ART IS
ESSENTIAL
kirkland arts center impact report : july 2019 – june 2020
this year highlighted the power of art to inspire, connect, and transform no matter what is happening in the world around us. As we evaluated everything in terms of “essential” and “non-essential,” it became clearer than ever - art is essential. This was a year of adaptability and service. KAC set big goals with an aggressive budget, then a pandemic hit, and we witnessed the power of our community to exceed our goals and bring the power of art to 500 students through online classes, including free classes for first responders. Your generosity blew us away, and we’re proud to continue serving the community during a time none of us predicted. Look out for more ways KAC is pivoting in these uncharted waters in 2020-2021 to meet the needs of our community. Stay tuned for more youth classes that support working families, more online classes to connect our most vulnerable students so they can continue taking classes, and hard work to deepen our race and social justice lens in all we do. As the world continues to change, I’m inspired by our community’s commitment to bringing the transformational power of art to all. Thank you,
Kelly Dylla Executive Director
Mural by Adina Segal
LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
Kirkland Arts Center
2019 Annual Report
Kirkland Arts Center’s fiscal year now runs July 1 - June 30 Expenses Teaching Artists: $184,167
Revenue Payroll Protection Program: $78,495
Admin Contract Services: $33,327 Admin Staff: $126,460
Program Staff: $205,728
Facility Overhead: $26,727 Admin Supplies: $34,460
Tuition: $489,400
Individuals: $173,102
Gallery: $24,950
Grants: $85,893
Development Staff: $131,228 Fundraising Events: $45,223
Gallery Supplies: $27,448
Development Supplies: $26,652
Education Supplies: $96,116
Total $937,536
Corporations: $31,368
Rentals: $2,770
Fundraising Events: $141,465
Total $1,027,443
Throughout this report, you’ll find stories, experiences, and data reflecting the impact we had together over the past year–but what’s next? If this year was defined by adaptability and service, next year our focuses are access and collaboration.
What’s Next?
In 2020–2021, we aim to: Expand accessibility by creating new ways to engage for our current community & communities we have not yet reached, offering both online and in-building class opportunities and creating partnerships to share exhibitions digitally as well as in physical spaces. Create & maintain a safe environment in the Peter Kirk Building through building improvements. These include the new roof which is already in process, the availability of personal protective equipment, and improvements in studio spaces.
Fulfill a vital need by supplementing in-school experiences for children through Make Your Mark, KAC’s after-school program. The program focuses on social-emotional growth through art-making. Build new partnerships and expand upon existing relationships in order to invite new voices into our community. Increase responsive, accessible scholarship programs.
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Kirkland Arts Center
Education
A quick, resourceful pivot to live, online classes using Zoom allowed us to continue to provide a familiar sense of community and high-quality, individualized art instruction.
“I am deeply grateful for your support and for the peace and sanity and creativity and happiness I know I’ll get from this. This class will mean that my infectious disease job will be just a little bit easier to bear because I will have the mental respite I need, a chance to wind down out of stress mode, even for a little while. Most of all, thank you for contributing to me. There are so many challenging and demoralizing stories in the news of people whose actions will make things worse, so I want to thank you for making things better for healthcare workers like me.” - Local Infection Preventionist and KAC Student
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classes
As the pressures and challenges of COVID-19 mounted, we saw the frontline workers in our communities step up. Your generosity funded Art for the Helpers and provided virtual classes to healthcare professionals, first responders, and their children free of charge.
Art For the Helpers
$6,170 in tuition
446
hours of instruction
Scholarships were provided throughout the year
During FY # of participants /
20 / $5,580
21 / $5,735
Tuition $ Provided Summer 2019
4 / $977
5 / $1,498
Fall 2019
Winter 2020
Total: 68 participants $19,961
Spring 2020 in addition to Art for the Helpers
Workstudy
11
12 9
3
# of students / Tuition $ Provided
4
$3,212
$4,316
$3,317
$1,320
Summer 2019
Fall 2019
Winter 2020
Spring 2020
Total: 35 students $12,165
2019 Annual Report
Education By The Numbers In FY2019, we instructed
1,872
887
697 303
students
2D
Ceramics
Youth
“Who knew online art classes could be so fun and engaging? I so appreciate KAC teachers’ innovative approach! Using Zoom, Facebook groups and phone cameras, the online classes are both educational and social, capturing that ‘in class’ feeling. It’s been a great experience taking both printmaking and painting classes online - Great job, KAC!”
we offered
270
classes in total
- KAC Community Member & Volunteer
126
Our teaching artists led a total of
4,992 hours of instruction
“It’s a breath of fresh air to be back taking a class with KAC. I was hesitant to take a Zoom class since I spend much of my workday online, but this is working out so well! It is a welcome reprieve from a very upside down, tumultuous, stressful world we’re all navigating. Thanks to you and the staff and teachers for being there to bring a sense of hope, therapy, community and joy to those of us who are fortunate enough to be involved with KAC.” - KAC Community Member, Corporate Product Manager
2,550
1,650
791 hrs
2D
Ceramics
Youth
hrs
hrs
Youth After-School Program & Artist in Residence Data
68 Students benefited from 144
hours of instruction in the Make Your Mark program. Curriculum is designed to create social-emotional learning through art-making.
Over
1,300
students were impacted by KAC’s Artist in Residence Program in elementary schools.
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Kirkland Arts Center
Gallery – Live & Virtual
This year, prior to COVID-19, KAC held five exhibitions in our main gallery space and fifteen in total, completing the 2019 exhibitions theme of Art & Healthy and launching the 2020 exhibitions theme of Heritage & Hindsight.
In May, we introduced our first ever virtual exhibition, Reflections. When restrictions required the opening of this retrospective show to be delayed, we created a virtual tour with partner, 3DRE, and preserved this historic exhibition for the future. This set the stage for inviting guests around the world to future gallery projects!
You can still visit today at KirklandArtsCenter.org/Reflections
Exhibitions – 15 Total
Visitors
8
in KAC Gallery Spaces
14,828
7
Satellite
6
Kirkland Public Library
Rain Village Projects at Lakeside School and Blakely Hall
Continued outdoor installation, Pareidolia at Park Lane
in KAC Gallery
Satellite Exhibitions average monthly Library visitors
50k
2019 Annual Report
Exhibitions fracture
in the flesh
Fractures occur everywhere: in a body, to a psyche or identity, between individuals, in a landscape, within a society. The exhibition looked into a fracture as a sign that nothing will ever be quite the same.
This group exhibition explored how artists engage with the human form across mediums.
works in progress
The work featured in this show were responses to the concept of a threshold, a marked point of passing between spaces or states of being. They also spoke to pressing issues that we face as a society at this moment in time.
June–August 2019
August–September 2019 Partnership with two other non-profits, Youth in Focus and YouthCare Featuring art from King County based organizations, this exhibition gave a glimpse into how these missiondriven organizations work with professional artists to develop curriculum to support youth in developing their own voice through the arts.
bear creek high school show
October–November 2019
threshold
January–February 2020
February–March 2020
An Advanced Studio Art class at The Bear Creek School explores the journey of creating a body of work with a common theme, writing artist statements, creating marketing materials, then having their work properly matted and framed. This exhibition was the culmination of that course for this year’s Bear Creek seniors.
reflections May 2020
From 1962 to the future. See facing page for more information.
Rain Village In partnership with KAC Teaching Artist Soo Hong and the Issaquah Highlands Council, Kirkland Arts Center produced a satellite Rain Village exhibition. Rain Village centers around the idea of creating home. Together, Soo, KAC, and the Highlands Council facilitated a community art exhibition and an event: a cultural conversation about identity and creating home in the Pacific Northwest, and an art-making workshop. In the workshop, attendees created outlines that were transformed into 3-D ceramic raindrops by Jacob Foran of Foran Suon. These works were displayed alongside Soo’s paintings to create an immersive exhibition experience.
“Rain Village is everyone’s piece as much as mine. Thank you to everyone who shared their stories and unique talents in this project. I am particularly grateful to the KAC family who fully trusted me and made this possible.” - Soo Hong, Artist & Creator of Rain Village
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THANK THANKYOU! YOU! Continue Expanding Arts Access in 2020-2021 Mark your calendars and keep an eye out for updates. We believe art holds the power to heal, transform, and connect; let’s celebrate that together over the next year! RSVP today for KAC’s Annual Gala, BLOOM: a live, online event celebrating the healing power of art! VIP packages with exclusive access to the unveiling of specially commissioned art and a conversation with ArtsFund CEO Michael Greer are available now. KirklandArtsCenter.org/Bloom
Special Thanks to Our Supporters–Sponsors, Partners, Volunteers, and You!
Contact us to make a gift, become a community partner or to just learn more about KAC’s programs:
KIRKLANDARTSCENTER.ORG
425·822·7161