Mr. Robert Lynch

Through the Power of their Creativity, Veterans Continue to Serve

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Nov 11, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

During a recent trip to Denver to join in presenting a national award for state arts leadership to Governor Hickenlooper, Deborah Jordy, Executive Director of the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts, approached me. "There is someone I'd really like you to meet." Curtis Bean was his name.

A remarkable community activist, an entrepreneur and an artist, Curtis is doing transformational work through the arts. He is also a Veteran. Straight out of high school and over the course of five years and two tours in Iraq, he completed his military service as an Army sniper.

Like many others, Curtis returned home with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He planned on being a fireman, but anger and nightmares were interfering with his life. His girlfriend, an art student, suggested he try painting when counseling wasn't enough, and that's when something clicked. Healing started to happen -- and a new doorway was opened.

Read More

Mr. Clayton W. Lord

Resilient Roads and Community Visions

Posted by Mr. Clayton W. Lord, Nov 04, 2015


Mr. Clayton W. Lord

In 1995, as you surely know, Oklahoma City was the site of a bombing. A man drove a truck up one of the streets in downtown, pulled into a parking lot, went into a church and prayed, left, drove another block and parked in front of a federal building. Then he got out and blew the truck up, killing over 140 people including a bunch of children who were in a daycare in the building.

I got to see the memorial that was built on the site of the bombing. That road is now a glassy slip of water bounded on each end by gates. Where the building was, there are now ornamental chairs—smaller for children, larger for adults—to commemorate each life lost. Across the street, a gigantic, swooning tree that survived the blast stands guard. And throughout the city, at all of the street intersections that became makeshift helipads when responders rushed to the scene, there are deep red and tan bricks laid in resonating circles that pulsate out. The tragedy and the resilience of the place have literally been embedded in the roads, and the vision and perseverance of the people has been memorialized through art.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

The Importance of the Arts in our Communities: Robert L. Lynch and Laura Zabel

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Nov 02, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

October means something very important to the arts world and to communities throughout the United States -- National Arts and Humanities Month, now in its 30th year. Citizens of Minnesota have celebrated through numerous events that proudly showcase the state as an eclectic and dynamic artistic community, rich in cultural heritage.

It is fitting, then, that our capital city be the starting point for a nationwide dialogue exploring the future of local arts in America and the ways that community members can shape that future.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Powerful and Surprising Arts and Business Partnerships: Enriching Workplaces and Communities Nationwide

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Oct 22, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

Imagine that you are arriving to a job interview at a tech company. As you wait, you take a look around you, and notice beautiful, thought-provoking works of art displayed on the walls, plus sculptures in the public and outdoor spaces. Imagine working for a manufacturing firm, when one day you receive an announcement of an exciting new art contest for employees. Or, attending your national insurance firm's annual meeting, knowing that you'll soon be able to take the stage for a company-wide battle of the bands and sing and perform your heart out. In these three examples, you would actually be at Microsoft, Ford, or Aetna, respectively, but in reality it could be any one of thousands of businesses that are harnessing the power of the arts...because it is good for business.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Join Me in Celebrating National Arts in Education Week!

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Sep 15, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

Throughout my 30 years at Americans for the Arts, I have seen first-hand the profound impact that the arts have on children's lives. Just the other evening, a YoungArts alumna, singer/bassist Kate Davis, performed before a crowd of national policy leaders, senators, members of Congress, and famous artists, for an event honoring the U.S. National Medal of Arts and Humanities honorees in Washington, D.C. I first met this young lady just a few years ago and she was a high school student who so impressed me that Robert Redford and I invited her to our National Arts Policy Roundtable, where she in turn impressed the leaders of President Obama's President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. The next thing you know, she is sharing her art and ideas at the White House. Magic can and does happen all the time through the arts and arts education.

As we celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Congressionally designated National Arts in Education Week over the next few days, I want to share just a few of the experiences I have had in the arts with students as I travel the country, with the hope that these will bring to mind experiences of your own that you will share with others.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

On Vacation? Rise and Shine -- Explore the Arts All Around You!

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Sep 02, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

It's almost Labor Day and in my family, growing up, that meant vacation. It was always the time for travel and discovering new places, which of course is now an activity we call tourism. It is still the time I choose for getting away and as I write this, I am on my way to Morocco. I'm looking forward to many new arts, music, culture, craft, architecture and people discoveries.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

The "Graying" of America: An Opportunity to Add Color and Artistic Expression

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Jul 16, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

This post by Robert Lynch was originally published on July 15, 2015 by the Huffington Post.

A "first" for my mother came just days shy of her most recent significant birthday -- the exact number for which she does not want to see printed here. As I helped to set up her first major art gallery exhibit in Falmouth, Massachusetts, I marveled at how full of life she was, radiating joy as she showed her work to fellow artists, family and guests. The windswept beaches of her Cape Cod home, colorful harbors, cozy New England cottages, rolling hills and old barns -- she transformed her life experiences into beautiful works of oils and acrylics.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Arts Action Heroes to the Rescue!

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Jun 24, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

During my 30 years at Americans for the Arts, I have had the great privilege to visit and learn about a different community nearly every week. While they differ vastly from one another, there is one common strength I have observed: the arts have made a profound impact on the health of each community.

Across America, in communities of all sizes, a rising population of arts action heroes -- both individuals and organizations -- are stepping up, armed with the tools of their craft and a vision of how their work in the arts contributes to the well-being of a community.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Chicagoland's Arts and Culture Brings the Vibrancy -- and Money, Too!

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Jun 12, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

This article has been co-written with Michelle T. Boone, Commissioner with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, and originally published by The Huffington Post on June 12, 2o15.

Deplaning at Chicago's O'Hare, it's easy to daydream of the world-famous art that awaits: the gleaming, 100-ton stainless steel Cloud Gate, Grant Woods' iconicAmerican Gothic, historic architecture and the homegrown Chicago blues.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

The Arts and Arts Education Are Part of the Solution

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, May 06, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

We are in a springtime of mixed messages in America. Some graduation ceremonies feature stories of great opportunity by commencement speakers, while others are solemn events where graduating seniors are simply processed out the door toward an uncertain future. Clearly, some systems and communities are doing a better job of preparing our children for a creative, successful future. The arts can make a difference between these two outcomes--while there are certainly many other factors involved, the arts are proven to make a positive difference toward graduation and a better learning experience. That is why Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that arts education, or the lack of it, has become "a civil rights issue in America." And The Conference Board's Ready to Innovate study found that employers want 21st century employees who are creative; this age of innovation demands a creative workforce. At the top of the list for how to become creative is having the arts in the curriculum when the young people were in school.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Advocating for the Arts? Tell a Story

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Apr 24, 2015


Mr. Robert Lynch

As I reflect on the recent National Arts Advocacy Day and the several hundred visits to the offices of our Congressional representatives and senators that took place, I can think of hundreds of stories to tell. Each of the nearly 550 arts advocates from all fifty states, members of Congress, and artists who joined us in Washington, D.C. to advocate for the arts on Capitol Hill came with a story about how the arts have transformed them and the people around them. To many, the arts have brought hope and fortitude, been a partner in solving community problems, and provided Americans with role models, identity, and opportunity.

Read More

Ms. Laura Bruney

Arts Mean Business Forum Highlights from Miami Arts Week

Posted by Ms. Laura Bruney, Dec 18, 2014


Ms. Laura Bruney

The 2014 edition of Art Basel week this December in Miami featured the perfect marriage of arts and business. Beyond the dozens of satellite fairs and thousands of gallery booths catering to collectors, Miami Art Week offered a far more compelling benefit for businesses eager to court potential clients. Pacesetters from all industries and brand power houses swooned at the reach of art week. Developers, financial investment companies, tech start-ups, luxury car brands, and more cleverly leveraged the arts as a strategic imperative for business. These companies know the arts mean business.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Statement on the Nomination of Dr. Jane Chu for Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Feb 12, 2014


Mr. Robert Lynch

I am pleased that President Obama has put forward a strong nominee for Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. Dr. Jane Chu brings the valuable perspectives of multi arts understanding, top management skills, and deep philanthropic knowledge to the position. She is trained as an artist but has also worked successfully as manager of complex business enterprises. This is a valuable mix, important to our nation's key public sector arts position. She has spoken publicly about the importance of bringing the broadest array of America's arts riches to the broadest spectrum of the American people and has done so in her work in Kansas City. She understands the value of art at the community level and how the arts are transformative to individuals as well as places. Americans for the Arts is pleased to see the critical leadership position at the NEA being filled. We applaud The President's choice of Dr Jane Chu. Read more about Dr. Jane Chu from the White House press release in our newsroom.

Read More
TAGGED WITH:

Mr. Robert Lynch

For the Poor, the Arts Are a Path to Opportunity

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Feb 12, 2014


Mr. Robert Lynch

Robert L. Lynch and Arts Advocate/Actor Robert Redford at our National Arts Policy Roundtable. Oct. 2012 Robert L. Lynch and Arts Advocate/Actor Robert Redford at our National Arts Policy Roundtable. Oct. 2012

 

This Letter to the Editor was co-authored by Robert L. Lynch and Robert Redford and originally published in the New York Times on February 11, 2014. The New York Times version incorrectly mentions the city of Los Angeles. This version correctly states the city as San Diego.

To the Editor:

Re “N.E.A. Funds Benefit Both Rich and Poor, Study Finds” (Arts pages, Feb. 5):

A few years ago, a homeless girl in Los Angeles walked into a community arts center. Her name is Inocente. An Oscar-winning documentary by the same name told the story of how the arts turned her life around. Her success story illustrates the benefit of the arts to thousands of poor children and lower-income people all across our country.

The assertion by the House Budget Committee that the arts are the domain of the wealthy has proved to be a myth. A Southern Methodist University study reaffirms what nearly 100,000 nonprofit arts organizations already know. Public funding allows access to the arts for millions of Americans who otherwise couldn’t afford the benefit of the arts in their lives.

Arts are a path to opportunity. Businesses benefit from the creativity, perseverance and problem-solving skills that Americans develop through the arts. The arts drive private-sector investment and job creation. Every dollar of N.E.A. funding generates $9 of non-federal money to the arts, and the nonprofit arts industry generates 4.1 million jobs.

This new study can help educate our elected leaders from both sides of the aisle about the true value of the arts for all our children, our communities and our country.

Read this Letter to the Editor in The New York Times.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Statement on the Passing of Joan Mondale

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Feb 06, 2014


Mr. Robert Lynch

I know the nation’s arts community joins me in mourning the loss of one of our country’s staunchest arts advocates, Joan Mondale.  As the wife of Walter Mondale, vice president to President Jimmy Carter, she used her public position to place a bright spotlight on the vital role that artists and arts organizations play in strengthening American communities.

Mrs. Mondale intersected with Americans for the Arts on a number of notable occasions, beginning with her service on our board in the mid-1970’s, when we were known by one of our predecessor names, the American Council for the Arts.  In 1977, she was the guest speaker at the tenth annual meeting of the Business Committee for the Arts (now a division of Americans for the Arts).

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

A Shared Endeavor

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Jan 24, 2014


Mr. Robert Lynch

Robert L. Lynch Robert L. Lynch

 

It is widely accepted across the country that the arts are a significant part of a quality education. As part of the core, they provide America’s students with essential skills and knowledge needed to be productive college and career ready citizens. In May 2013, I attended a summit with leaders from 12 other arts and education advocacy organizations to define what quality arts education looks like at the local level, encourage partnerships, and call on organizations and individuals to actively support and promote the following points of intersection in our field. We came up with some basic agreements:

  • Development of policies and resources for arts education.
  • Access to arts education for all students.
  • Collaboration between school-based arts educators, other subject area teachers, and community-based artists and arts educators.
  • Long-term advocacy partnership between all providers of arts education.

shared-endeavorIn a time when education reform is at the helm of change and current practices are being revised, we felt that it was important to articulate the purpose and value of arts education in the balanced curriculum of all students. We assert its place as a core academic subject area and detail how sequential arts learning can be supported by rigorous national standards and assessments.

Read More

Mr. Robert Lynch

Bob Lynch's Statement Receiving the Sidney R. Yates Award from APAP 1/14/14

Posted by Mr. Robert Lynch, Jan 15, 2014


Mr. Robert Lynch

Statement made at the Association of Performing Arts Presenters' Awards Conference on January 14, where I was honored with the Sidney R. Yates Award:

My very first National Arts management training came from Association for Performing Arts Presenters conferences in the mid-seventies. I needed that because my presenting passions were not usually very lucrative: prisons, senior centers, inner-city and rural communities, large, all-embracing community festivals.

Read More
TAGGED WITH:

Ms. Caitlin Holland

Happy New Year from Americans for the Arts!

Posted by Ms. Caitlin Holland, Jan 04, 2014


Ms. Caitlin Holland

All of us at Americans for the Arts wish you a very happy New Year, and congratulate all of you on your valuable work creating, enhancing, and advancing the arts in America last year!We can't wait to see what innovative and creative work will be done in the arts in 2014!

Read More
TAGGED WITH:

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Robert Lynch