ROCCO LANDESMAN ANNOUNCES "ART WORKS" TOUR AT THE 2009 GRANTMAKERS IN THE ARTS NATIONAL CONFERENCE

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman delivered a keynote address today to close the 2009 national Grantmakers in the Arts conference: Navigating the Art of Change. Read the full text of the address here.

Chairman Landesman announced that he will spend the next six months learning and highlighting the ways that art works in neighborhoods and towns across America.

This national tour will begin on Friday, November 6, 2009 with a visit to Peoria, Illinois, at the invitation of Kathy Chitwood, executive director of the Eastlight Theatre, and Suzette Boulais, executive director of Arts Partners of Central Illinois. The Chairman’s visit to Peoria will begin with a round table discussion about the impact of the arts that will be moderated by Carol Coletta, president and CEO of CEOs for Cities, and will include Peoria’s political, civic, business, and arts leaders. It will also include a tour of Peoria’s “warehouse district” and a performance of Eastlight Theatre’s production of the musical Rent.

The “Art Works” tour will continue on to St. Louis, Missouri, the week of November 23, 2009; to Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee, the week of November 30, 2009; and to other states, including California, Idaho, Kentucky, and Washington over the next months.