GIA Blog

Cleveland’s Once-Fragile Arts Sector Shaping the Future
Posted on by Steve

From Lee Chilcote, writing for Freshwater Cleveland:

The effort to strengthen Cleveland’s arts organizations and cultivate new audiences began in the 1990s. The Cleveland Foundation published an influential study that underscored the fragility of the city’s arts scene, and that helped set the stage. Two of the weaknesses that were identified were lack of professional development for arts managers and lack of public funding for the arts. In the late 1990s, the Cleveland Foundation and George Gund Foundation commissioned a strategic plan called the Northeast Ohio Arts and Culture Plan. An arts research, public policy and capacity building group called the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture was established to help carry it out.
Member Spotlight on Arizona Commission on the Arts
Posted on by SuJ'n

During the month of April, GIA's photo banner features artists and projects sponsored by the Arizona Commission on the Arts. The Commission is in its 50th year of supporting a statewide arts network that delivers grants and support to cultivate sustainable arts communities and promote statewide public access to arts and cultural activities in Arizona.

Finding Success, Well Past the Age of Wunderkind
Posted on by Steve

From Abby Ellin at The New York Times:

Conventional wisdom holds that if you do not write your “Farewell to Arms,” paint your “Starry Night,” start the next Twitter or climb Mount Everest by young adulthood, or at least middle age, then chances are you will never do it. But that idea is becoming increasingly outdated as people are not only having successes later in life, but blooming in areas they never expected. Maybe they are not making millions, or wielding a brush like Rembrandt. Still, many people are discovering that the latter part of their lives can be just as (or even more) rewarding creatively, emotionally and spiritually.
To Draw Fresh Crowds, Symphony Offers Modern Take on Classical Music
Posted on by Steve

From PBS Newshour:

As part of a growing national movement to revitalize the symphony experience for patrons, the San Francisco Symphony recently launched SoundBox, a show series meant to create new musical experiences and entice new audiences.
Felicia Shaw Named Executive Director for Regional Arts Commission
Posted on by Steve

The Regional Arts Commission (RAC), the largest annual funder of the arts in the St. Louis region, has announced the appointment of Felicia Shaw to the position of executive director. Shaw succeeds Jill McGuire, who served for 30 years as RAC’s founding executive director. A native St. Louisan, Shaw will assume the position of executive director effective May 11, 2015. A nationwide search had been conducted by Arts Consulting Group. Shaw, a current member of the GIA Board of Directors, was previously the director of arts and creative economy at The San Diego Foundation.

How to Revive a Neighborhood: With Imagination, Beauty and Art
Posted on by Steve
Awakening to Truths About Ourselves and the World (In the Beauty Class)
Posted on by Steve

Diane Ragsdale posts to Jumper:

This is the sixth post in a series of posts focused on the course on beauty that I am coordinating/teaching for business students at UW-Madison. In the fourth week of the Beauty Class I wanted to explore the notion, articulated by Jeanette Winterson, that “art can waken us to truths about ourselves and the world.”
Detroit’s Sound Infuses Music, Community
Posted on by Steve

From Kaitlyn Buss, The Detroit News:

Over a cup of coffee downtown, it was quickly obvious Tod Machover’s passion for “Symphony in D,” the first sonic portrait of Detroit, is largely due to the material at his disposal: The city’s rich, yet often overlooked, relationship with music and a community eager to continue it. “In many ways, I think Detroit’s the place I always wanted to do this project,” he says. His research into Detroit’s neighborhoods and people, along with sounds submitted by Detroiters over the coming months, will be the basis for the symphony, set to debut in November.
Aaron Dworkin to Head University of Michigan Music School
Posted on by Steve

From Michael Hodges, fine arts writer for The Detroit News:

Aaron P. Dworkin, founder and president of Detroit’s nationally recognized Sphinx Organization, will be the new dean of the University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre and Dance. University regents voted to confirm the appointment Thursday afternoon. Dworkin, 44, takes over in July. His wife, Afa Sadykhly Dworkin, Sphinx’s executive and artistic director, will become president.
The Long View on Artist-Centered Creative Placemaking in Minnesota
Posted on by Steve

Vickie Benson, posting to The McKnight Foundation blog:

Simply stated, creative placemaking builds strong, cross-sector partnerships grounded in arts and culture, by people and for people, to celebrate the lifeblood of a place. And while the cross-sector aspect is undeniably important, a crucial factor for success, in my opinion, is that arts organizations and artists are treated as leading or equal partners in the broad mix. It was important for the arts field to have researchers as experienced, thoughtful, and knowledgeable as Markusen and Gadwa — each with their own long histories working with artists — to tackle the phenomena of creative placemaking.