Wisconsin ArtsBlog » 2010 year-end review and a look ahead for 2011

2010 year-end review and a look ahead for 2011

January 4th, 2011 artswisconsin Leave a comment Go to comments

Dear Friends,

As we reach the end of one year and look forward to a new one, it’s my job (and my pleasure) as Executive Director of Arts Wisconsin to review and preview developments in Wisconsin’s arts world and the exciting advocacy, service and development work we’ve done this year and will do next year. This is one of the many ways Arts Wisconsin helps you and the rest of our wide-ranging and diverse constituency stay as up to date and active as possible about the issues and actions that matter to you, your family, your work, and your community.

Creativity, innovation, imagination and entrepreneurship – that’s what Wisconsin needs, and that’s what the arts provide. Asset-based community development, a strong creative economy, arts and creativity in education, and vibrant, livable communities, are the future for Wisconsin. Now, more than ever, investment in the arts, arts education and creative economy is not separate from the overall priorities of the state-it’s vital to the overall health and well-being of the people of this state.

Great challenges bring great opportunities. We’re all going a little crazy in this difficult economy, but even so, I’ve been so impressed at the ways in which arts and community leaders across the state are finding new pathways and moving forward creatively. New, renewed, and vibrant programs, partnerships, collaborations and networks are having a positive impact on the arts, communities and the people of the state.

In these “interesting” times, Arts Wisconsin has become the go-to statewide organization for advocacy, communication, education, facilitation, and sustainability related to the arts, arts education and creative economy throughout the state.

In 2010, Arts Wisconsin provided leadership to help Wisconsin’s arts, arts education and creative economy, in these areas:

Through education for artists, performers, creative entrepreneurs, for-profit and nonprofit businesses, and community leaders. There’s a critical need for the skills needed to succeed in a continually changing world. Arts Wisconsin provided access to training and technical assistance, information resources, peer mentoring, and capacity building programs, with programs such as the ArtsPeers Advisory Network, Rural Arts Management Institute, Wisconsin Emerging Arts Leaders Network, and ongoing technical assistance and education on arts, nonprofit, cultural development, arts education, and other issues.
As the advocacy leader for the arts in Wisconsin. Political candidates on all levels heard from Arts Wisconsin as a strong, clear statewide voice speaking up for the arts and creativity in this very important election year. Arts Wisconsin provided ongoing information and resources throughout the campaign season for state and federal candidates about the arts as “part of the solution” for Wisconsin, and provided the tools and framework for local advocates to tell their stories about the critical importance of a strong arts, arts education and creative economy sector to Wisconsin’s future. Arts Wisconsin became a member organization of the Tourism Federation of Wisconsin to more fully represent the arts in the political arena.
Providing local, regional and statewide communication, recognition, and facilitation to help expand arts opportunities, strengthen the economy and support civic engagement from the ground up. We connected and promoted the arts through the Arts in the Community awards presented in partnership with the League of Wisconsin Municipalities and Wisconsin Towns Association, Legislative Action Center, action alerts, a growing social media presence, and countless site visits, consultations, and community meetings around the state. The best part of this job is getting to know and telling the stories of how this arts really happen around Wisconsin.
Supporting systemic, accessible integration of the arts and creativity as part of a quality education for all Wisconsin students. Arts Wisconsin increased its advocacy for arts and creativity in education in 2010, and will see much greater growth in that area in 2011.

Arts Wisconsin is developing its strategic plan to pro-actively lead on these issues in 2011 and beyond:

2011 is an even more important political year in Wisconsin. Our new Governor, new administration and new Legislature will be sworn in on Monday, January 3, 2011, and will hit the ground running with work on the very challenging 2011-2013 state budget. This is our call to action: arts activists and community leaders – not to mention as Wisconsin residents, voters and tax-payers – need to hit the ground running as well, to educate our elected representatives so that they know the power, impact and benefits of the arts and can make informed decisions.
2011 will be about focusing on relevance and relationships and the message that the arts are essential tools for Wisconsin’s future economic, educational and civic success. Please make sure that you are connected to Arts Wisconsin and the issues through our Legislative Action Center, FaceBook and Twitter sites, so you know what’s going on and what you can do to make a difference. Encourage your friends and colleagues to sign up as well! In addition, please make sure to add Arts Wisconsin to your email and mailing lists to keep us up to date on what’s happening in your world.
Arts Wisconsin’s 2011 Legislative Agenda will guide its work in the year ahead:

o Encourage state investment in the arts, arts education and creative economy, with support for the Wisconsin Arts Board’s New Economy Funding Initiative, a plan for strategic investment to ensure access to the arts for everyone, everywhere in the state and to give Wisconsin the competitive advantage it needs in the 21st century economy.

o Reinvigorate Wisconsin’s film industry tax incentives, to grow businesses and jobs in this important sector of the creative economy.

o Encourage cultural tourism as a strong and growing component of Wisconsin’s thriving tourism economy.

o Strengthen the integration of the arts and creativity as an essential component of education for all Wisconsin students.

True, effective advocacy is a daily activity, but every once in a while it’s a good idea to gather together and make a big noise for the arts. Arts Day 2011 is Thursday, March 3, 2011, in Madison – mark your calendar to attend the biggest arts visibility and networking day of the year! At Arts Day, Arts Wisconsin will be launching the “arts are part of the solution” campaign to “tell the stories” of the power, impact and benefits of the arts in Wisconsin.
On the national front, National Endowment for the Arts Chair Rocco Landesman (a graduate of UW-Madison) makes the case for investing in the arts with two words that have three meanings: “Art works:”

o “Art works” first refers to works of art themselves-the performances, objects, and texts that are the creation of artists.

o “Art works” reminds us of the ways that art works on audiences to change, confront, challenge, and inspire us; to allow us to imagine and to aspire to something more.

o “Art works” is a declaration that with two million full-time artists and 5.7 million arts-related jobs in this country, arts jobs are real jobs that are part of the real economy. Art workers pay taxes, and art contributes to economic growth, neighborhood revitalization, and the livability of American towns and cities.

This guiding principle of “Art Works” informs the work of the agency and is reflected in the NEA’s new Strategic Plan FY 2012-2016 (click here for a presentation of the Strategic Plan). “Art Works” has shaped the NEA’s new Grants for Arts Projects guidelines, which will be released on January 13, 2011 (click here for a presentation of these guidelines ). The NEA has also developed a new funding stream – Our Town – to invest in partnerships among arts, cultural, or design organizations and local governments. This funding will be invested in planning, design, or arts engagement projects that contribute toward the livability of communities and help transform them into lively, beautiful, and sustainable places with the arts at their core (click here for the overview presentation on Our Town).

In closing: Now is the time to roll up our sleeves and get to work with a renewed sense of purpose and enthusiasm. You have the power to speak up for the power, benefit and impact of the arts, culture and creativity in your world. If the arts voice isn’t heard when budget and resource decisions are made, policy-makers won’t know that the arts are part of the solution, and won’t allocate funds for programs that support and sustain arts opportunities for everyone, everywhere in the arts. Then we’ll all wonder why the arts aren’t getting the attention and resources…

Have a wonderful and happy new year. We look forward to working with you and for you in 2011. Thanks again for all you do for the arts, arts education and creative economy in and for your community.

Anne Katz