Grantmakers in the Arts

April 17, 2012 by Janet

I once said to a gubernatorial candidate, “I want you to take the arts out of the box you’ve put them in and think about it differently.” The state senator who had set up the meeting looked at me like I was crazy. I knew I was in risky territory. This was an elected official who wasn’t an “arts” guy. You wouldn’t find him at the symphony, opera, museum or theatre, at least not willingly. I knew I had to approach asking for his support in a different way.

April 16, 2012 by Abigail

Heather Pontonio joins the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation as program officer for art. Heather will be responsible for managing the Foundation's national biennial Emily Hall Tremaine Exhibition Award and the Marketplace Empowerment for Artists programs. Prior to joining the Tremaine Foundation, Heather was the associate vice president of grants at the Arts and Science Council in Charlotte, North Carolina.

April 16, 2012 by Steve

From Barry Hessenius at Barry's Blog:

It's been a decade or more since our sector embarked on a sea change in our attempt to better position the arts in the public discourse by embracing the wider concept of "creativity". The tipping point was probably Richard Florida's publication of The Rise of the Creative Class. We rushed to embrace the idea that creativity was the new currency of an information world—an asset that was, and would continue to be, critically essential to growing economies in an increasingly competitive marketplace, and that the arts were at the core of creativity. We did this I think in part because we saw it as a way to expand the appreciation for the value of the arts.
April 16, 2012 by Steve

Recognizing the transparency is a core value in the digital age, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced today it will require journalism and media grantees to disclose the identities and amounts contributed by major donors.

April 16, 2012 by Steve

Todd London assays the Mike Daisey issue at HowlRound:

That’s the patho-tragedy of Daisey. He couldn’t get out of his own way. He couldn’t walk away from himself the way those marketing and artistic director types eventually walked away from him. He knew hard news was the way to go, but he couldn’t turn off that playwright voice, saying, “Dramatize more, Mike! Make it more personal-like!” He was, in the end, Mike Daisey, subjective man. Subjective Daisey made the best theater of the year—even if it was on the radio—the theater of his own unraveling. Could his play of (sort of) facts have been as heart-stopping as it was to hear him lying and covering and hemming and hawing and justifying and falsely testifying (pause) (silence) (way more silence) (Beckett half-smiles approvingly; Pinter smirks)?
April 12, 2012 by Steve

From David Beem at Huffington Post:

Sometimes politics between management and players derail contract negotiations, as they have recently in Louisville. In comes the musicians' union, the AFM. And, against the backdrop of our national debate on unions, many in the community will naturally assume the musicians are gaming their employers. Discussion of how the arts requires “your help” will fall on deaf ears as much of the public shrugs their shoulders and puzzles over why they're asked to “give handouts.” They'll clear their throats and delicately suggest to the lot of lazy beggars that they should “get a real job.”
April 12, 2012 by Steve

From Simone Joyaux at Nonprofit Quarterly:

Let me tell you a secret: I don’t care if the donor gives a gift to my organization or to another organization. It’s all philanthropy. And philanthropy is about the donor. Philanthropy is bigger than any single organization. I believe “a rising tide raises all boats.” I believe that relationships are an end in and of themselves, not merely a strategy to secure gifts of time, advice and money. So here’s a wild suggestion. How about this threefold role for a fundraiser
April 12, 2012 by Steve

From Zoe Larkins at The Art Newspaper:

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s major cultural institutions, including the National Gallery and the National Museum, which are both in the capital Sarajevo, are in danger of closing indefinitely due to a lack of funding and government support. Staff, many of whom have been not been paid for months, have responded by organising events and exhibitions to bring attention to the crisis. The situation stems from the country’s dysfunctional administrative system and the lack of a national cultural ministry.