CAP CELEBRATES 30 YEARS

COMMUNITY ARTS PARTNERSHIP: 30 YEARS OF PROMOTING & SUPPORTING ITHACA CREATIVITY

Perhaps you’ve noticed the logo at the bottom of a program for a local music concert, a dance show, or a play. In lower case: a red c, green a, blue p.

Or perhaps you’ve picked up the colorful Greater Ithaca Art Trail brochure, and even ventured out to the open studio weekends of some of the 50 featured artists in October (29,000 visitors since it was inaugurated in 1999.) e Community Arts Partnership (CAP) was birthed 30 years ago when a wide-ranging group of Tompkins County residents gathered to brainstorm and hammer out a new organization to replace a defunct local arts council.

Since then, CAP has distributed more than $5.65 million in grants and fellowships to local artists and organizations.

Over those years CAP has moved from o ces on West MLK/State St over State of the Art Gallery, over to the Clinton House (now New Roots School), then to Center Ithaca, and nally the Tompkins Center for History and Culture on the Commons Bank Alley. e sta has never been large. Four executive directors have le their mark: Richard Driscoll, Brett Bossard, the late John Spence and currently, Megan Barber. Other than occasional part-time bookkeepers and interns, there has been only one other sta member: the program director. Robin Schwartz answered an ad for the position three decades ago and is still going strong.

I met Robin and Meg for a chat in their quiet third oor corner o ce.

What does CAP do?

By Ross Haarstad

CAP has a collection of programs, but it’s most important mission could be its grant giving: almost $398,000 in 2021. (Photo: Provided)

“We are a collection of services and programs and probably the biggest thing we do is the grant giving,” explains Robin. “We have now six grant programs and last year we distributed almost $398,000, which is amazing. And I think that the grants have a massive impact in Tompkins County. People develop the programs because they know they can apply for the grants and get money for them.

“And then we have our programs which are the Greater Ithaca Arts Trail, the Artists Market, the Spring Writes Literary Festival, the CAPS Art Space and the Capalooza Arts Sales. And then we have workshops, and we help artists write grants. Events, grants, services,” she sums up. e Artists Market (29 years strong) occurs in August at the Ithaca Farmers market. In 2021, 77 artists earned over $60,000 from 2,000 visitors.

Capalooza is a December fundraiser for CAP. Rather than ask artists to donate their work, “We ask people for the art that you have in your closet, your basement, the stu that your mother gave you and you never wanted,” explains Robin.

Other programs include managing public arts and the Arts & Cultural Organizational Grants (major ongoing funding) for the Tompkins County Tourism program and the Tompkins County Poet Laureate.

“It’s all about strengthening the arts around the county,” adds Megan, “so it’s connecting artists with audiences, channeling resources towards the arts, advocating for more resources for the arts, and then helping artists thrive.”

“We have tons of motivated artists here, and not just artists who make art in their homes but artists who want to do something with the community and make a difference. Grant applications just rain down on us,” says Robin.

Both women feel the arts are integral to the life of any community and are passionate advocates. When I ask what people don’t get about the arts, they have ready answers.

“It’s easy to think of the arts as something extra,” says Megan. “A luxury,” Robin inserts.

“ at we don’t need it,” Megan continues. “Today I was talking to the Rotary club and I asked them what’s a way in the past few months that art has touched your soul or li ed your spirits. Everybody could think of something; so it’s not really extra if you want to be a thriving human, a thriving community. It’s kind of the soil that feeds us all.”

Robin’s answer is “We would like the entire community of Tompkins County to understand that the arts is for everyone. ere are a lot of people, especially in the rural communities, who don’t really experience the arts. at’s why these grants that we give are so important…Groton library, Groton village, they are doing programming for their constituents that they know they will enjoy.”

How do two people manage all this? How do they split up the work?

“I give money away, she asks for it,” is Robin’s quick answer.

“I often say I feel like I am facilitating the flow of resources towards the arts,” explains Megan. (Robin: “Ooh that’s good!”) I try to introduce things, then clear a path and then get out of the way.” (She laughs.)

“It’s a challenge…it is just the two of us; if someone comes to us with a fabulous idea, it’s like that’s nice but we can’t do it. Trying to gure out how to grow is a challenge that I’ve been dealing with, and doing it in a way that is useful to the community but also sustainable for CAP—how do you envision the funding to carry someone along year a er year?”

But this year has been an especially good one, unexpected when the pandemic hit in 2020 (just a month after Megan came on board). Robin thinks maybe the extra money from their donors, the state, and local foundations, might be a result of people realizing how much they needed the arts during the early pandemic.

“Right when the pandemic hit, we started this artists emergency relief fund, says Megan, “helping people stabilize, and stay in their homes. Later we went back and said should we do that again. ey said no that’s not what we need; what we as artists want is funding for projects to help the community recover.…. We want to work, give us money to work.” And thus was born their latest grant, the Community Recovery Fund.

When I ask what they’ve done to celebrate 30 years, it takes a moment.

“We made a logo,” says Robin. And they had the online Arts Celebration, they both recall. at brings up a memory of John Spence for Robin: “He would say ‘Robin we need to have fun—it’s art—let’s just enjoy art and love art and have a good time helping other people make art.”

Megan Barber, executive director, jokes that she’s the one who asks for the money. (Photo: Ross Haarstad)

Robin Schwartz, program director, jokes that she’s the one who gives the money away. (Photo: Ross Haarstad)

Three of the most successful CAP programs are the Art Trail, Artist Market, and the Spring Writes Literary Festival. (Artwork: Provided)