The Last Thing I Said To You Was Don’t Leave Me Here

Dan and I are headed to the beach in three days, so unless I get an iPhone (not likely!) there will be no blogging next week.

The beach reminds me of a little postcard I have framed in my apartment. It is a self-portrait of Tracy Emin. She is kneeling in what first looked to me like a stable, but is in fact a beach hut, her beach hut that was placed on exhibition and then lost in the Momart fire. I first saw the photograph in London and the title (above) stuck with me.

I love portraits. The photograph above caught my eye at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and led me to Michael Garlington and his photocar project. I am a sucker for any art project that involves cross-country travel. The Poetry Bus Tour is another one. If anyone reading this knows of other projects, especially those including little cities, please post a comment. 

 

Sunday Morning Statistics

Artists in the Workforce: 1990-2005 was released by the National Endowment for the Arts in June. As a statistics geek who loves putting research into action, I am interested to see where—and how—this influences arts funding and programming.

NEA Chairman Dana Gioia’s introduction to the report extolls the virtues of artists as hardworking (albeit underemployed) Americans, citing the following facts:

-Nearly 2 million Americans describe their primary occupation as artist, a larger group than agricultural workers, the legal profession or medical doctors. Of this number, many work in the for-profit field.

-The size of the artistic community gives the group enormous aggregate income—approximately $70 billion annually.

-Compared to other U.S. workers, American artists tend to be better educated and more entrepreneurial.

Overall, the report provides statistical support for many agendas. I was most interested in the data about where artists live. As large corporations consolidate and shift operations from small towns, I fear that we are seeing another post-industrial exodus that will have an impact on rural areas and little cities, making it even more difficult for them to support nonprofit organizations and artists. Already, half of all artists live in 30 metropolitan areas, and more than one-fifth live in the top five.

What does this mean for little cities? It means that they are underrepresented by of a part of the workforce that is educated, entrepreneurial, outspoken and growing in diversity. It means that, 25 or 50 or 100 years from now, the stories of America that are told through art history will be told by artists who lived in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, DC, and Boston. And it means that, quite often, the best and brightest young artists will move from their hometown to larger, supposedly greener, economic pastures—not because they lack inspiration in their communities, but simply because they cannot find enough work.

Of course, one may correctly argue that the percentage of artists in the workforce of some little cities (Boulder, Santa Cruz, Stamford) is comparable to that of New York City and Los Angeles. But I am sure that artists and administrators in those cities will tell you that: volume matters. Little cities have small and mid-size arts organizations. Little towns outside of major metro areas struggle to build the bridges and partnerships that could attract much-needed state and national funding. And a playwright I know, who lives in the not-so-little city of Seattle, recently wrote me about his struggles there, saying “Overall, opportunities are fewer in number by far by far by far than Chicago. And recognition is that much further from the east coast. Like it or not, [Arthur] Miller was right when he said no writers could ignore New York or risk being ignored by New York.”

What is the answer? I have no idea. But maybe it’s time we put our creative shoulders to the wheel and start thinking about it.

Art Agenda: Open Source Theater?

T. Paul Lowry, Creative Director of New Haven Theater Company , is trying a bold new experiment with a tried-and-true Shakespearean drama: open-source theater. UBRSTAR (you-be-our-star), the latest NHTC program, is billed as an theater experience that "utilizes a troupe of stage and online actors to transform the stage to an interactive landscape."

Designed by Carrot Creative , the website includes video instructions on how to create and upload your own video "role," and offers several scripts to choose from.

Since the site’s launch in May, it has been a challenge to get non-company members to post their videos online. But another feature of UBRSTAR, the "sound-offs," is brilliant. One of the joys of live theater is the chance to see how people around you respond to the play in front of them. In today’s on-demand culture, the opportunity to get a taste of what that post-show conversation might be like, through a sound-off video, is far more authentic than a review or e-group hyperbole.

NHTC are not the only theatermakers exploring what open source means for the performing arts. http://www.opensourcetheater.org is linked to Richard Foreman’s Bridge Project, but upon a cursory review of the project it seems that videotaped performances are only being shared "openly" with people who attended a series of workshops.

Charles Mee’s (re)making project is a form of open source theater, but it has no social networking or video capability … which would allow for the participants to easily connect with one another.

Last but not least, if you don’t want to make open source theater, but you are an arts advocate, you can participate in Andrew Taylor’s open source PSA project .

More information about the creation of UBRSTAR is included in this week’s Art Agenda, originally broadcast on 88.1fm, WESU, Middletown on July 10, 2008.

 
 The Art Agenda: Open Source Theater [30:48m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Art Agenda: Twelfth Night

Interview with the theater company Art Farm about their upcoming production of William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Featuring director Marcella Trowbridge and actor Jackie Coleman (who is also the Director of Education at Hartford Stage).

Interview excerpted from The Art Agenda. Broadcast on 88.1fm, WESU, Middletown on July 3, 2008.

 
 The Art Agenda: Art Farm's Twelfth Night [36:05m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Summer Schwag

It’s officially July, which means it is officially almost time for 4th of July weekend. Yay. Dan and I will be heading north over 4th to see Beth Orton at Mass MoCA, and then south to see Jason Grote’s new play, Box Americana, at the O’Neill Theater Center.

Sidenote: When I used to work at The O’Neill, I would walk down to Waterford Beach and, often, see August Wilson looking out at the bay. Sigh …

Just in time for the O’Neill theater-beach trip, I was alerted to a new beach tote, brought to you by the Minnesota Fringe Festival (pictured above). Seems appropriate!

Not one to be outdone, the Walker Art Center has also released a cute, new, eco-conscious bag. The 100% organic cotton tote is printed on one side with black eco-choice ink, which is non-pthalite and non-pvc.

Decisions, decisions.

 

 

Open Season on Open Studios?

Last week, I attended a workshop titled “Better Program Assessment” at the Americans for the Arts Annual Convention. The large group of attendees were there for a variety of reasons. Some were funders, some—like me—were there on behalf of arts education centers, one worked for the National Endowment for the Arts.

A young woman in the back of the room, who had some of the most interesting questions for the presenter, was trying to figure out how to assess her organization’s open studios program. The program had received a lot of questions and criticism from stakeholders about the quality of the art.

After the session, we spoke briefly about the problem presented in assessing open studios. Should they be evaluated on inclusivity? Economic impact? Audience exposure to new art forms? Artist satisfaction? Or … the more nebulous … “quality”?

My friends who have participated in open studios (as both artists and administrators) have a wide range of opinions. Some say that open studios are hard to fund and hard to publicize, and don’t translate into attendance for other programs. Another popular comment is that open studios are often looked down on by the “serious” art venues in a city, whose participation would grant the credibility and support needed to attract serious art buyers. The title of “open studios” is misleading in some cases, because not all open studios are open to everyone. Artists put a lot of work into preparing for open studios and are frequently disappointed by the turnout. These challenges can either present an opportunity for improvement, or a source of agitation for everyone involved. 

The proliferation of open studios in Connecticut, and the success of one in particular, have created a conundrum for Artspace in New Haven. Artspace runs City-Wide Open Studios, an event that has grown in the past 10 years to include three weekends and hundreds of artists. One of the most exciting aspects of CWOS has been the use of an alternative space, which for the past two years has included commissioned site-specific works and housed artists who do not have a studio in New Haven, but who participate in the densely populated visual art scene throughout the region.

This year, CWOS is scaling back to one long weekend, a decision that has sparked debate on Hank Hoffman’s blog. Leslie Shaffer, Executive Director of Artspace, admirably steps up to the plate to explain the thinking behind the decision. I wonder how many executive directors of Connecticut institutions as well-known as Artspace would respond to a blog post?

At any rate, the success of the new CWOS will no doubt be hard to measure—and interesting to watch.

 

 

Scary Bunny, Starry Night

If you read Scary Bunnies, Weekend Party Update, and The Beat Bike Blog, you will see the side of Hartford that I love—darkly humorous, community-minded, environmentalist, artistic, and generous.

Recent Examples:

—A few weeks ago, HartBeat Ensemble called community leaders to City Hall to discuss, through theater, why Connecticut is losing its young people (and they came).

—This week, Hartford progressives who are tired of fear culture and its impact on Hartford launched the Simsbury Chicken Debate on the Hartford Courant’s website. The comments about the suburban town (”I’ve only gone to Simsbury ONCE in my life, and I had to drive through it with my windows up and my doors locked!”) are kind of funny unless you have heard this type of comment about your own neighborhood over and over and over again. But sometimes, you have to laugh.

—This morning, Hartford-based Scary Bunnies pointed me south to New Haven, where Van Gogh’s Starry Night is on exhibition at the Yale University Art Gallery through September 7. Somehow, I missed this bit of news.

Thanks, Hartford!

Art Agenda: The Who’s Tommy

It has been a busy week for arts news and activities: Philly, followed by the Jeune Lune news, CTartscene’s curiosity-piquing blog about Citywide Open Studios, then a literary reading for the new book Dirty Words at Green Street. Kicking off the Arts in the Garden workshop with artist David Brown of the Hay House, and the discovery of Big Picture on Boston.com.

Faced with so many choices, I ended up interviewing Mike Donahue about his production of The Who’s Tommy at Yale’s Summer Cabaret. Donahue, a fellow Volksbuehne fan, is heading to Berlin this fall on a Fulbright.

Interview excerpted from The Art Agenda. Broadcast on 88.1fm, WESU, Middletown on June 26, 2008.

 
 Th Art Agenda: Mike Donahue [18:35m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Mon Couer, Se Casse

The Theatre de la Jeune Lune announced today, in a letter to its members, that it will be closing its doors and selling its beautiful building to pay off debts. The company (which took its name from a Bertolt Brecht poem) was one of the brightest lights to inspire me as a teenager growing up in Rochester. We traveled to see shows at the Guthrie, once or twice a year. But the Jeune Lune came to us, trained us and inspired us, and since that time I have come to them–in New London, Philadelphia, and Minneapolis–to watch their darkly beautiful, comical, and physical creations.

Today, upon hearing this news, I can see no good in it. If the Jeune Lune is not possible in Minneapolis, a city renowned for its philanthrophy and for valuing the arts, what might not be possible elsewhere? What can we do to prevent this from happening again? What will happen to the building?

I remember walking into the Jeune Lune for an audition in 1998. The world seemed full of possibilities, simply because there were a few great theater companies, with paid actors, in Minneapolis. And later, sharing it with Dan as I tried to show him the Minneapolis I loved (in the depths of February, with negative 15-degreeweather) on a two-day trip.

And, I have often read and re-read that Brecht poem, which was another gift the Jeune Lune provided, during times of difficult change:

As the people say, at the moon’s change of phases
The new moon holds for one night long
The old moon in its arms.

-Bertolt Brecht

Although I don’t know them personally, my hopes and thoughts are with the artists and administrators who stood by this institution in difficult times.

Back Before You Know/Knew It

I think I broke one of the cardinal rules of blogging by skipping town and blogging on another site without warning. And now, I have just returned from four days in Philadelphia, where I attended the 2008 Annual Convention of Americans for the Arts.

What did I learn? First and foremost, to REGISTER EARLY. Staying at an overflow hotel makes it hard to blog, power-nap, or pace ones’ self throughout the days.

What can I use? Within hours of my Career 360 session with Dewey Schott of Next-Step Consulting, he forwarded me an article about high-functioning teams that I hope to utilize at our next staff retreat. The advance workshop on Better Program Evaluation will be useful in consensus-building with board members and teaching artists about how (enrollment numbers? student testimonials? mission relevance?) to define programming success.

Who did I meet? As Ruby Classen noted on her earlier blog, I traveled far from home to meet some people in my own backyard: Maren Brown of the UMass Arts Extension Service, Brian Hornby from New Haven’s Office of Cultural Affairs. A slightly awkward and rushed meeting between the Emerging Leaders Council and the State Arts Action Network resulted in one of my most enjoyable conversations of the Convention, when Anne Katz and I discovered that we both got early career breaks at the O’Neill Theater Center (many years apart, and many shared memories nonetheless). And, near the end of my stay, a chance meeting with Susan Pontious of the San Francisco Arts Commission revealed that the Hestia Mural, which I enjoy daily in my hometown of Northampton, was her very first public art project, in 1980.

Where will I go? Perhaps the better question is, where won’t I go? Members of the Seattle emerging leaders network were so compelling with their visions of next year’s UNconvention, I might head west in the fall for Bumbershoot or another long weekend. Tucson would be an exciting addition to my list of travels. And the Public Art Year in Review was a reminder that I should drive down to New York, see the waterfalls, and check out fellow emerging leader Marisa Catalina Casey’s new Starting Artists space in Brooklyn.

But for now, it is good to be HOME! Big thanks to everyone who made this convention inspiring, challenging, irreverent, and unforgettable.

Lex

p.s. I am also back to my “home” blog, http://www.lexleifheit.com.

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