Friday, April 23, 2021

A bronze sculpture of two figures sitting side by side leaning on each other and holding hands.

We’ve got so much content to catch up on from this week, let’s dive right in! Enjoy this week’s blogs, news, and webinar replays on topics ranging from fundraising, cultural equity and access, and the inclusive creative economy to arts and business partnerships, public art, and funding for the National Endowment for the Arts—plus, learn how to make our Local Arts Agency Dashboard work for you.

ARTSblog

Activating Support for the Arts from Donor Advised Funds by Christina Ritchie
Philanthropists around the country are trying to make an outsize difference during the COVID-19 crisis with an initiative called #HalfMyDAF. In 2020, Ashland New Plays Festival received a significant additional financial boost in a difficult year. Could this growing movement do even more for the arts in 2021?

The Uncomfortable Truth by Krista Terrell, APR
Earlier this year, Arts & Science Council of Charlotte published a progress report on the organization’s 2019 Cultural Equity statement. While I knew the facts in the report were startling, I never thought I would experience so intimately the defensiveness and fear in our community in response to the report.

The art beat goes on at Creative Clay by Kerry Kriseman
Before COVID-19, Creative Clay’s Community Arts Program served 50 individuals with neuro-differences, ages 18 and older, Monday through Friday. Thanks to donors, Creative Clay Connects virtual classes launched so that the organization could continue to honor its vision of arts access for all.

Highly Favored: If You See a Bandwagon… by Vinnie Bagwell
In this watershed moment, bridging the deep racial and ideological chasms will require creative solutions and funding. I want to be counted as a catalyst to meet this moment as I continue to advocate for my public art practice by creating awareness to deepen the knowledge of the people of color’s struggle for equity.

News Room

Americans for the Arts Publishes Inclusive Creative Economy Glossary and Website
By compiling this language bank, Americans for the Arts strives to acknowledge the full scope of where arts, culture, and creativity happens; create shared language for the creative economy and its practitioners; and encourage fluency for leaders to be able to navigate a variety of spaces and industries. 

Congressional Testimony Calls for Increased National Endowment for the Arts Funding in FY 2022
Americans for the Arts Interim President and CEO General Nolen Bivens (U.S. Army Ret.) submitted official testimony in support of federal funding for the National Endowment for the Arts at no less than $176 million for FY 2022—at least an $8.5 million increase over FY 2021 funding. 

Learn How to Partner with Your Chamber of Commerce
Just as local arts agencies act as voices and conveners for their arts and culture communities, so do local chambers of commerce for their business communities. Our new 101-level webinar series explores how and why the arts are an essential part of business and community development strategies.

ArtsU

Exploring Inclusive Creative Economy Definitions & Concepts — Part 2
The second of a two-part webinar exploring foundational concepts and definitions related to what an “inclusive creative economy” means focuses primarily on the term “Solidarity Economy,” and its linkages to other movements towards a more just and inclusive economy.

Putting the Local Arts Agency Dashboard to Work For You
Americans for the Arts conducts annual surveys of the field and makes the data available via its searchable online Local Arts Agency Dashboard. Learn how to use the dashboard and put the data to work for you in program development, driving advocacy, improving operations, and more!

Pictured: “Sola” and “Olumide,” two of five life-sized sculptures created by Vinnie Bagwell for the Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden in Yonkers, NY. Photo by Dorinda Angelucci.