius of artists and communities from the African Diaspora.
BUILDING COMMUNITY-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP
“The Black Genius Foundation is an opportunity to position ourselves in the landscape of providing intentional sup port to Black artists. Black artists always need support and it’s about giving more than emergency funding. Our work allows us to answer the question ‘what happens when we deeply invest in Black artists?’
Photo courtesy The Black Genius Foundation. THE BLACK GENIUS FOUNDATION: A HUB FOR CREATIVE EXCELLENCE 18 | ARTS LINK | SUMMER 2022 The Source for Arts Professionals in the Know
communities. Providing unrestricted support gives recipients the freedom to make decisions that will help sustain them and fuel their creativity. When we see the ecosystem as a whole and celebrate each facet of it—individually and collectively—that will help sustain the field for the long term.” Additional funding programs include Strokes of Genius, which supports artists, curators, journalists, and scholars to develop new creative projects; and Future Genius, which provides financial support, mentorship, and professional development opportunities to promising artists in the early stages of their career. Digital and live programming, including Black Genius Studies, Black Genius Presents, Black Genius Digital, and Black Genius Experiences, engages community and deepens public knowledge through panels and conversations; masterclasses and workshops; films, articles, and performances; and social events. TBGF’s social media gamechangers,the#BlackGeniusSpectrum,campaign,celebratesancestors,livinglegends,currentandfutureinnovators.
THE FUTURE TBGF’s 20-Year Vision for Impact is to provide 476 awards in support of Black genius, invest $12.9 million in the Black Creative Ecosystem, support 436 artists and cultural producers, 240 arts projects, and 20 organizations, and to derive at least 51% of funding from the Black phil anthropic community. Inaugural awards will be announced in 2023. Moving for ward, TBGF is excited to build community and create more pathways, endeavors, and partnerships for Black geniuses Eccleston photo by André Chung. Linda Lombardi photo by Jendayi Asha Creative.
and
“The Black futuredreamsofmissionoverBlackandtoinFoundationGeniusissingularitsfocuseddedicationtherecognitioncultivationofingenuityallAmerica.Ourvitalistheaggregateourancestors’wildestandtheAfroyettocome.”
to thrive. Connect with us online at The Black Genius Foundation AmericansForTheArts.org SUMMER 2022 | ARTS LINK | 19 Simone
Black Genius Brain Trust members, photos courtesy The Black Genius Foundation.
LINDA LOMBARDI (she/they) is the managing editor of Arts Link, and a theater director dramaturg.
Sade Lythcott, CEO, National Black Theatre
SIMONE ECCLESTON (she/her) is the founder & chief genius officer of The Black Genius Foundation and inaugural director of Hip Hop Culture Contemporary Music at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Read more
and
Read more
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Charya Burt, photo by RJ Muna.
BURTCHARYA Culture Bearer, Dance CommunityInnovator,Healer
Realizing that the classical form needed to evolve to speak to American-born generations, Burt has boldly pushed the form in contemporary ways. This year, along with Mosaic America, she is creating a dance/theater work, “Beautiful Dark,” exploring the social and psychological impacts of colorism on immigrant communities of color. She draws on personal experiences growing up in Cambodia, where she was derisively labeled srey k’mau (black girl) and how that colored her own perceptions of beauty and self-worth. In partnership with Musical Traditions, she is develop ing another dance/theater piece, “The Rebirth of Apsara,” which will premiere and be livestreamed worldwide on Cambodian Victory Over Genocide Day, January 7, 2024.
CHARYA BURT, acclaimed master classical Cambodian dancer, choreographer, vocalist, and teacher, thrives at the nexus of past and present, tradition and innovation. Her individual virtuosity never obscures her purpose— to perpetuate a cultural form nearly destroyed during the Khmer Rouge genocide, and to tap its power to heal the residual trauma that still affects Cambodian communities in California and nationwide. For this work, Americans for the Arts honors Charya Burt as one of two Johnson Fellows for Artists Transforming Communities.* As a culture bearer, Burt has devoted her life to preserving this traditional dance form of intricate movement, physical skill, spiritual embodiment, beauty, story, and meaning. Her training began as a child after the Khmer Rouge genocide of the 1970s that killed two million Cambodians and an estimated 90% of all Cambodian artists. She learned from the foremost surviving Cambodian dance masters and became a member of Cambodia’s Royal Dance Troupe. Burt’s dedication to preserving the dances and more than 4,000 gestures in the classical repertory has earned her much recognition, including five master artist awards from the Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA). Thousands of dance students she has trained carry on the tradition. To further secure its posterity, she is creating the Charya Burt Cambodian Dance Digital Library to document the form’s movements, music, costumes, and tenets. Burt sees how critical dance is to define the cultural identity of the Cambodian people who have suffered residual effects of the genocide and to heal gen erational trauma. Her project, Children of the Refugees, created a platform for elders to tell painful stories of refugee displacement and for younger genera tions to reckon with their elders’ tragic past. Reaksmey Mea Lath, a young par ticipant, reflected as an adult, “Although the interviews [Burt conducted] were confidential and I never learned what my parents said, I [could] tell afterward by their expressions, that they had to open up [to] tough questions that they have never been asked…The shadow that follows me from this dark past ended up in harmony with me because I used it as something to motivate me to look towards a brighter future. This was the first time I learned of the term “broken courage,” and it helped me view my parents and their generation from a different light.”
*Burt shares the 2022 Johnson Fellow ship with Chicago Juke/Footwork dance artist, Christopher “Mad Dog” Thomas. Watch for a spotlight on Mad Dog in the fall/winter issue of Arts Link
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LAST WINTER, the U.S. Senate confirmed President Biden’s nominations of Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson as chair of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and Shelly C. Lowe as chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)—two accom plished leaders with extensive experience in education, policy, arts administration, and business; each with a deep history with the institution she is set to lead. And in a duo of firsts, Jackson became the nation’s first African American and Mexican American to serve as chair of the NEA, while Lowe became the first Native American to serve as chair of the NEH.
National Endowment for the Arts Chair Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson, photo by David K. Riddick, courtesy NEA. National Endowment for the Humanities Chair Shelly C. Lowe, photo by Chris Richards, courtesy NEH.
Spotlight NEA’s Dr. Jackson and ShellyNEH’sC.Lowe
Chair Jackson and Chair Lowe began their service with robust agendas and a White House committed to attracting national attention to the value of the arts and humanities and integrating them into broader domestic policies. NACo calendar featuring artwork by Elizabeth Gibson, third grader at Creedmoor Elementary School, Granville County, North Carolina, photo courtesy NACo.
Call For Artwork NACo’s Arts Calendar Competition
FOR THE PAST two decades, Americans for the Arts has partnered with the National Association of Counties (NACo), which is the country’s leading advocate for counties, working on a variety of issues. Expanding our existing work, we are pleased to sponsor NACo’s “I Love My County Because” student arts competition. The winning student artwork will be displayed on the 2023 NACo wall calendar, which is sent to the nation’s 15,000 elected county officials. This calendar also contains key facts and figures on the creative economy to help educate county elected officials on the value and importance of the arts. This is a great way to connect student learning to county government’s programs and services. This program joins our existing arts and culture work with NACo, which includes their Arts and Culture Commission that Americans for the Arts is a member of, along with the NACo Creative Counties Initiative, which works with six counties over one year to use the arts to help solve a county problem. To get more information, or learn how to participate, go to the NACo calendar webpage. The competition submission period closes October 7, 2022, at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Jackson brings to her role experience in strategic planning, policy, research, and evaluation with philanthropy, government, and nonprofit organizations. For more than 25 years, her work has focused on understanding and elevating arts, culture, and design as critical elements of healthy communities. Her participation in field dialogues, including advising on the creation of Ameri cans for the Arts’ National Arts Index and New Community Visions Initiative, participation in the national Get Creative Workers Working Coalition, and membership on the boards of various foundations and arts organizations have progressed the field. Lowe has served in a variety of leadership roles nationally. From 2015–2022 she was a member of the National Council on the Humanities, an appointment she received from President Obama. Her career in higher education has included roles as executive director of the Harvard University Native American Program, assistant dean in the Yale College Dean’s Office, and director of the Native American Cultural Center at Yale University.
The 18-month process to create the 2.0 edition of the Arts + Social Impact Explorer was supported by the Mellon Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. New features include: A searchable, filterable Local Projects Database social impact-related arts projects that anyone in the field can add to, edit, and explore. This database currently includes more than 400 projects from across the country and world, all tagged with information on genre, sector, budget size, geography, and more. Each entry also links back to the original project’s website.
A dynamic Build a Fact Sheet feature that allows users to create and generate their own customized Fact Sheet using localized information to help them make their case. The Build a Fact Sheet functionality allows users to focus on the specific issues most affecting their community; identify localized examples of how the arts are impacting those issues; curate impact datapoints and research from over 7,500 publications in Americans for the Arts’ National Arts Policy Database; and add a customized title, description, and logo. The Fact Sheets can then be downloaded as a PDF to email or print, or as a unique URL that can be shared on social media and accessed for up to six months.
FOLLOWING 18 MONTHS of community and field engage ment, technical development, and testing and refinement, Americans for the Arts launched an updated version of the Arts + Social Impact Explorer with an array of new features that improve the user experience and deepen the impact of the tool.
GIVE IT A SPIN Arts + Social Impact Explorer 2.0
First created in 2018, this free online resource provides project examples, datapoints, a bibliography of publications, and lists of active organizations to illustrate the impact of arts and culture in 30 aspects of community life from public health to transpor tation, safety, community cohesion, and innovation. The original Explorer has, to date, been used by more than 50,000 people across the country to advocate, inform policy, tell the story of the arts, and improve community life.
+ + INFORMATION TO HELP YOU SUCCEED THE TOOLBOX 22 | ARTS LINK
+ An expanded and improved Impact Wheel, now including 30 sectors and incorporating new accessibility features, such as a keyboard-navigable, alternative list view of the Wheel’s contents; improved downloadable Fact Sheets about each topic; and a smoother, mobile-friendly interface.
In “Exploring Functional Power Sharing as Tools for Change,” Audrey Rush and David Shane from the Alliance of Resident The atres/New York facilitated an exchange of ideas about how to strengthen collabo ration between the staff and board as well as craft language to begin conver sations about shared leadership with all stakeholders within their organization.
Finally, “Taking Intentional Steps Towards Shared Leadership for a Local Arts Agency in Portland, OR” was presented by Oregon’s Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC). Co-Executive Director of External Operations Carol Tatch and Co-Executive Director Chief of Internal Operations Della Rae offered insights that centered on what it means for an organization to meaningfully lean in. “An intentional step towards shared leadership looks like honesty and trans parency,” said Rae. Tatch added, “An intentional step towards shared leader ship looks like collaboration.” As RACC’s transition steps focus on equity, they are focused on being responsive to, meeting, and exceeding community needs.
The series opened with “Blueprinting a Circular Model for Collective Leadership.” Andrea Gordillo and Marian Taylor from Arts Connect International discussed the tipping points, deep thought, and heart work that led to the implemen tation of the organization’s co-director model. Together, participants explored how traditional nonprofit leadership structures and models often perpetuate white supremacy culture.
Shared Leadership Models
Altogether, this series thoughtfully guides mid-career professionals through the various journeys of shared leadership models as well as contributes to the conversation of the future of leadership and collaboration within the arts and culture sector. Explore for yourself on ArtsU Clockwise from top left: Andrea Gordillo, Marian Taylor, Carol Tatch, David Shane, Audrey Rush, and Della Rae, photos courtesy of speakers.
Arts & Cultural Equity LeadersMid-CareerCollection
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PRESENTED EARLIER this year the Arts & Cultural Equity Studio’s Mid-Career Leaders Collection, now available on demand on ArtsU, provides mid-career arts administrators access to tailored training aimed at helping develop the skills needed to advance in the arts management field. Through a series of webinars, this professional development collection spotlights organizations, teams, and their findings in establishing shared or collective leadership models.
1275 K St NW, Suite 1200 Washington, D.C. 20005 AmericansForTheArts.org202.371.2830 $ CLICK THIS IMAGE TO VISIT THE ONLINE SURVEY THE SOURCE FOR ARTS PROFESSIONALS IN THE KNOW IN THIS ISSUE: Creative Greensboro | The Black Genius Foundation | Johnson Fellow Charya Burt Membership Corner | AEP6 Community Engagement & Equity Work | Arts & Cultural Equity Studio arts LINK Americans for the Arts SUMMER 2022
