eNews - November 2011 Edition

We envision a Washington where the arts are thriving and celebrated throughout the state - woven into the fabric of vital and vibrant communities.

 

From the Executive Director

 

Articles and Information

WSAC Grants Update

 

Grants / Employment

Artwork Installation   Events

 

From the Executive Director

 

We recently hosted a lively all-day discussion about the creative vitality of five communities – Tacoma, Bellingham, Olympia/Thurston County, Georgetown/Seattle, and the Palouse.  Each is using the Creative Vitality Index (CVI) to advance local efforts to define, support, and advance the creative economy. In Tacoma, that means mapping creative activity in 16 business districts. Thurston County is linking CVI data with their annual Thurston County Economic Vitality Index. And in the Palouse area, four counties in two states (Idaho and Washington) are working together to promote the creative economy.

 

Enriching the discussion around the table were three experts: Lori Pfingst of the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, communications specialist Molly McCarthy, and Janet Brown of Grantmakers in the Arts. It was a great day with some great “aha” moments:

 

  • No data stream is complete or perfect. Be explicit about what is not in the data.
  • Keep working it. “Data curiosity” builds “data savvy.”
  • Connect multiple data streams: compare and contrast the evidence from economic impact studies, the CVI, and other sources.
  • Stories bring data to life. Find the people, projects, and personalities behind the numbers.
  • To  move data to action requires relationships.

 

We are constantly working with data – including the CVI, reports from our grantees, and a variety of research projects. With your help, we’re getting smarter about documenting the impact of our investments, the role of the arts, and the context for our work.
            Keep in touch. kt

 

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WSAC Grants Update

WSAC provides grant funding to Washington’s nonprofit arts organizations and community organizations with the goal of increasing access to and participation in arts and cultural opportunities throughout the state. This year, WSAC grants support arts projects by arts organizations of all sizes in communities across the State. Click here to see this year’s list of grant recipients.

 

Reduced budgets and modified timelines meant that this year WSAC’s  grantmaking process ran a bit differently than in the past. In October 2011 we  convened several panels to review grant proposals and make award recommendations to WSAC’s Board. A huge thank you to the panelists, who devoted many hours to reviewing grant applications.. Read about our grant awards process on our website (link) Panel selection and review process are governed by Washington state law and regulation. You can read the rules here (link)

 

Arts in Education

We are pleased to announce the 21 recipients of WSAC Arts in Education grants for Fiscal Year 2012.  Our Community Consortium and First Step grants are investments in long-term efforts to improve and expand teaching and learning in the arts during the regular school day for K-12 students.  From rural elementary schools to urban high schools, many thousands of students and hundreds of educators are participating in WSAC-funded efforts that support the development of arts skills and techniques as well as the development of skills such as communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking.

 

New Arts Leader at OSPI

A big welcome to Anne Banks, newly appointed as Arts Program Supervisor at the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). The position was vacated when AnnRené Joseph retired in June. Anne’s appointment signals OSPI’s continuing support for the role of the arts within a complete education. We are looking forward to continuing to strengthen the partnership between WSAC, ArtsEd Washington, and OSPI – three agencies that are committed to improving and expanding K-12 arts education across Washington state. 

 

Principals’ Professional Development Workshop

ArtsEd Washington will host a professional development workshop for K-12 principals, Dec. 2 at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. The workshop, titled “Race, School Climate, and the Arts,” will be facilitated by Art Corps. For more information or to register, click here.

 

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Artwork Installation

Remember all those commercial billboards and neon signs that seemed ubiquitous in the West 30 years ago? They’re gone for the most part now, but a new work of public art in Spokane commemorates the era and its presence on the visual landscape. In October, Spokane Falls Community College installed the 45-foot-high sculpture on the northeastern edge of the campus, overlooking Riverside State Park and the Spokane River Valley.


Lead Pencil Studio artists Annie Han and Daniel Mihalyo designed the sculpture. The artwork was informed by the artists’ own fascination with commercial sign culture and the predominant presence of abandoned signs that can be seen around the vicinity of the campus, visual signifiers and remnants of Spokane’s historic rise as a boom town in the mid-20th century.  Sign Post was created to be “evocative of a sense of place and a link to the past which is fast disappearing,” the artists note. Within the sign, the NASA image of Saturn’s moon Phoebe and the illustration of the harmonic waves on a string instrument serve to underscore the physical science properties that deliver sound and light across great distances. At night, the piece is illuminated with LED modules that only consume 90 watts of power, yet appear brilliant and powerful.


While celebrating the dedication of this new addition to the campus artwork collection, Spokane Falls Community College also hosted the artists as part of a lecture series and are concurrently exhibiting work entitled Fragments at the campus’ Art Gallery.


Artwork acquired through Washington State’s Art in Public Places program becomes part of the State Art Collection—a collection of over 4,500 works of art located at state agencies, public schools, colleges and universities throughout the state.

 

"Woven to Place" by Salish artist Susan Point.

Spokane Falls Community College installed the 45-foot-high sculpture, Sign Post, created by Lead Pencil Studio, on Oct. 26.

 

WSAC Opportunities

WSAC’s Arts Participation Leadership Initiative program will host an online webinar on Monday, November 28, 2011 from 12:00 noon – 1:00 pm to discuss the role of innovation in generating greater public support of and participation in the arts. The webinar features keynote speaker Richard Evans, from EmcArts, with Jerry Yoshitomi, of Meaning Matters,  as facilitator. The Arts Participation Leadership Initiative, supported by the Wallace Foundation, encompasses a series of learning events for arts organizations. To participate in the webinar, go to:  https://www.spiderphone.com/28588590 (This link will help connect both your browser and telephone to the call). To participate by phone only, dial 1 (888) 550-5602 or 1 (212)-812-2800 and enter participant code 2858 8590.

 

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Articles and Information

The City of Olympia Arts Commission is researching for topics for next year’s Community Arts Roundtables. They want to know what topics you think are worth discussing. Help ‘em out – take the survey!  http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RR3MSHL
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Artist Trust has announced the 62 recipients of the 2011 Grants for Artist Projects (GAP). The GAP Program provides up to $1,500 to individual artists for projects in all artistic disciplines. The GAP Program includes two artist residency awards. GAP recipients and their projects are featured here on Artist Trust’s website.
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The Office of Research & Analysis at the National Endowment for the Arts recently issued a new Research Note (#105), titled Artists and Arts Workers in the United States: Findings from the American Community Survey (2005-2009) and the Quarterly Census  of Employment and Wages (2010). Click here to read the full report and get an in-depth analysis of artists in the workforce.
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Each year, WSAC receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts that supports arts programs across the state – through grants, outreach initiatives, folk arts projects and other services. Congress is now debating next year’s NEA funding levels. Bipartisan leadership of the Senate Subcommittee on Interior Appropriations includes NEA funding at $155 million, which is equal to the current budget. To learn more, click here.
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ArtServe Michigan President Jennifer Goulet recently wrote an article detailing the powerful impact of Michigan’s creative sector. Featured last week in Bridge Magazine, Goulet’s article details how the state can and must invest in the creative sector to bring about an economic resurgence. Click here to read it.
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Kansas Citizens for the Arts (KCA) has developed detailed advocacy and programmatic plans for next year’s legislative session. Last spring, the Governor of Kansas excercised line-item veto to eliminate the state’s arts commission in an attempt to save the state money. KCA’s goal is to ignite a grassroots movement that will inspire the Kansas Legislature to reinstate funding for the arts. KCA is also conducting two surveys for arts organization employees and artists who have been affected by the governor's funding veto.
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The sixth annual Tacoma Arts Symposium takes place Nov. 19-20, at the University of Puget Sound campus. The event offers local artists and arts organizations information and workshops on success in the arts. Saturday features a keynote address by Gigi Rosenberg, author of The Artist’s Guide to Grant Writing.  For a complete listing of sessions, dates and times, check out the Arts Symposium page at www.artatworktacoma.com.

 

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Grants / Opportunities

Artist Trust is taking applications for the 2012 Edge Professional Development Program for Writers. The program, which focuses on supplying artists with the skills needed to achieve their career goals, will take place in Seattle February 24 to April 7. Applicants must commit to completing the entire 50-hour program. Applications are due Dec. 16, 2011. Click here for more information
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The National Endowment for the Arts' Big Read initiative is accepting applications from non-profit organizations to develop community-wide reading programs between September 2012 and June 2013. The Big Read is a national program designed to encourage reading. Organizations selected to participate in The Big Read receive a grant, access to online training resources and opportunities, and educational and promotional materials. Deadline for applications is February 1, 2012. Click here for more information.
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Photo Center NorthWest (PCNW) and King County Metro are accepting applications from photographers to be included in Seattle’s City Panorama project. The project will be installed in King County Metro bus shelters and remain for up to 10 years. Submissions will be reviewed and discussed by students in a fall course at PCNW and submitted to a panel of jurors from Metro and Photo Center NW. From the submissions, 125 images will be chosen for installation. Deadline for entries is Nov. 23. Click here for more information.
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Artist Trust seeks nominations for the 2012 Irving and Yvonne Twining Humber Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. The annual award of $10,000 is given to a Washington State female visual artist, age 60 or over, who has dedicated 25 years of her life to creating art. Nominations are due December 15. Click here for more information.  
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The City of Olympia Arts & Events Program is seeking to commission artwork for the spring and fall 2012 Arts Walk map covers.  Eligibility is limited to artists who have officially participated in Arts Walk within the past two years.  Deadline is Monday, November 28. Click here for more information.
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The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) recently partnered with the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts to engage international audiences through American film. Known as the American Film Showcase, this people-to-people exchange will send American filmmakers and film experts abroad to present independent documentaries, feature films, and animated shorts. Filmmakers and film experts will also conduct lectures and master classes on filmmaking, animation, digital technology, and emergent media. For information on how to apply to the program, click here.
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The University of North Carolina Asheville (UNC Asheville) invites artists to submit entries to a National Juried Exhibition of contemporary drawing. Accepted work will be exhibited in UNC Asheville’s S. Tucker Cooke Gallery from January 13 through February 3, 2012. A cash award is also included. For more information click here.  
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The Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs has selected Shunpike, a Seattle nonprofit arts service organization, to launch the Artist Space Assistance Program (ASAP), a pilot program in Seattle’s Pioneer Square and Chinatown-International District neighborhoods designed to provide relocation and placement services for artists and arts organizations seeking affordable studio, live/work, exhibition, performance and/or rehearsal space. The pilot program will run from mid-October to March 1, 2012. To apply or to find out more, click here.
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The Collective Visions Gallery (CVG), Bremerton, is seeking entries to the 2012 CVG Show, a statewide, juried art competition for artists residing in Washington. Cash awards will be given; entry fee charged. For more information visit www.collectivevisions.com or click here.
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The Art Center at Washington State University Tri-Cities is soliciting proposals for solo and group exhibitions to be held during the 2011-2012 academic year. Artists whose proposals are accepted will receive a small honorarium to offset some of the costs of shipping, framing or travel. Deadline is Dec. 31, 2011. For more information, go to http://www.tricity.wsu.edu/artgallery/callforentries.html
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Art in Public Places, Inc. (AiPP) is commissioning a permanent large-scale work of art for a roundabout at Mt. Washington Drive & Shevlin Park Road in Bend, Oregon. The competition is open to professional artists residing in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, or Northern California. Deadline is Nov. 28. For more information, click here.
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The Northwest Area Arts Council is hosting the 25th Anniversary of Women’s Works™, an annual exhibit of fine art by women. The exhibit showcases the creative artwork of women artists in North America and internationally. Deadline is Jan. 19. An entry fee is charged. For more information, click here.  
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MetLife Foundation and the National Guild for Community Arts Education are awarding grants of up to $10,000 to support creative aging programs in 2012. In addition, all applicants will receive technical assistance in implementing their proposed creative aging programs. Applications are due Dec. 16. Click here for more information.
Informational conference call for prospective applicants will take place Friday, December 2, 2011 at 1:00 pm ET / 10:00 am PT. To participate, send an e-mail by November 29 to: CreativeAging@nationalguild.org with "Conference Call RSVP" in the subject line. Dial in instructions will be emailed.  
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The Bainbridge Arts & Humanities Council is seeking artwork inspired by gardens, flowers, plants, land and seascapes, or outdoor spaces for its annual fundraiser, Bainbridge in Bloom. Photographs and figurative work by artists from any geographic location are welcome. Deadline for the Bainbridge in Bloom Poster Artwork Competition is Friday, Dec. 2. Send an email to lindsayl@artshum.org for more information.
]5 p.m. Friday, December 2

 

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Employment

RFP10167. Seattle Public Schools for “Arts Project Management and Coordinator – Comprehensive K-12 Arts Plan.”  Details on the district website.  Deadline is Nov. 23.

 

Executive Director. Tennessee Arts Commission. Application deadline: Nov 30, 2011. For details, go to Tennessee Arts Commission website at: http://www.tn.gov/arts/index.htm.

 

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Events / Workshops / Conferences

Patrons of South Sound Cultural Arts & Friends of the Olympia Library Juried Art Show and Sale takes place Nov. 19 and 20 at the Olympia Armory 515 Eastside St NE Olympia, WA 98504. Proceeds benefit two great causes – the POSSCA’s young artists scholarship fund and the Olympia Library. For more information, click here.  
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WTE, Inc., is sponsoring a cultural tour to Berlin, Budapest and Prague. Meet German, Hungarian and Czech artists, cultural thinkers, curators, gallery owners, and art experts where they live and work; visit museums, galleries and studio workshops; discuss future exchanges, workshops and residencies; experience cultural events, historical sites and more through the tour "Contemporary Art of Berlin, Budapest and Prague Professional Exchange Program" Seattle artist Kelly Lyles will lead April 20-May 1, 2012. Registration deadline is Dec. 11. Email connect@wte-usa.com for more information.
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As part of the Skagit River Poetry Project Kurtis Lamkin will read his poetry and play his kora at the La Conner School Auditorium on Friday, Nov. 18, from 7 to 8 p.m. Theater located at N. 6th St. The event is free, but donations are requested. Donations will support the Skagit River Poetry Project.
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The Skagit County Historical Museum hosts Northwest singer/songwriters as they share their music celebrating Skagit County and its history Nov. 20, from 2 to 4 p.m. Click here for more information.
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The Seattle Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Visual Art  will host a free presentation and discussion Dec. 9, featuring Eberhard Riedel, Ph.D., D.C.S.W., of Cameras Without Borders. The event, titled Encountering Curiosity: Photography for Healing and Peace takes place 7 to 9 p.m at SPSI, 4020 E Madison, #230, Seattle. RSVP to SPSI in care of Susan Radant at: sradant@uw.edu or 206-282-3282. Please include your phone number and email address. For more information about the Seattle Psychoanalytic Society and Institute: www.spsi.org