In AftA Thoughts (2013): II, I suggested a question that can aid the transition to a community-oriented approach to the work of the arts: "How can we help?" In the aftermath of the June's Americans for the Arts conference in Pittsburgh and the One State Together conference in Moline, another "way of thinking" phrase that has potential for guiding us toward greater relevance has been crystallizing in my mind. In my Mainstreaming Engagement … [Read more...]
AftA (2013) Thoughts: II
In AftA Thoughts (2013) : I I began to debrief on my Americans for the Arts 2013 Conference experience. On the second day I had a moment of cognitive dissonance worth exploring. Two back-to-back sessions were inspiring. The Town Hall meeting featuring Bill Strickland of Manchester Bidwell Corporation highlighted wonderful work utilizing the arts to improve communities. A breakout session following gave examples of similar good things being done … [Read more...]
R E S P E C T
Warning: Rant Alert! Adam Huttler of Fractured Atlas fame recently blogged about data mining and preference discovery a la Amazon and Netflix as having important (although as yet unrealized and little examined potential for the arts). [Is House of Cards the Future of Cultural Programming?] This is vitally important territory, but as a self-acknowledged underachiever when it comes to research, I'll let others dig into this vital work. What … [Read more...]
Balanced Learning
I am just back from two weeks on the road. I spoke and "workshopped" in Toronto and Austin. (Temperature contrast! The highs in Toronto were in the teens; in Austin, in the 70's.) Thanks to everyone in both places for great hospitality and the opportunity to field test the ideas I've been developing around audience and community engagement. And, as usually happens, due to this work a new thought is creeping into the equation. Anyone in the … [Read more...]
Overcoming Artcentricity
In Shifting the Center I began a consideration of transforming the way we think about the relationship between art and community. Many of us in the arts see the world from the perspective of our arts discipline, and that discipline–along with the work that is its expression–is a value unto itself. Our commitment to art can be nearly all-consuming. But this is a hindrance to relationship building. It gets in the way of engagement. We cannot and … [Read more...]