Arts Advocacy Update XLIII

The content below is from Americans for the Arts' Cultural Policy Listserv, email blast of May 21, 2008:

Engagement In Culture Events Key To Mental Wellbeing
Science Daily, 5/19/2008
"Experts held a number of workshops for Liverpool residents aimed at identifying the positive and negative effects of the projects. The research revealed that community events filled local people with pride and a renewed commitment to the city. . . . On the whole, Capital of Culture programmes have had a very positive effect on mental health; negativity towards events and initiatives only arises when communities feel they have not been considered in the development of a scheme."
This whole time I could have sworn that the theatre was driving me nuts. I guess I was wrong, hm?


Kaine Says Tourism Is Vital To Virginia’s Economy
Bristol Herald Courier (VA), 5/21/2008
"Tourism can play an increasingly important role in the region’s economy despite concerns about the state and national economic outlook, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine said Tuesday. Kaine kicked off a busy day in Southwest Virginia by speaking at the second conference on building a creative economy. He spoke to a crowd of more than 100 at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon. . . . 'To me, there are three kinds of tourism – historic, culture and natural beauty – and Southwest Virginia has all three,' he said. 'A creative economy is designed to supplement and expand the traditional economy.' Kaine, who spoke at the first such conference two years ago, praised local efforts to expand tourism by combining the region’s music, heritage and other cultural assets."
Smart guy. Too bad Va. can't elect a governor for more than one term. It's such a quirk in their system -- throw everyone out, good or bad, after one shot. Seems a shame.


London: A cultural audit
London Development Agency, 2008
This report is the first quantitative overview of London’s cultural environment, which it compares with that of four world cities – New York, Paris, Tokyo and Shanghai. It reports that the city employs more than 550,000 people in the creative and cultural sectors, adding £20 billion to London’s economy.Thanks to Dr. Andy Pratt for sharing.
My God, 20 billion pounds? Here is a link to the PDF if you want to download the whole document, which is more than 100 pages long.


Performing arts center still a question mark at ground zero
Newsday - AP, 5/17/2008
"When he created ground zero's master plan, architect Daniel Libeskind envisioned a performing arts center that would bring life to a site devastated by terrorism. The rebuilt World Trade Center, he believed, should be more than a place to work and grieve. More than 100 arts institutions applied for a spot on the 16 acres. Four were chosen. That was four years ago. Since then, three out of the four groups that were to have anchored the new performance space have moved on and the center's prospects appear to be fading."
I could have told you this four years ago. The whole thing was a George Pataki-led sham -- except for Libeskind, who I think should win an award for the abuse he's put up with. Bottom line: it remains consecrated ground.


Arts, Inc.: How Greed and Neglect Have Destroyed Our Cultural Rights
University of California Press / 2008
From the publisher:"Bill Ivey, the former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, assesses the current state of the arts in America and finds cause for alarm. Even as he celebrates our ever-emerging culture and the way it enriches our lives here at home while spreading the dream of democracy around the world, he points to a looming crisis. The expanding footprint of copyright, an unconstrained arts industry marketplace, and a government unwilling to engage culture as a serious arena for public policy have come together to undermine art, artistry, and cultural heritage—the expressive life of America."
OK, OK, but what does "unconstrained" mean?


Louisiana's Investing In Culture
Forbes, 5/16/2008
Louisiana's Lt. Governor, Mitch Landrieu, writes about the Cultural Economy Initiative he launched in 2003. "The Cultural Economy Initiative encourages the organic growth of the cultural economy as a viable industry. The initiative has produced several programs including, arts in education legislation, cultural product districts, historic preservation grants, the Louisiana Cultural Economy Foundation and the World Cultural Economic Forum."
Too bad Louisana's new governor is an arts-ignorant Republican twit.

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