Brieahn DeMeo

Arts Managers in a Globalized World (An EALS Blog)

Posted by Brieahn DeMeo, Feb 18, 2011 1 comment


Brieahn DeMeo

The second panel of the Emerging Arts Leaders Symposium at American University will discuss the issues arts managers face in a globalized world. For example, what do foreign arts organizations/arts managers seek to learn from the U.S. arts manager’s experience?

When I first read this topic, I was struck by how one-sided it appears to be. What can foreign arts organizations learn from the United States? Why not the other way around? The strategies of arts organizations in the United States are in need of reevaluation and conversations that have surfaced of late only make that fact more clear. But we won’t develop new strategies without first taking a good look at the methods we  currently use. So, by evaluating our practices from the perspective of our counterparts abroad we can develop a better picture of how arts organizations function in this country, and how they differ from others.

For better or worse, we live in a globalized world (I, for one, lean towards the side of better) and the arts continue to be an indicator of this. For centuries the art of civilizations have traveled the world (sometimes in a less than ideal manner) but a constant reminder that it’s not just us, our society is not the only one; there are others in the world, with different views, ideas, customs, ways of living. Art does that for us; it allows us to see humanity in variety of different lights. The arts travel across boundaries, linking communities that might never have come together otherwise.

So what does that mean for us? How many traveling exhibitions come to the United States a year? How many international dance companies travel to the United States? How many orchestras, musicians, writers? People are moving across borders constantly, sharing their art with the world. What can foreign arts organizations learn from American arts managers? And inversely, what can U.S. arts managers learn from foreign organizations? It may be too large a question to ask how arts organizations of the world handle this massive flow, so let’s pull the question to a micro level and focus on how the United States’ arts organizations manage this constant stream of international artists.

As a graduate student of Arts Management, I have more questions than I do answers. For now I pose 3 questions to begin the conversation:

1)    Typically, how do arts organizations in the United States market international art forms? How is this different from counterparts abroad?

I currently work for an arts organization that produces works created by contemporary Irish artists. What I’ve experienced is that when we market our programming, we focus on the art itself, rather than it being strictly Irish, a trait that we actually tend to veer away from. Rather than emphasizing the fact that it’s Irish we present the art in terms of its merit. Do arts organizations in the United States tend towards marketing international exhibitions as being Dutch, African, or Brazilian more often than not, or do they focus more so on the art itself? We live in such a globalized world we have an opportunity to present art in a way that doesn’t always have to focus so heavily on being any one thing. Will we see this sort of marketing become a wider trend?

2)    What are the important marketing lessons that U.S arts organizations have learned?

Are there any big lessons learned that could help American arts organizations create better marketing strategies for building audience members and engaging those audience members?

3)    What are the experiences of arts managers in the United States, and how do they differ from those abroad?

This is a big question, I know, but I think it is crucial to look at how our systems function alongside alternatives. I’m interested to learn how these experiences differ. In countries where art is considered an essential part of humanity, how are arts organizations received? How do their marketing strategies differ? how do their audiences differ? Does being subsidized primarily through the government change the attitudes of your constituents or does that add to a sense of worth for arts organizations and their managers, to be supported not only through your patrons but also by your government in a substantial way?

As I said I have more questions than I do answers, and I look forward to hearing what the panelists have to say...

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1 responses for Arts Managers in a Globalized World (An EALS Blog)

Comments

February 21, 2011 at 12:54 pm

What are going to do with the cuts to the arts??
All great civilizations have had great strong "arts and culture"
Does it mean that the quality of life in the US is going to be impacted.
Please advice how to maintain the quality of the arts and culture in the Country as a whole.

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