eNews - March 2010 Edition
From the Executive DirectorTaking Charge of ChangeMy bookshelf and inbox have a substantial collection of resources about how to work through periods of “unprecedented fiscal stress” – articles on the budget cuts of 2002, analysis of the cutbacks of 1996, and even a 1975 book on “state arts agencies in transition.” The challenges of today are prompting a cascade of transitions, challenges, and opportunities. Says the National Governor's Association in their report, The Big Reset: State Government After the Great Recession (PDF), “The states are facing a protracted budget crisis, like none seen in the last 30 years, and perhaps not seen since the Great Depression… The delicate balance will be maintaining those services that help the state prosper, while eliminating those that produce the least value.”
For WSAC, this State’s budget crisis brings dramatic challenges for the years ahead. In most organizations, when resources are shrinking, “what to cut” may be the first question, but can’t be easy or quick. A 1994 study of private sector downsizing found that most cutback efforts do not, in fact, reduce costs or increase profits – but have significantly negative effects on morale and productivity.
To minimize the risks of downsizing, there’s evidence that a few factors make a big difference:
It’s timely, then, that “Taking Charge of Change” is the theme for this year’s Washington Cultural Congress - April 26-28 at Skamania Lodge in Stevenson, Washington. This annual event is a great opportunity to network and learn with other arts leaders from across the state and region, with an agenda of practical workshops, inspiring keynotes, and peer group discussions. WSAC supports this annual convening – and we hope that you find this and other opportunities to prepare, rethink, and recharge, for the challenge ahead.
Keep in touch,
Cultural Congress WorkshopsJoin hundreds of arts leaders and cultural professionals in defining new directions, celebrating innovations and uniting with new partners at the Washington Cultural Congress. Share your stories of what is working and dialogue with peers about how you and your organization are taking charge of change at the April 26 - 28 convening, at Skamania Lodge near Stevenson Washington along the Columbia River Gorge.
WSAC staff will be presenting and moderating a number of workshops, including:
Engage Now! Sell More Tickets; Raise More Money presented by Gerald D. (Jerry) Yoshitomi, Chief Knowledge Officer for MeaningMatters in Los Angeles and moderated by WSAC's Mayumi Tsutakawa, Arts Participation Leadership Initiative Manager. This workshop will help participants raise their marketing profile by applying principles of arts participation.
K-12 Arts Education: Every Student, Every School, Every Year presented by Lisa Jaret, WSAC Arts Education Program Manager. The workshop covers WSAC's recently completed statewide research effort measuring the status of arts education in K-12 public schools across the state. The Arts Education Research Initiative (AERI) is part of a continuing effort to focus and drive the conversation about the arts as part of basic education for ALL students.
Website Optimization for Artists and Nonprofits - 2.0 presented by Mark Gerth, WSAC Communications Manager. This workshop for artists and arts organizations will provide the basic information needed to compete in search results (search engine optimization), avoid pitfalls, improve your web presence, and leverage various online resources and social media tools. Additionally we’ll cover a variety of tools and techniques to monitor your website traffic and avoid malware and spyware issues common with blogs and websites.
Poetry Out Loud State FinalsWith words, breath, and determination, students from Washington high schools will compete in Olympia on Saturday, March 20 in the State Finals for Poetry Out Loud, a national poetry recitation contest. The competition will be held at the South Puget Sound Community College, Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Performing Arts from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. The Poetry Out Loud State Finals are FREE and open to the public.
The Washington state finals will feature 12 high school students who advanced from regional finals held in Clark, Pierce, Skagit, Spokane, and Yakima counties. They will be reciting works they selected from an anthology of more than 500 classic and contemporary poems. Through three rounds of poetry recitations, they will be competing for one slot at the National Finals.
The winner of the state final will receive $200, and the winner's school will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books. The second place finalist will receive $100, with $200 for his or her school library. The state champion will receive an all-expenses-paid trip (with a chaperone) to compete in the National Finals in Washington, DC, on April 25-27, 2010.
New Artwork InstallationWe Show Respect to Every Individual, by Bellingham artist Dale Gottlieb, greeted students of Marysville’s Grove Elementary when they returned for the 2009-10 school year.
The 8-by-14 foot tapestry, hung in the main entryway, depicts a child and an adult reading from a book in an idyllic setting. According to the artist, “this image says that we, as adults, model how we learn and ultimately how we respect all individuals, animals, people and our environment.”
The tapestry is made of cotton for the warp and wool for the weaving; the yarn is dyed with Swiss Sandoz lightfast dyes. Its title is a translation of a saying in Lushootseed, the language of the Tulalip Tribe.
Artwork acquired through Washington State’s Art in Public Places program becomes part of the State Art Collection - a collection of over 4,600 works of art located at state agencies, public schools, colleges and universities throughout the state.
Articles and Information"Why Flickr? Using Photos to Tell Your Story," from the Technology in the Arts blog, a service of the Center for Arts and Technology, highlights examples of arts organizations that are effectively using Flickr. The article also details some on-line photo-sharing practices that organizations should avoid.
Congressman Jim Moran (VA-8) has been officially named Chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, which includes the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) under its purview. NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman said, "Congressman Moran has a history of strong support for the arts, and we look forward to the same constructive and productive partnership with him that we enjoyed with his predecessor, Congressman Norm Dicks (WA-6)."
Saturday, March 13 marked the day that three different new musical productions previously developed through Village Theatre’s new works program, Village Originals, will be running simultaneously in New York City. These shows include the record-breaking hit Million Dollar Quartet, the powerful and moving drama Signs of Life, and the three-time Tony Award-winning musical Next To Normal.
Grants / OpportunitiesWe are now accepting applications for First Step grants to support teaching and learning in the arts in public K-12 schools including: curriculum development and improvement, assessment development and training, professional development for classroom teachers and/or local artists, and workshops for students led by professional teaching artists. The deadline to apply is March 26, 2010.
The Project Support deadlines for FY 2011 will be as follows:
The Folk Arts application deadline for both Fellowships and Apprenticeships is March 26, 2010.
The Shoreline-Lake Forest Park Arts Council is seeking submissions for its third annual Poetry Month Celebration. Selected poets will be invited to read at a special event during April, National Poetry Month. Winning poems will be displayed at the Shoreline Arts Festival in June. Poems will be judged in three separate divisions: Secondary Student (grades 7-12), College Student, and Non-Student Adult. Cash prizes will be awarded in College and Adult categories. Deadline: 03/19/10.
Grand Canyon National Park is seeking applications for an Artist in Residence. The Artist-in-Residence Program offers professional artists the opportunity to spend three weeks on either the North or South Rim of Grand Canyon in housing provided by the National Park Service. Deadline: 04/01/10.
The Longhouse Education and Cultural Center at The Evergreen State College has announced the fourth round of a national call to Native artists to submit letters of inquiry for two grant opportunities: the National Native Master Artist Initiative: Artist Teaching Artists Program (DOC), designed to promote Native arts and cultures within urban and rural Native communities throughout the United States; and the National Native Creative Development Program (DOC), designed to address the professional development needs of individual artists, such as training in marketing, purchase of supplies and materials, professional portfolio development, and apprenticeships. Deadline: 04/01/10.
Artists who reside in Washington State are encouraged to apply to Artist Trust's 2010 EDGE Professional Development Program for Visual Artists. The EDGE Program offers artists a comprehensive survey of professional practices through a hands-on, interactive curriculum that includes instruction by professionals in the field, as well as specialized presentations, panel discussions and assignments. Deadline: 04/30/10.
The Arts of Kenmore has issued a call (PDF) for the juried Kenmore Art Show. The show has continued to grow in size and quality each year. Deadline: 08/13/10.
Employment / Volunteer / InternshipsThe Vera Project, in Seattle, needs a new Administrative and Archives Intern. This internship works closely with The Vera Project administrative staff in assisting with a broad array of duties.
Events / Workshops / ConferencesOlympia - A two-day event at the Olympia Timberland Library examines and celebrates the world of local small press publishing. On Friday evening, March 19, from 5:30 to 7 pm, local authors will read from their work and answer questions. On Saturday afternoon, March 20, from 2 to 4 pm, a panel will discuss their work and answer questions about small press publishing from multiple perspectives. A selection of small press items will be available for purchase both days.
Seattle - The 5th Avenue’s popular Spotlight Night series, a free event that continues to attract record crowds, finishes up the 2009-2010 season on Monday, March 22 by focusing on the genius of Leonard Bernstein, and provides a sneak peek at the many events coming up in the city-wide Seattle Celebrates Bernstein! Festival.
Around the State - Since 1997, the Washington State Historical Society has offered Heritage Capital Projects Fund grants to support preservation of our heritage, interpret its meaning, and serve the public. Workshops for potential applicants for 2011-13 biennium HCPF grants will be held at the following times and places:
Workshops will run from 10 am to noon. No registration is required. The Heritage Capital Projects Fund application will be available prior to the first workshop. The deadline for submission will be May 12, 2010.
Tacoma - Washington Lawyer's for the Arts is presenting Intellectual Property Essentials at the Tacoma Art Museum, on March 25 from noon to 1:30 pm. As an artist or person working in a creative field, it's important to understand the law as it relates to your work. The workshop will cover the differences between copyrights, trademarks and patents, and will include information on copyright and trademark registration, benefits of registration, and the costs.
Edmonds - The BizArt Two-Day Conference will be held March 26 and 27 from 8 am to 5 pm in Brier Hall, at Edmonds Community College. BizArt is designed to help artists develop the business acumen they need to pursue their career dreams. Artists in all disciplines, musicians, dancers, designers, photographers, actors, sculptors, painters - from students to professional artists - have much to gain in this artist friendly, business based, learning environment.
Monroe - The Monroe Community Concert Band is presenting a FREE concert, Music for the Young and Young at Heart on March 28 at 2 pm in the Frank Wagner Elementary School Auditorium.
Spokane - Eastern Washington University’s Get Lit! Festival – a weeklong celebration of reading and writing of all ages – presents a variety of writing workshops, Thursday through Saturday, during the 2010 festival, which runs April 14-21. The festival offers the opportunity to work with published authors or other professionals on various aspects of professional and creative writing.
Seattle - The 2010 Langston Hughes African American Film Festival will take place April 17 through 25. The Festival will partner with the Northwest Sickle Cell Collaborative to bring Nurse.Fighter.Boy as the 2010 Opening Night Film, recognizing the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Sickle Cell Anemia in the U.S. |
||||||||||||||||
