Ms. Aileen Alon

WAASTST

Posted by Ms. Aileen Alon, Jun 03, 2016


Ms. Aileen Alon

Michael Spring is an Americans for the Arts member and recipient of the 2016 Selina Roberts Ottum Award. Find out more about the Americans for the Arts Annual Leadership Arts Awards.

This occasion instigates a rumination about some of the keys to longevity (almost 33 years!), if not to success, in the local arts agency field. Thank you for asking.

  1. Try not to say “no.” There are just so many “no’s” allocated to each of us professionally and it is prudent not to use them indiscriminately. For example, you can say, “Instead of starting a new global festival in celebration of left shoes, how about partnering with the annual 5K run and distributing one multi-colored shoelace to each runner designed exclusively for left shoes?”
  2. Realize that the person with the most energy prevails. In meetings, put on your performance face and emote your point of view as powerfully and persuasively as you can muster. If all else fails, make sure that you and your staff outnumber the “opposition.”
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Ms. Rena Blades

Leveraging the Power of the Arts: Collaboration Between the Arts and Business is Transforming Palm Beach County

Posted by Ms. Rena Blades, May 12, 2017


Ms. Rena Blades

A few weeks ago, Bureau of Economic Analysis of the U.S. Department of Commerce released the results of a comprehensive cultural industry impact study. Florida, with 3.3 percent growth, is in the top five states for the fastest-growing arts and culture job markets in the nation. The Cultural Council of Palm Beach County has made it a priority to harness this economic power and put it to work to build more robust cultural facility infrastructure, promote arts districts, and cultivate an ever-stronger community of artists.

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Ms. Flora Maria Garcia

#OrlandoUnited

Posted by Ms. Flora Maria Garcia, Jun 27, 2016


Ms. Flora Maria Garcia

It was with conflicting emotions that I flew to Boston last Thursday to accept AFTA’s 2016 Michael Newton Award in the aftermath of the horrific tragedy in Orlando at the Pulse night club, the cornerstone of the LGBTQ community. Three reasons propelled me to move forward from a state of shock and pervasive, deep, emotional pain.

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Randy Cohen

Arts & Economic Prosperity 5: How the Nonprofit Arts & Culture Industry Impacts the Economy in Your Community

Posted by Randy Cohen, Jun 17, 2017


Randy Cohen

When recently asked how best to advocate for the arts in the current environment, U.S. Senator Tom Udall (NM)—co-chair of the Senate Cultural Caucus and chief sponsor of the CREATE Act—was unequivocal: “Start by telling every one of your Senators about the economic benefits of the arts.” This familiar refrain is one we have heard for decades from city council chambers to governor mansions to the halls of Congress—and it works. Arts & Economic Prosperity 5 does just that. It changes the conversation about the arts from that of a “charity” to one about an “industry” that provides both cultural and economic benefits to the community.

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Dr. Daryl Ward

Back To School: Getting StARTed

Posted by Dr. Daryl Ward, Aug 10, 2016


Dr. Daryl Ward

Teachers the world over have an opportunity to embrace the freshness—the newness—of yet another school term. It’s a time of invigoration and inspiration as students prepare to enter classrooms ready to see old friends and meet new ones. It’s in this spirit that I remind each of us of the importance of arts education, as I believe it has the opportunity to be a salve for many of our society’s wounds. 

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Marc Fornes

Part to Part: Building “Under Magnitude”

Posted by Marc Fornes, Aug 16, 2017


Marc Fornes

Under Magnitude is a two-story tall permanent structure suspended in the atrium of Orlando's Orange County Convention Center that carves a three-dimensional impact into an otherwise vast space. The story behind the design and construction of the project is that it further evolves my invention of “Structural Stripes”: the fundamental premise of the studio to unite surface, skin, and space into a holistic and never-before-seen system.

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