Economic Turmoil and Change

“I think the worst thing in the world would be going around with the message, ‘I’m going to shake things up.’ That would be a huge mistake,” he said yesterday in the NEA conference room, even as his office was … Continue reading →

FWIW, Barry Hessenius has posted his annual list of the “Non profit Arts Sector’s 25 Most Powerful and Influential Leaders.” Our own Janet Brown is #8, surrounded by a number of past and present GIA board members and members. Read … Continue reading →

Not sure how this might apply to cultural philanthropy, but it is a great story. Thomas Siebel does philanthropy differently from other donors. As the founder of the software company Siebel Systems Inc., he is one of a handful of … Continue reading →

Technical problems Tuesday sabotaged the Community Foundation Challenge, an online $1-million matching grant program for about 75 cultural groups in metro Detroit. Scores of donors were prevented from making gifts and others wasted hours in front of their computers. Some … Continue reading →

From her blog… I find myself feeling for Rocco Landesman, the newly confirmed Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. It’s hard to think of smaller quantum of political power than that presidentially appointed post, but he’s been in … Continue reading →

John McGuirk, a veteran Bay Area grantmaker and a former officer in The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation’s Performing Arts Program, will rejoin the Foundation as director of that program, officials announced today. For the past three years, McGuirk has … Continue reading →

A new publication from the Wallace Foundation. In the midst of hard economic times, it is clearly more challenging for arts organizations to take the long view and continue to devote time and effort to building new audiences. But this … Continue reading →

If you are looking for a sign of how strapped the University of California, Los Angeles, is for cash, consider that its arts and architecture school may resort to holding a bake sale to raise money. California’s severe financial crisis … Continue reading →

Here’s a wonderful essay…. When it comes to ambulatory life-forms, the developmental timeline is shorter, but the same principle pertains: it is a good idea for human beings to pay attention to systems and solutions that have evolved over time … Continue reading →

Robin Pogrebin in the New York Times ” Now that the Broadway producer Rocco Landesman is officially chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts — he was confirmed on Friday — his straight-talking style, Missouri roots and affinity for … Continue reading →