GIA Conference proceedings

Meredith Monk is a composer, singer, filmmaker, choreographer, and director who has been acclaimed by audiences and critics as a major creative force in the performing arts. A pioneer in what is now called “extended vocal technique” and “interdisciplinary performance,” she is a fourth generation singer in her family. Alan M. Kriegsman of the Washington Post has written, “When the time comes, perhaps a hundred years from now, to tally up achievements in the performing arts during the last third of the present century, one name that seems sure to loom large is that of Meredith Monk.

The Giving to Individual Artists preconference was not taped and transcribed. A brief report, however, was prepared on the proceedings.

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   Giving to Individual Artists (191Kb)

This session reflects session-planning in real time with brief presentations
that attempt to capture the latest information-gathering about:

1. the state of the arts disciplines in the face of the weakening economy and
   current world events since September 11;
2. the impact of the myriad emergency funds and their accessibility to and impact on the cultural community;

Time and space have long been recognized as elusive essentials in the artist's creative process. Whether at a colony or retreat center or as part of a long-term residency within a cultural institution, artists who spend time in communities other than their own bring with them—and derive in return—fresh ideas and creative renewal. This session will explore the characteristics of successful artists' residencies and retreats. How are they funded? Are there new models? How can one assess their effectiveness?

New media? Computer art? New technologies? Digital media? GIA members have demonstrated their ongoing interest in learning more about what artists are doing in digital media with large numbers of members participating in the evening and preconference sessions focusing on this new technologies, first in San Francisco and last year in Minneapolis.

This session will delve into lessons learned from an eight-year effort to help communities build capacity through cooperative marketing that includes both large and small arts organizations. These arts marketing collaboratives “grew from the ground up,” with participating communities asking to become involved after learning of successes in the first community.

Most funders are only able to support worthy institutions over a limited time period. Though many of our strategies are intended to have long-term impact, we are often unable to develop systems and practices that sustain institutions over time. We often ask ourselves, what remains for grantees after our funding is gone? Can the project be sustained? Have the skills been passed on to other staff? Has our grant left an organization or group of organizations equipped to fulfill their mission or complete their project when we are no longer funding partners?

Universities and conservatories are, with greater frequency, developing course work and internships that encourage students to participate in residencies and internships so that they may strengthen their ties with community constituencies. A composer and classical musician dedicates much of his career to training a percussion ensemble consisting of adults with developmental disabilities. A university's Office of Community Connections places students in organizations where they work with local residents.

Community-based arts organizations often exist in environments that are inherently unstable. How have funders traditionally defined stabilization, and are those definitions appropriate to community-based institutions? This session will investigate management structures, skill sets, planning strategies, and technical assistance that enable these institutions to function as flexible, resilient entities that can respond appropriately to change.

Just as a cultural institution must periodically take stock of its strategic position within a community, so do cities need to examine the impact of growth, development, resource shifts, and change on the cultural community as a whole. This session will focus on the design and implementation of several cultural planning, mapping, or policy development processes; each responding to specific but varied community conditions. Presenters will identify the issues that led to their planning efforts, define the scope and purpose of their work, and, in some cases, share significant outcomes.