ARTSblog

National Arts & Humanities Month is in full swing, and new Creative Conversations are rolling in by the day.  It’s fantastic to see so many communities engaging in such interesting and important discussions concerning emerging arts leaders.  Listed below are the scheduled events coming up in the next two weeks!

• October 15, Virginia Beach, VA – Paving Your Own Way in Arts Administration
• October 15, Burlington, NJ – Bridging the Generation Gap in the Arts
• October 17, Long Beach, CA – Creative Conversation 2009:  Leveraging Networks
• October 18, Hampton, VA – My Art & Tough Times
• October 19, Austin, TX – Create Texas and Advocacy
• October 19, Oxford, MS – Arts in L-O-U
• October 21, Tucson, AZ – Creative Conversation
• October 21, New York, NY – How to Plan a Successful Creative Conversation
• October 22, Portsmouth, VA – The Impact of the Creative Arts on our Quality of Life and Local Economy
• October 22, Providence, RI – A Gathering for Rhode Island’s Creative Community
• October 22, Phoenix, AZ – How do I get your job?
• October 23, Chesapeake, VA – Arts are Good for Business

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Imagine gleaming, sunlit hallways with paintings, drawings and photographs adorning the walls, while classical music wafts from one room and hip-hop from another.  Imagine sauntering past a studio to see ballet dancers and break-dancers collaborate on a new piece, while green designers in another studio draft sustainable sculptural furniture. 

Now, imagine that, an hour from now, all these varied artists will come together in discussion with mentors to learn creative ways to empower themselves financially and market themselves strategically, how to find the best representatives for them and how to be the agents of their own careers, how to navigate between the worlds of art and commerce, imagination and policy, how to use the arts to solve social problems, even create a social movement.

Imagine that highly-motivated artists in their 20s, 30s and 40s  attend cultural events together, collaborate on art projects that address social issues, exhibit and perform their resultant works in esteemed venues, receive instruction from innovators in their own artistic fields of study, as well as trailblazers in business, social entrepreneurship, academia, and social justice. Read the rest of this entry »

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My high school ceramics instructor thought I was crazy when I told him I wanted to be an orthodontist.  “No, I think you should be an artist,” He said sternly to me as I worked on my perfecting my pinch pot jack o’lantern that was suffering from a severe under bite.  That was a little over 8 years ago, and now I’m writing this blog.

Over the last 6 years I have been involved in multiple aspects of arts education; teaching Saturday art classes to youth, working at a youth museum, and working at a state arts agency for over three years.  I received both my BFA and MA from Arizona State University in Arts Education.  I recently relocated from Arizona to DC after experiencing a three-month travel adventure. Read the rest of this entry »

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Edward Clapp, Project Director of 20UNDER40, has just reported that the project received 304 chapter proposals from 343 prospective authors on five continents—all under the age of forty.

From the 20UNDER40 website: “20UNDER40 endeavors to collect twenty essays about the future of the arts and arts education, each written by an emerging leader under the age of forty. In doing so, this anthology will provide a unique arena for new ideas by formally gathering the thoughts of young artists, teaching artists, administrators, researchers, and other arts and arts education professionals—legitimizing the talent of young leaders by bringing their ideas out of the margins and into the forefront of our dialogue.”

To continue intergenerational dialogue,  20UNDER40 has established an online discussion board where you can answer this question amongst a cadre of international arts professionals. Read the rest of this entry »

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A blog post on the Education Policy Blog offers a slice of a new report. It’s concerning both for students and for new professionals:

• 31% of young workers report being uninsured, up from 24% 10 years ago, and 79% of the uninsured say they don’t have coverage because they can’t afford it or their employer does not offer it.
• Strikingly, one in three young workers are currently living at home with their parents.
• Only 31% say they make enough money to cover their bills and put some money aside—22% points fewer than in 1999—while 24% cannot even pay their monthly bills.
• A third cannot pay their bills and seven in 10 do not have enough saved to cover two months of living expenses.
• 37% have put off education or professional development because they can’t afford it. Read the rest of this entry »

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It’s that time of year again!  Creative Conversations and National Arts and Humanities Month are right around the corner.  Every October, in honor of National Arts & Humanities Month, Americans for the Arts partners with emerging leaders from across the country to host Creative Conversations—local gatherings and discussions that focus on pertinent topics from arts leadership to arts advocacy.  Last year, more than 1,500 emerging arts leaders participated in 43 locally hosted Creative Conversations throughout the country, and those leaders continue to be engaged at the national level.  In celebration of 2009 being the 5th Anniversary of Creative Conversations, the 10th Anniversary of the Emerging Leader Network and the 50th Anniversary of Americans for the Arts, our goal is to support communities in hosting at least 50 Creative Conversations this year.

Is someone in your community planning to host a Creative Conversation?  Are you considering it?  If so, there are a few easy steps to follow: Read the rest of this entry »

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On May 27, I posted An Open Letter to Arts Administrators. In the post I suggested that you give yourself a year to do one of two things:

1. Make at least one significant, positive, change within the organization; or

2. Find a new job.

A lot of you emailed me saying that you would use that year to make a change. Consider this a friendly reminder: You have about nine months left.

I know, time flies. Read the rest of this entry »

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Lets face it:  Young leaders in the arts are not always considered valuable by senior managers at arts organizations.  Sound like a generalization?  Well, it is.  There are some opinions to help back that statement up, but not enough to make a wide assumption about a manager’s level of appreciation for his or her younger employees.

That’s why I (and many other Emerging Leaders) were surprised when we read this article published by The New York Enterprise Report – scroll down to the section Gen Y Workers Disappoint.  (Courtesy of Emily Peck, Program Manager – Business Committee for the Arts).  The article is reporting survey results of small business owners, and referencing in part the level of satisfaction that business owners have with their Generation Y employees.  In my opinion (and take this for what it’s worth), reports such as this are incredibly misleading and damaging.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Arts teach many things – and one really important lesson of the arts is persistence and perseverance. I was thinking about this notion all week as a new TV show, Ruby and the Rockits premiered on ABC Family. The show is a family sitcom centered on the Gallagher family, two of whom were pop stars of the 80s (Patrick and David Cassidy).  Ruby, the daughter David never knew existed, suddenly comes into their lives at which point all the fun begins to unfold.

My friend Larry Reitzer is a writer on the show, so I’ve been following the show’s development for nearly a year, and  to celebrate the premiere of the show, my daughter hosted a big premiere party.  Later that week, having the inside track, we were lucky enough to attend a live taping of the show in Los Angeles, and were able to meet some of the cast and crew. Read the rest of this entry »

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A question I hear constantly from emerging leaders is “Should I go to Graduate School or Not?”  This has been a topic of conversation on the Emerging Leader Listserv, and the same question was asked during the Career360 roundtable sessions at the Americans for the Arts 2009 Convention in Seattle.  Even after all these conversations, the only answer I can provide to this question is that the choice to go to graduate school is a very individual decision.  There is no “magic formula” for a successful career.  If you choose to go back to school, you’ll likely learn some very valuable lessons, build up a network of peers, and perhaps have other doors open to you that may not be there otherwise.  However, if you decide graduate school is not the right path for you at this time, you will still be learning on the job, building up a different network of peers, and be in the job market instead of out of it. 

There are an endless amount of professional development opportunities out there, with arts management graduate degree programs being one of them.  I did choose to go back to graduate school after working for a few years.  At American University’s Arts Management program, I learned the basics of fundraising, financial management, presenting and programming, and running an arts organization.  All of these skills are necessary for an arts manager to have. 

However, now that I’ve been out of school for a bit, I’ve begun to question what the next generation of leadership would look like if in addition to being taught fundraising and financial management, we were also taught how to advocate and build relationships with city/state government.  What would our future look like if young leaders learned how to reach beyond the walls of their organizations, into their community, and understood the connection between the arts and community development?  What if we are taught today how to be true leaders in our community tomorrow?  By learning and practicing advocacy and community development skills, emerging leaders will not only be successful managers of arts organizations, we’ll have the resources necessary to communicate our organizations’ value to those who need to hear it. 

Did you graduate from an arts management degree program?  If so, what else would you have liked to see offered?  For professionals working in the field, what professional development do you need now to be successful at your job?

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Podcast: Download (2.3MB)

Take a listen to an adapted version of Lex Leifheit’s recent speech from the Newcomers’ Orientation at the 2009 Seattle Convention.  She gives networking tips that relate to emerging, mid-level, and seasoned leaders.

Lex Leifheit is the Executive Director of SOMArts Cultural Center in San Francisco, and is Immediate Past Vice Chair of the Emerging Leader Council.

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Here’s a great example of how for-profit and non-profit organizations can work together to generate top leaders.  American Express has asked Americans for the Arts to gather nominations for 4-7 individuals to participate in their Leadership Academy.  Participants are typically 25-45, have between 5 and 10 years of work experience, represent a diverse background of all kinds, and show a commitment to the non-profit sector.

Anyone who is selected will need to take a week off of work in October, as well as cover your transportation costs to NY.   There are three pieces of relevant information: an overview of the American Express Leadership Academy; and the application for the Academy; and the American Express letter to Bob Lynch, President & CEO of Americans for the Arts.

Competition for these spaces will be very limited.  If you are interested please email your completed application materials to leadership@artsusa.org by July 1, 2009. Americans for the Arts will compile nominations and send our selections to American Express by the final deadline of July 7, 2009.

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Podcast: Download (Duration: 11:04 — 10.1MB)

Mitch Menchaca, Senior Director of Programs at the Arizona Commission on the Arts, and Chair of the Emerging Leader Council, and Teniqua Broughton, Program Director at Free Arts Arizona, and Vice-Chair of the Emerging Leader Council both discuss the past ten years of the Emerging Leader Council, their own personal career trajectories, and offer advice to Emerging Leaders navigating this tough economy.

Take a listen, and please comment!  What advice do you have for young arts leaders working in this economy?

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I recently received my latest issue of US News & World Report.  The focus of the May issue is “Jobs for the Future” and in the article “Choosing the Career Path Less Traveled: Many jobs look great on the big screen.  Here are some that pay off in real life” one of the top “Overrated Careers” is “nonprofit manager”.  Ouch.

Here’s what it says:

Many people want a career in which they can “make a difference.” For many, that means a career helping manage a nonprofit organization that works, for example, on environmental issues, children’s rights, or antipoverty campaigns.  But many of your supervisees end up being volunteers, who, on average, tend to be less competent and reliable than paid employees.  Also, much of the job often involves fundraising, which many people dislike.  Plus, you’re usually expected to be so dedicated to the cause that you’re willing to work long hours for little pay.  Despite all that, nonprofit management jobs that pay a good salary are difficult to find, especially now in our low economy – people donate less in tough times.

Other careers listed include: architect, professor, farmer, and police officer.  For the complete list, click here.  A slight irony – fundraiser was listed as one of the 30 best careers for 2009! Read the rest of this entry »

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Cross Posted to the Mission Paradox Blog:  missionparadox.typepad.com

So I’m having a conversation with a colleague.

We were having the sort of nerdy conversation arts administrators have.  Fundraising strategies, ideas for building arts infrastructure, etc.

Then she did something that stunned me.

She did one of those “dancer stretches”.  She basically balanced on one leg and pulled the other one to near her ear.

Did I mention this woman is in her 50′s?

It reminded me that this woman, who had served on various Boards, ran numerous arts organizations and would appear to be a prototypical arts administrator had within her the spirit and skills of an artist. Read the rest of this entry »

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