New Publications from Animating Democracy
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Michael delVecchio
Animating Democracy, Americans for the Arts
202.371.2830
mdelvecchio@artsusa.org
New Series from Americans for the Arts Reveals Findings from Innovative Animating Democracy Initiative
Washington DC—September 7, 2005—Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading arts advocacy organization, has published a set of books that explores the power of the arts and humanities to foster civic engagement and dialogue, based on the findings from its Animating Democracy initiative. The program, funded by the Ford Foundation from 2000 to 2004, supported a wide range of cultural organizations across the country to develop arts and humanities activity that encouraged civic dialogue on important contemporary issues such as race relations, gentrification, school violence, the role of same sex couples in society, and the influx of immigrants and refugees in communities. The seven titles examine the role of these cultural institutions, highlight best practices and outcomes from their endeavors, and identify the challenges and complexities in arts-based public dialogue work.
The series is timely as more and more artists and cultural organizations are bringing their creative capacities to encourage and facilitate greater civic participation and as interest grows among civic leaders and community developers in utilizing the arts and humanities as civic agents. Books include:
Civic Dialogue, Arts & Culture: Findings from Animating Democracy examines the role of the arts and humanities in civic dialogue through projects implemented by 37 arts and humanities organizations as varied as Urban Bush Women, American Composers Orchestra, Out North Contemporary Art House, City Lore, the Arts Council of Greater Lima (OH), The Andy Warhol Museum, The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, Flint Youth Theatre, and the Rhode Island Council on the Humanities. By capturing the perspectives of participating artists, cultural leaders, community partners, and scholars, Civic Dialogue, Arts & Culture contributes to deepening understanding of the artistic, civic, and organizational dimensions of the work; dialogue approaches; common challenges; as well as the principles, theory, and practices that underpin effective work. Pam Korza, Barbara Schaffer Bacon, Andrea Assaf, 312 pages, $38.00 nonmembers; $32.25 Americans for the Arts members.
Critical Perspectives: Writings on Art and Civic Dialogue is a collection of essays that explore art, civic dialogue, and reflective critical writing. The essays focus on three compelling projects: Dell’Arte theater’s Dentalium Project which addressed the impact of a native American casino on the small town of Blue Lake, CA; MACLA’s Ties That Bind, which focused on intermarriage between Asian and Latino Americans in the Silicon Valley; and The Slave Galleries Restoration Project, a project of St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church in collaboration with the Lower East Side Tenement Museum about issues of marginalization on the Lower East Side. Critical Perspectives engaged multiple writers to offer unique vantage points on each project. In so doing, it expands who has voice and authority in critical writing about civically engaged art. Among the contributors are John Kuo Wei Tchen (author of New York Before Chinatown: Orientalism and the Shaping of American Culture), Renato Rosaldo (author of Culture and Truth), and Lorraine Johnson-Coleman (author of Just Plain Folks). The collection is introduced with an essay by Lucy Lippard. Edited by Caron Atlas and Pam Korza, 176 Pages, $25.00 nonmembers; $21.25 Americans for the Arts members.
Art & Civic Engagement series:
Dialogue in Artistic Practice: Case Studies from Animating Democracy explores how the creative work of three artist companies embodies and supports civic dialogue. Urban Bush Women’s Hair Parties Project taps personal experience to generate dialogue about the politics of hair within the African-American community and to examine deeper issues of race, class, and social justice. Cornerstone Theater Company’s Faith-Based Theater Cycle explores how faith unites and divides American society. An Aesthetic of Inquiry, an Ethos of Dialogue (Liz Lerman Dance Exchange) looks through the lens of civic dialogue at the company’s community-based art making process. 96 pages, $20.00 nonmembers; $17.00 Americans for the Arts members.
Cultural Perspectives in Civic Dialogue: Case Studies from Animating Democracy illuminates how cultural norms mediate public space and how choices regarding art forms can support or discourage civic participation of various cultural groups. The King Kamehameha I Statue Conservation (Hawai’i Alliance for Arts Education) deepened understanding of the links between cultural identity, heritage preservation, and current issues of land and economic development. African in Maine (Center for Cultural Exchange) supported three immigrant and refugee communities in their own cultural programming interests to reveal the diversity and conflicts within and across divided African communities, as well as between Africans and the wider community of “Mainers.” The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center’s Arte es Vida program addresses issues of cultural equity and democracy related to San Antonio’s Chicano and Mexicano communities through a process of cultural grounding. 106 pages; $20.00 nonmembers; $17.00 Americans for the Arts members.
Museums and Civic Dialogue: Case Studies from Animating Democracy features exhibition projects that demonstrate how museums have functioned as provocative and effective forums for civic dialogue. These include Gene(sis): Contemporary Art Explores Human Genomics (Henry Art Gallery); Mirroring Evil: Nazi Imagery/Recent Art (The Jewish Museum); and Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America (The Andy Warhol Museum). Their endeavors highlight new and adapted approaches to curatorial practice, interpretation, and education prompted by civic intention as well as institutional challenges and changes in practice that necessarily occurred. Ron Chew, director of the Wing Luke Asian Museum, introduces Museums and Civic Dialogue. 88 pages, $20.00 nonmembers; $17.00 Americans for the Arts members.
History as Catalyst for Civic Dialogue: Case Studies from Animating Democracy highlights three compelling projects that mined forgotten or suppressed histories of slavery and lynching in the United States in order to stimulate meaningful dialogue about persistent issues of race and marginalization. The Slave Galleries Restoration Project (St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church and the Lower East Side Tenement Museum) encouraged neighborhood dialogue about issues of marginalization by tapping the power of the church’s hidden rooms, once used to segregate African Americans. Traces of the Trade, a documentary film by Katrina Browne with dialogues about white privilege, shifts attention to the lesser-known history of the North’s role in the slave trade, as explored through stories of the filmmaker’s slave-trading ancestors and her present-day descendents as they reckon with their history. The Andy Warhol Museum’s Without Sanctuary Project engaged regional audiences in dialogue about race and bigotry through an extensive project centered around 19th and 20th century photos and postcards illustrating lynching in the United States. Historian David Thelen introduces the book. 102 pages, $20.00 nonmembers; $17.00 Americans for the Arts members.
Art, Dialogue, Action, Activism: Case Studies from Animating Democracy opens with an essay by Detroit-based activist, cultural worker, and nonagenarian, Grace Lee Boggs. The book’s case studies feature projects by the Council for the Arts of Greater Lima and Sojourn Theatre on longstanding issues of race and trust among city and county leaders, Los Angeles Poverty Department on the advent of crack in the United States and drug policy reform, The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center on engaging disenfranchised people in dialogue and action on current issues of cultural equity and democracy, and Out North Contemporary Art House on the role of same-sex couples in society. Artist-activist Rha Goddess introduces the book. 114 pages, $20.00 nonmembers; $17.00 Americans for the Arts members.
Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With offices in Washington, DC, and New York City, it has a record of more than 40 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.
Books may be purchased through the Americans for the Arts online bookstore. For information about Animating Democracy, visit: www.AmericansForTheArts.org/AnimatingDemocracy.
For more information on exam copies, desk copies, and reprint permissions for Animating Democracy, please view the review guidelines.
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