Move4ART

The ICA/Boston 's Barbara Lee Foundation Theater  filled quickly for the "Cultural Planning Learning Session" after lunch on Novembe 18th.  After giving props to MassCreative 's Create the Vote campaign, the BCA 's Veronique LeMelle set the stage for the afternoon's presenters:   Julie Burros, Director of Cultural Planning for the City of Chicago , spoke from a practical perspective about Chicago's Cultural Plan and the need to develop a strategic plan that can carry cultural policies forward through multiple city administrations; and Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson, Senior Advisor to the Arts and Culture Program at the Kresge Foundation and an Obama appointee to the National Council on the Arts (NEA), who spoke from the perspective of one grounded in research. Dr. Jackson's overview of her key findings (summarized below) are drawn from her reflections on how urban planning research about arts and culture has progressed in recent years. (Hi...

Even if you missed it, you can thank The Barr Foundation for sponsoring "A Day of Learning and Networking for the Greater Boston Arts & Culture Community" at   ICA Boston  on 18 November 2013.        The day began with an illuminating presentation by TDC 's Susan Nelson--" Beyond Breakeven:  Why Capitalization Matters ."  Review it and you'll immediately see why the word "illuminating" is not hyperbole.        Key takeaway for us?  The "misalignment" between the measures on which arts organizations all too often rely, and the kind of ongoing market research that keeps capitalization matters in mind.        This fundamental disconnect then leads to a series of double binds for arts organizations: break-even analyses tend to focus on the success of funded projects as opposed to annual operating budgets;  arts organizations, not wanting to appear weak--i.e., "unfundable," effectivel...

Photo credit: G. Sierra Khan              Wheelock Family Theatre showcased the first cohort of young playwrights to participate in its Emerging Playwrights Program  (EPP) last Friday night at the Mattahunt Community Center .          A large, first-floor activity room was converted into a makeshift, flexible theatre space.  And there, with the Boston mural as a backdrop, actors staged readings of the young playwrights' works.      In rapid-fire fashion, the evening's program cycled through five ten-minute plays:  Eden Beleke's Paradise  took a comedic look at cell phone addiction and the tensions it engenders; Jacarrea Garraway's Our Son  finds parents' new possibilities dashed once their son drops out of college and returns home; Alex Drumm, Jr.'s Worst Case Scenario  traps father- and son-in-law to be in an elevator where they hash out their differences, whil...

We're not looking to build a LEED-certified building simply because the City of Boston requires all large-scale developments to meet (if not exceed) the US Green Building standards. We're going green because we want to be part of the solution to the high greenhouse gas emissions typically found in cities like Boston. We appreciate fully the policies Mayor Thomas Menino has put into place to mitigate, and adapt to the effects of climate change; especially the following: Article 37 , Boston's Green Buildings Standard; and Article 80 , Large Project Green Building Review Process. Our internal planning process takes to heart the lessons forwarded via Mayor Menino's Green Building Task Force Report ; with special focus on its " Opportunities for Action " executive summary about the Costs and Benefits of Green Affordable Housing. We're looking to go green, not only for the energy efficiency, but because we see potent opportunities in developing a mix...

First, we must give a double shout-out to MassCreative :  for mobilizing artists and arts organizations around a powerful idea, i.e., to " Create The Vote 2013" (implications for future campaigns?  We hope so.); and for facilitating arts-focused candidate forums.  Kudos are also due to WBUR 's TheARTery for " Arts and the Next Mayor: What Boston Wants and What it May Get "--digitally capturing (and archiving) an arts-focused approach to a campaign now winnowed to  Connolly On The Arts  and Walsh On The Arts .   'Cause here and now, TheARTery 's a time-saver as we try to figure out which of these two guys to vote for on Tuesday, 6 November 2013.   Problem is, plans for the arts being forwarded by the candidates are clearly cut from the same cloth--one woven by what TheARTery describes as "Boston's cultural community."   As a result  both candidates kinda sound alike when talking about how their administrations would ...

Mattapan (Environmental) Action Network's most recent post really captures the mood: Meh! Tuning N2 the Mayoral Race . 'Cause I have been feeling a lil "meh!" about the race; especially as the field ballooned and eventually winnowed. Under the circumstances we'll have to cast our vote based on each candidate's commitment to artists and access to "the ahts"--arts education, arts OST-programming, arts institutions, arts facilities, to arts as a portal to civic engagement.   Tomorrow we'll post our findings here.

An interesting thing happened on the way back from NYC:  a phone call alerting me about an info session the following day. Despite the late notice, here's  what I learned: Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DNSI) has issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on behalf of "a broad range of community-based partners" to commission a public art installation in the Upham's Corner neighborhood. Although the "call" has gone out "for artists," facilitators of the info session stressed that the artist label is broadly defined to privilege: "local, cultural markets;"  "elevat[ing] the richness" that resides at the local level. Any and all "creative practitioners" are welcome to apply; especially those who have demonstrated leadership engaging communities in "participatory processes." Answering a few key questions in a three- to five-minute video is all that's required to start the application pro...

Since you asked, our twin taglines point to two distinct operational tracks for  Mattapan Cultural Arts Development:  on one hand, " Climbing as we build " relates to our push to build a cultural arts center where art can happen in Mattapan; on the other hand, " Making Art Happen in Mattapan " presents a constant reminder of our ultimate goal. We'll spend the next few months cultivating a community of stakeholders:  from the inside out--inviting Mattapan residents, public officials, property owners and businesses into a conversation about what it would mean if Mattapan were an arts destination; and  from the outside in--importing the necessary skill sets and expertise to design and develop a complex, mixed-use, LEED-certified building as a focal point for the arts in Mattapan.  In the meantime we're surveying Mattapan youth and families to assess the need for what kinds of art, while cultivating a network of artists and arts organizations interest...

Does our want for space simultaneously fill a need for which there is a market demand ? The question is complicated by the fact that Mattapan families clearly want out-of-school time arts programming now ; adding to our pressure for space to work and play.   Of course this is all just anecdotal.  So we're struggling to figure out how we can quantify it.  Thoughts?  Advice?

Although it's doubtful that our pursuit of #MakingArt space in Mattapan will be our "final frontier," we were heartened (at least) by a recent site visit to AS220 .  Its founder,  Umberto Crenca acknowledged "audacity" was the initial driving force behind this organization; especially its use of the arts to redevelop downtown Providence, RI. When African Repertory Troupe, Inc. established Mattapan Cultural Arts Development to build a mixed-use, arts facility in Mattapan audacity was (and remains) a key factor in the "heavy lift" this project will require.   Space is critical to our current push to build capacity so we are in a position to not only fulfill our mission , but to forward Mattapan as a cultural arts district .  Just imagine.  We have the audacity to believe we can; and AS220 provides a model of success in this regard.

When African Repertory Troupe, Inc. aka the Other  ART was formed (15 years ago), its founders held out hope that it would find support for stage works written by playwrights, poets, and storytellers of African descent.  Even as the company worked its way through the morass of paperwork associated with organizing a non-profit corporation, it faced space constraints.  Space to build capacity; space to hold auditions, rehearsals, and staged readings; space to meet, to write, to play.  Finding space (of all varieties) has always required a great deal of creativity.  Although  the  Other  ART  found a temporary home from time to time, it was too short-lived to stabilize our operations. So we adapted: we've presented works in all kinds of 'flexible' spaces.   In 2004 we established Mattapan Cultural Arts Development to explore the feasibility of establishing an arts center in Mattapan.   The purpose being, not only to provide...