The piece is ArtServe’s response to the Governor’s State of the State address. It also lays out what we believe are the things we all need to support and invest in as individuals, communities and the state as a whole, if we are to make it through this very tough economic transition and out the other side as a thriving place where people chose to live, work and raise their families.

I believe it starts with investing in the basics of education, health care and public services. No one would argue that these things need to be in place as a prerequisite for anyone choosing to live in Michigan. Investing in them is an absolute MUST, but the basics alone are just not enough to get us through this incredibly challenging transition to a knowledge-based economy. We must also invest in those things that differentiate us as a state, our unique attributes, assets and strengths. I would argue that these unique strengths consist of:

Nature: Our stunning natural resources - the Great Lakes, our woods, water, etc.

Culture: The unbelievably diverse and authentic home-grown/world-class cultural resources rooted in communities, large and small, urban and rural in both of our beautiful peninsulas.

Creativity: The creativity of our people and our legacy of invention, innovation and entrepreneurship - all possible because of the human imagination.

What we need to regain the prominence Michigan once enjoyed is to strategically invest in the basics and the things that add up to our competitive edge. We must think and express this clearly and publicly to one another and to decision-makers at all levels.

Artists, cultural organizations and arts educators all have an incredibly important role to play in this, but we won’t get very far if we are not aware of, connected to and supportive of one another. Beyond that, we as a sector also need to reach out to and advocate for the parts of this broader agenda that are beyond our own more narrow interests. This requires a generosity of spirit that I believe we possess. We in the arts need to advocate for the basics which means being vocal about the need to strategically invest in education, health care and public services. We need to invite those who are actively engaged in advocating for the natural resources and environmental interests of our communities - the things that when combined with arts, culture and creativity make Michigan unique.

If this makes sense and matters to you, I urge you to join us on March 19^th in Lansing for ArtServe’s Arts & Culture Day: Michigan’s Competitive Edge - Nature, Culture and Creativity.

Register online at www.artservemichigan.org. Get involved. Participate in a day of inspiration, information and action. Help me start a movement around this shared agenda. If you care, I need you there!

Since so many things are happening with ArtServe, I thought I’d start off with a quick organizational update and then a big picture thought for you to ponder. Here are some things going on with us that I hope will be of interest:

VIDEOS AND PHOTOS OF THE GOVERNOR’S ARTS AWARDS ON THE WEB. Unlike many videos of events, this is not one long boring video. We have been able to package different parts of the actual awards show into mini videos that are interesting and enjoyable. Go to the Governor’s Award for Arts & Culture web site, and let me know what you think.

CONSTITUENT RELATIONS POSITION. This week I hired a Director of Constituent Relations, Simon Perazza. He is an expert in the areas of strategy, marketing and digital media. He has an extensive background in arts education and video production, having won numerous statewide and national awards for his videos and original scripts. Simon will travel around the state, working with our constituents to make sure we are taking advantage of every opportunity to partner on strengthening Michigan’s arts and cultural sector. In the coming months, you can look forward to ArtServe working with you in your own backyard where the things that matter most to you are affected.

WE’VE MOVED! We’ve consolidated our two offices (Lansing and Southfield) into one main office at the Riley Broadcast Center at 1 Clover Ct. in Wixom effective Jan. 17^th. Not only is this move a smart use of our limited resources, it is also an opportunity to partner with Detroit Public TV (our landlord at the broadcast center) and public television stations around the state on developing programs to promote the arts, culture and creativity in Michigan. The sky’s the limit in terms of possibilities here.

SAVE THE DATE - ARTS & CULTURE DAY IN LANSING, MARCH 19TH. This year, we have decided to reinvent the Arts Advocacy Days of the past by significantly expanding the tent and broadening the focus. While the day will be capped with visits to legislators lobbying for specific pieces of legislation designed to strengthen the arts and cultural sector, the theme of the day is Investing in Michigan’s Competitive Edge: Nature, Culture and Creativity. Specific pieces of legislation aside, the fundamental message we will be sending to our legislators is that investing in the basics (education, health care, and public safety) are indeed a MUST but they are not enough. For Michigan to be a place where people choose to live, work, and visit, we must simultaneously invest in those things that are our unique assets, attributes and strengths which I would argue are - Nature, Culture and Creativity.

• Nature: The Great Lakes, woods and water
• Culture: The authenticity and diversity of our home-grown, world-class cultural offerings and
• Creativity: Our legacy of innovation and entrepreneurship!

These are the things that differentiate Michigan and hold the promise for our future. The only way we are going to get this point across and make investing in these strengths a public policy priority is to coalesce a broader coalition around this entire range of interests. Without this broader coalition, supporters of each aspect of our Michigan’s competitive edge are easily relegated to special interest status and easily dismissed.

The first step in pushing for this broader agenda is to bring together a much broader cross-section of the arts and cultural community for the March 19^th event than in past years. We need not only nonprofit cultural organizations to join us. We need artists of all disciplines, arts educators, and more people who represent the for-profit side of the sector. Whether you want to face it or not, public policy shaped in Lansing has an effect on all of these individuals and groups, not just those who receive grant dollars from the state.

As part of this focus on Michigan’s Competitive Edge, we are also extending an open invitation to all of those aligned with environmental and natural resources interests to join us. If you care about the things we’ve been discussing on this blog, you need to show up and get involved! We’ll make it easy for you by filling you in on the issues, legislation, key messages, etc. Please Save the Date! I promise an inspiring, informative experience that will engage you in making a difference. Join us and bring your friends, family and colleagues. ArtServe can’t advocate alone. We need all of you with us on the 19th. Stay tuned for more details!

NEW ADVOCACY WEBSITE UNDER DEVELOPMENT. As promised, we are developing a new advocacy website that will make it unbelievably easy for you to advocate for arts, culture and creativity whether you are trying to persuade a school board, local business, city council or foundation. Like the Michigan Artists Resource Center website under development, we will be coming to you for feedback on content and usability before we go live sometime in March.

NOW TO SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT. . .

One of the things I did over the holidays was to serve as one of four guest consultants assisting the American Composers Forum(ACF) in setting the stage for the strategic planning process they are undertaking. To prepare for this role, we were provided with some background reading to prime the pump for a daylong session with the ACF board and staff. Among these materials was a speech by Ben Cameron, Director of the Arts Program at the Doris Duke Foundation who was also one of the four guest consultants. Many of you may know Ben from his work in the theatre world. I bother to share this with you because this particular speech recently delivered to the Southern Arts Federation, Performing Arts Exchange 2007 is something I consider an absolute MUST read. You can access it on the web.

There is one particular observation Ben makes that has major relevance for our efforts here in Michigan. As he describes the challenges facing the arts and culture in a constantly morphing and increasingly fluid environment, he makes the point that it is not the arts, culture and creativity that is being challenged or threatened. It is the form and structure of the arts and culture sector that is threatened and I agree with this observation.

As I look around, there is no shortage of creative expression. New art forms are popping up everywhere with much of this activity increasingly happening in the virtual world. In fact, I would say that we are actually experiencing a resurgence of the arts, culture and creativity. Where the challenge comes is that for decades we have pretty much allowed the arts and cultural sector to be defined primarily as one and the same as nonprofit arts and cultural organizations which of course, does not begin to capture the entirety of the sector which includes individual artists of all kinds, working fluidly between the nonprofit and for-profit worlds.

Even more challenging is that within this nonprofit part of the sector, many organizations are increasingly finding themselves left out of the arts scene equation, searching for their own relevance. The writing seems to be on the wall, that we need to come up with some new models that are a better fit for our times.

Those of us who are interested and drawn to this challenge have exciting work ahead. The one thing we know will get the ball rolling is to share our thoughts with one another. To that end, I am eager to hear you join in on this conversation. And, please do check out Ben Cameron’s speech.

Governor Jennifer Granholm and the Guvvy

Although I mentioned this last time, I want to once again say something about the NEW DIA! Over 58,000 people passed through its doors in the 3 days after Thanksgiving and the reviews were consistently outstanding. While the DIA leadership has received much praise over the past month, they have also experienced criticism with accusations of dumbing down the art, etc. Well, all I can say is that if making art understandable, exciting, interesting and relevant to not only art historians, but the rest of the population as well, is tantamount to dumbing it down, then we need more of it. I want to go on record supporting the courageous leadership of the DIA. I consider them a role model for the courage and risk-taking it takes to stay relevant to those for whom the arts exist – all of us!

Back to the event itself . . . in addition to the location, the evening was magical because the Governor was there. The crowd was an exciting combination of familiar and unfamiliar faces representing a broader cross-section of Michigan AND we unveiled the Guvvy, a beautiful sculpture designed by Grand Rapids artist Nathan Goddard. Nathan created the Guvvy in collaboration with the glass artists at Greenfield Village and the woodworking artisans of Cranbrook.

We also featured entertainment from all over Michigan interspersed throughout the evening including Tapology, an incredible tap dance troupe from Flint with dancers ranging in age from 7 – 17 who stole the show as the closing act for the awards ceremony.

If you ever had any doubt that Michigan does indeed stand out in terms of the creative talent, you have only to take note of those who were honored this year as well as those who have been honored over the past 22 years since the inception of the awards.

Below is the list of this year’s award recipients and honorees. Congratulations to each and every one!

Michigan Artist
Guvvy Recipient: Gerhardt Knodel – Bloomfield Hills

Honorees:
- J.T. Abernathy – Ann Arbor
- Linda Nemec Foster – Grand Rapids

Arts Educator
Guvvy Recipient: John W. Rutherford – Rochester Hills

Honorees:
- Mikel Bresee - Detroit
- Anita Coppol & Todd Moses – Clinton Township

Non Profit Arts/Cultural Leader
Guvvy Recipient: Fritz Stansell – Twin Lake

Honorees:
- Bobbie Gaunt - Saugatuck
- Peg Upmeyer - Detroit

Arts & Cultural Organization (Budget Under 1 Million)
Guvvy Recipient: William Bonifas Fine Arts Center - Escanaba

Honorees:
- The Art Experience Inc. - Waterford
- Rackham Symphony Choir - Detroit

Arts & Culture Organization (Budget over $1 million)
Guvvy Award Recipient: Flint Institute of Arts - Flint

Honorees:
- Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center - Birmingham
- Michigan Theater – Ann Arbor

Arts Education Organization
College of Fine Arts, Western Michigan University – Kalamazoo

Exemplary Business in Support of the Arts
Guvvy Recipient: The Dwelling Place of Grand Rapids, Inc. – Grand Rapids

Honorees:
- The Enterprise Group of Jackson - Jackson
- Paramount Bank - Ferndale

Arts Advocate
E. Ray Scott - Dearborn

Lifetime Achievement Award for Support of Arts and Culture
William S. & Claire M. White – Grand Blanc

Civic Leader
Gebran S. Anton – Mt. Clemens
Robert & Eleanor DeVries – Battle Creek

International Achievement
Sam Raimi – Culver City, California

I know many of you were at this year’s celebration and I want to personally thank you for supporting Michigan’s creative talent and ArtServe’s work on their behalf through your presence. Not to go on too long about the event, but I do need to add that the International Award recipient, film director/producer/writer Sam Raimi was about as perfect an award recipient as I could have ever imagined. He is not only an incredible talent, but is also an authentic, impressive, thoughtful human being who is passionate about his craft and who cares deeply about Michigan, the health of our arts and cultural sector and how that health impacts on the quality of life we can offer to our children.

The day after the awards gala, ArtServe has for the past six-years held a related Student Event. This year, over 1,000 high school students from all over the state, from both peninsulas, from communities big and small, urban and rural, converged on the DIA to meet Sam Raimi. They followed that up by attending a wide array of workshops designed to inspire them, give them an idea of the range of possibilities that await them and what it will take to pursue these possibilities. These are students with a passion for the arts and creativity and who want to turn that passion into their livelihood. Sam spent over an hour and a half with the students in a very informal, candid “talk-back” session which culminated with questions from these young aspiring artists. It was clear to me that this experience will change lives and launch careers. Our hats are off to not only Sam Raimi who was genuinely interested, engaged and supportive of the students, but the sponsors who underwrote the entire experience making it possible for students to attend at no charge for the program, lunch or transportation. We had to turn students away because the space couldn’t accommodate more than 1,000. Believe me, we have the interest and talent in the pipeline. We just have to nurture and support!

Now, back to responding to some of the thoughts and ideas that you have shared over the past few weeks. . .

First of all, there have been a few posts that lead me to believe that some are under the impression that ArtServe Michigan is a part of state government and/or that we oversee the money that comes from the state to support the arts. I can see how that misunderstanding might happen, given our name and given the fact that we produce the Governor’s Awards for Arts & Culture, etc. This, however, is not the case. We are neither part of state government nor do we oversee how the dollars from the state are spent. We are a freestanding nonprofit like many of the organizations we serve with advocacy at the core of our mission. Our funding comes from a range of sources including foundation and government grants (among them a grant from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs), individual contributions, memberships and sponsorships for specific programs. In terms of funding our work, we face the very same challenges faced by the nonprofit arts and cultural organizations we serve and we believe that helps us walk in their shoes.

There was also a conversation prompted by one of my posts that I want to weigh in on – the conversation about the concept of the Arts Serving Michigan. I make no apologies about this. I think that it is a positive thing to think that the arts play an important role in making the world a better place and I find service to be noble. I am, however, aware of the fact that the concept or maybe the word is insulting to some in the sector. My instincts, however, are that we are actually much closer together in our views that the typical 30-second sound bite of a conversation would lead you to believe. I am delighted our organization is named ArtServe Michigan because it allows us to talk not only explicitly, but subliminally about how the arts do indeed serve Michigan. The only point here is that we believe that the real value of artistic endeavor is its benefit to the greater good. That in no way negates the inherent value of individual creative endeavor which in my view nearly always feeds back into to the greater good.

I also want to comment on the recent Ann Arbor Film Festival (AAFF) victory with the successful settlement of their Federal lawsuit against the state of Michigan. The unconstitutional state arts funding restrictions, which the AAFF challenged with their lawsuit, are being repealed and replaced with guidelines mirroring those of the National Endowment for the Arts, which have been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. This is a major victory for artists’ rights and first amendment protections. The NEA guidelines are reasonable and now Michigan’s will follow suit. There has been little coverage of this victory in the general media and so I want to bring it to your attention here.

The official press release of the announcement can be downloaded here.

I want to end by saying that I was absolutely stunned by the number of people who came up to me at the Governors Awards for Arts & Culture who are reading this blog, feel that its valuable, have not had the time to post replies, but are thinking about and acting on the ideas expressed there. As a new adventure for myself and ArtServe, this is important to know. I continue to believe that we can’t get anywhere with our vision of repositioning arts, culture and creativity as essential to Michigan’s future without first engaging in this type of conversation. Here’s to where our collective thoughts, words and deeds have the potential to lead us!

• Speaking at the Urban Institute of Contemporary Art in Grand Rapids to a group of over 150 women professionals eager to learn about the role and impact of arts, culture and creativity on the economy, healthcare and education.
• Attending a reception at the Governor’s residence in Lansing to recognize the artists whose work is on display there in an exhibit put together by the Dennos Museum in Traverse City.
• Participating in a think-tank at Wayne State University exploring with university and community leaders the idea of an arts-focused creative industries innovation center as part of the Tech Town initiative in downtown Detroit.
• Taking part in two community conversations (Dearborn and Ann Arbor) among arts and cultural leaders in those communities convened by The Center for Michigan’s Michigan Defining Moment public engagement campaign. The focus of the conversation was a discussion of the role arts and culture plays in shaping Michigan’s future.
• Writing a letter that was read to the Ann Arbor City Council congratulating them for passing a percent for arts ordinance, an initiative led by the Ann Arbor Commission on Art in Public Places.

The week ended on a celebratory note last night as my husband and I joined thousands of arts supporters who got the first peek at the newly renovated Detroit Institute of Arts at the first of several festivities designed to reintroduce the public to the new DIA experience. It was truly an incredible, magical evening that couldn’t help but make you proud. It was also very clear that this world-class Michigan institution takes very seriously its commitment to providing experiences that are exciting, engaging, educational, accessible and relevant to the broad and diverse public it serves.

I share these snippets of my past week for a couple reasons. First, to give you some insight into why I have such a positive and inclusive perspective on Michigan’s arts and cultural sector. Secondly, to bring to light a common theme that was woven throughout the conversations that animated all of these experiences. The theme was basically a recounting, again and again and again, of all the arts and cultural offerings that make Michigan so special, followed by the same question again and again and again – “Why don’t we do a better job of marketing these arts and cultural strengths?”

I’d like to use that question as point of departure for some related thoughts . . .

First of all, I do agree that we can do a much better of marketing what we have. For instance, for all its beauty and powerful emotional appeal, the Pure Michigan campaign launched by Travel Michigan focuses almost exclusively on woods and water, those characteristics of our natural environment that differentiates us as a state. This promotional campaign, which is the best I’ve seen in years, still fails to capitalize on the characteristics of our cultural environment that differentiate us – yes, once again, the home-grown, world-class, authentic and diverse nature of Michigan’s cultural scene. This is something I’d like to say more about in the future. Back to the question of better marketing. . .

I think there is a more fundamental challenge than better marketing . . .
The challenge? Quite simply, most of us know very little about the cultural offerings that exist outside of our own community or region. Or if we do have some knowledge of these offerings, we haven’t experienced them ourselves or lately. Add to that the fact that you can still feel a number of regional divides – regions that don’t seem to care about or support one another in any meaningful way. For example, it’s no secret that there is no love lost between Detroit and Grand Rapids, a situation that in subtle and not so subtle ways works against our collective ability to promote the arts, cultural and creative strengths of the state as a whole. Even this type of divide, however, can be overcome by a heightened awareness and better understanding of the respective strengths of given cities and regions and how when combined they can help position our state in a positive light.

A couple years ago when board members of both the Michigan Association of Community Arts Agencies (MACAA) and ArtServe were engaged in merger negotiations, we held one of our meetings at the Flint Institute of Arts. A couple board members from the Detroit area had never been to the Flint Cultural Center and were totally blown away by what they found there. I can also say with confidence that several other board members who were from smaller and/or rural communities around the state who had not been to Detroit in decades would be shocked to find the richness of cultural offerings there. This lack of awareness cuts in all directions – urban/rural, East/West, Upper Peninsula, Lower Peninsula, etc. and is understandable. After all, we’re all caught up in the significant challenges of our own work and our resources of time, energy and dollars are limited. There are certainly plenty of legitimate excuses. I really believe, however, that if we are to make any progress in getting the word out about Michigan’s cultural richness, the work has to begin with us. We are the ones who can create the buzz. It’s no different than the smart companies that understand that looking at their employees like internal customers is the best way to build a powerful base of passionate advocates and marketers of the company.

I challenge each of us to make a personal commitment to learn more about the cultural offerings that are sometimes right in our own backyard, but more often beyond our own backyard. We then need to support what we find. This can mean anything from something as informal as spreading the word among friends and colleagues about a unique festival or heritage site to celebrating one another’s strengths and successes by writing about them in a newsletter or blog, etc.

I’ve toyed with the idea of establishing some type of statewide sister city program that could be used to launch cultural exchanges between communities right here within our state. I’m convinced that not enough of this goes on and I’m also convinced that it doesn’t always take more dollars to make it happen. It just takes thinking about it and extending yourself to do it.

On November 29th, we will all have a chance to celebrate and support arts, culture and creativity in Michigan and to learn more about the cultural scene beyond our own backyard by attending the 22nd Annual Governors Awards for Arts & Culture Gala. The theme of this year’s gala is “Let the Arts Serve Michigan!” The event serves two basic purposes: 1) to raise the visibility of Michigan’s arts and cultural sector and the critical role it plays in shaping Michigan’s future and 2) to raise much needed funding to support the work of ArtServe Michigan on behalf of the sector.

While ArtServe has hosted the awards for the past ten years, in keeping with the direction of the NEW ArtServe, we have added a few twists we hope will increase and broaden the base of attendees and supporters from across the state.

You can read all about the event, award winners and finalists, discounted hotel rooms, etc. and register on-line by going to www.artservemichigan.org. The bottom line is that we would love to see you there. I can think of nothing more encouraging and powerful than to have Governor Granholm witness first-hand, the numbers of people from all over Michigan that truly understand that Michigan’s competitive edge lies in 1) its extraordinary natural resources, 2) the home-grown, world-class, authentic and diverse nature of its cultural resources and 3) its legacy of creativity, innovation, ingenuity and entrepreneurship. The arts and cultural sector is the key to two of the three and deeply tied to the third! I’d say the sector is critical to Michigan’s future!

The awards will be held at the newly reopened DIA in Detroit which provides the added opportunity to see first-hand this reinvented world-class Michigan institution of which we can all be proud. Despite the fact that the event is ArtServe’s major fund raiser and extremely critical to our financial livelihood, we have maintained an affordable $50 ticket level, lined up discounted hotel rooms, incorporated more and more diverse entertainment throughout the evening, all to make the event more enticing and accessible to a broader range of folks. In other words, both the dollars and numbers and range of supporters are important to us.

Look through the list of award winners and finalists on our website and you’ll see that they hail from all corners of the state, so whether you are there to show your support for those from your region who are being honored, or to show your support for those being honored from your profession, or to show your support for the entire sector and/or to show your support for ArtServe’s work on your behalf, or just to learn more about the statewide cultural scene, we hope you’ll make it a priority to join us!

And don’t forget to pass the word to schools and school districts in your area about the Governor’s Awards for Arts & Culture Student Event the following day – it’s a great way to show our commitment to furthering and supporting arts education in Michigan.

Also, the analogy of the genesis of the environmental movement seemed to resonate with several people. Implied in some of these responses was the idea of perhaps coalescing a movement around the concept of the cultural environment. In other words expand the current understanding of the environment to include not only the natural environment but the broader human environment of creative activity.

This is definitely a conversation I’ve had with many people and in my view worth thinking about. In fact, ArtServe’s strategic plan anticipates the convening of a major summit in 2009 around the shared agenda of creativity and the cultural environment. This is a ways off, but the idea is to include not only the arts and cultural sector but other sectors who also value creativity and the cultural environment– science, technology, tourism, etc. More about this to come…

There were also a couple of responses that were essentially challenges to make the rhetoric real. I have to say I believe that rhetoric is only a dirty word when it’s not followed up by action. When it does result in action, however, rhetoric can give voice to a vision, ideas and concepts that inspire that action. ArtServe is already bringing the rhetoric to life with action. To that end, I’d like to share a few things we are currently working on – action!

1. We are developing a new website (to be unveiled in January). The website will serve as a major resource hub and vehicle for dialogue with our constituents - artists, arts and cultural organizations and arts educators. We are looking at models around the country, incorporating what we’ve learned over the past seven months through the needs assessment/planning process and are gathering together a small advisory group with representatives from each of these groups to help us understand what type of content is most valuable. If you want to be part of this group or provide your input in other ways, please let me know. One specific model we are looking at for the artist component of the site is www.artisttrust.org. If you are an artist (any discipline) check it out and let me know what you think.
2. I love Margaret Parker’s suggestion of using visual art (and other art forms) to accompany our blog. I have always thought it ironic that we who are in the business of advocating for the arts rarely harness the persuasive power of the arts themselves to make our case. Margaret, we’ll be in touch about how we can incorporate your idea into our new website and also into the Michigan Artist Directory e-newsletter.
3. This week we convened a steering committee to get the ball rolling on developing a public/private cultural trust fund with the idea of putting public dollars together with private dollars to stabilize, grow and sustain funding for the arts and cultural sector throughout Michigan. We realize that this may take 3-4 years. The first step, however, is to secure a public revenue stream dedicated to supporting arts and cultural grants. We are working on this and are hopeful. If you want to help to make this happen, visit www.artservemichigan.org, check out the Advocacy section and sign up for our Grass Roots Arts Advocacy Network to stay apprised of how you can help.
4. One respondent asked if ArtServe is considering having a presence in the Upper Peninsula. The answer is “yes”. As a first step in January, we will be hiring a Constituent Relations person who will be traveling both the Lower and Upper Peninsula to convene artists, arts and cultural organizations, arts educators and broader community “thought leaders”. We also plan to convene at least one major event in the Upper Peninsula in 2008. You should also know that two members of the ArtServe board live in the U.P.
5. Many of you have asked how you can help and have also talked about the fact that so many of the arts and cultural activities that exist in various communities and regions throughout the state are unknown outside the region in which they are rooted. To address both the interest in helping ArtServe with its ambitious vision and the desire to spread the word about the incredibly rich arts and cultural environment that exists in Michigan, I will be inviting you soon to write and share your stories with us. In the meantime, here are a couple other places that I have found that I suggest you send your stories.

   A) www.MIlifeMItimes.com and
   B) www.thecenterformichigan.org.

   Both of these sites are devoted to positive perspectives on Michigan.

Now on to some thoughts for your consideration . . .

ARTS AND CULTURE: A FALSE DIVIDE

The words that come to mind when I think of Michigan’s cultural environment are “homegrown, world class, diverse, authentic – the real deal!” The combination of all of these characteristics is what makes us unique. In order to truly realize our potential, however, we need to work at embracing not only all of these characteristics but the various forms of creative expression that embody them. All too often, however, I run into false divides that in the end undermine that potential.

One of the most common divisions is between people who value, promote and support activities we typically label “the arts” vs. those who value, promote and support activities we typically label as “culture”. Although there are certainly more than enough formal definitions of each, when I think of “cultural” activities, I think of things that are first and foremost rooted in family, daily life, ritual, place and heritage . . . radiating out from there to neighborhood, community, etc. I think of “cultural” activities as home-grown and I see them as incredibly positive and valuable. They are what illuminate our differences and make life interesting.

When I think of the forms of creative expression we typically label “the arts”, I think of those forms that are fed by home-grown culture in all of its diversity and at the same time distilled from this rich cultural brew are universal truths and connections that transcend our differences, lift us out of our own particular cultural experience and bind us all together as humans.

Regardless of how each of us may or may not give voice to these distinctions, the point is that together they form an ecosystem which is by its very definition interdependent. If we expect arts and culture to thrive in Michigan, we need to not only recognize arts and culture as an ecosystem, we need to value, promote and protect it like one!

In other words, my world view is relentlessly positive and totally oriented toward finding ways to make things better. My bias also includes an absolute love for this unbelievably unique and beautiful place we call Michigan.I was born here, have traveled all over the world and continue to choose to live, work and play here. That said, there are an awful lot of very serious challenges facing all of us who are tied to Michigan. For my part, I truly believe that the arts, culture and creativity and the human activities and attributes associated with the world of creative expression are an integral part of the solution to many of these challenges and the new ArtServe is dedicated to making that clear and making it real. Enough said about my bias.

I also want you to know that you can expect my blog to be a real mixture of postings – everything from organizational updates on the new ArtServe to thoughts, ideas, questions, ponderings, insights, ah ha moments, etc. Hopefully you’ll find some of these provocative and worthy of your consideration and response. A lively and robust conversation is the goal so we’ll see how we do. In any case, I’m delighted to open the conversation with something that the constituents and stakeholders of the new ArtServe Michigan have made clear they want an update on where the new ArtServe is headed and an idea of what they can expect over the next several months so . . . here we go – first entry.

Nearly a year ago, the merger of ArtServe Michigan with the Michigan Association of Community Arts Agencies became official. In mid-March, I was hired to lead the reinvention of ArtServe as an organization that will be greater than the sum of its parts, and we’ve been hard at work doing just that.

From the beginning, I have heard the message from you, our constituents and stakeholders, loudly and clearly – you are looking for something new, an organization and an approach built on the strengths of the two pre-merger organizations but one that uses those strengths in new, different and more effective ways.

Our Purpose: To move closer to a broad-based understanding across all sectors of the state that a sustainable, supportive environment for arts, culture and creativity is essential to Michigan’s prosperity, its strategic resilience, the well-being of its citizens and the health of its communities.

For the past seven months, the board and staff of ArtServe with the participation of thousands of constituents and stakeholders have taken the time, energy and resources to lay the groundwork for the new organization’s success by conducting a planning process that has been robust and inclusive.

For all of you who have been involved, I want you to know that I am deeply grateful for the time and energy you’ve taken to contribute information, insights and perspectives and for expressing your wants, needs and vision for our collective future.

While engaged in this planning work, ArtServe has also been working on the nuts and bolts of integrating the operations of two organizations and two staffs in different locations.
During this same period we have been:

1. Continuing our advocacy efforts in Lansing
2. Planning the 2007 Governor’s Awards for Arts & Culture gala and
3. Continuing to provide the full complement of programs and services offered by the two pre-merger organizations

In July, we paused planning for programs and services to be offered in fiscal year 2007/08 starting October 1st to allow our strategic plan to truly guide us moving forward.

Early in the planning process, we heard from three related, yet very distinct constituency groups:

1. Cultural organizations
2. Individuals artists and
3. K-12 arts educators

We also learned that each of these groups has a different set of needs and priorities. What we’ve heard consistently from all three, however, as well as from our broader base of stakeholders is that ArtServe, its constituents and stakeholders will need to work together in a more organized way, that ArtServe will need to be truly strategic, making hard choices about what it does and doesn’t do and that the new organization should be willing to take calculated risks.

Two weeks ago, I took what we’ve learned over the past seven-months and the strategic focus that has emerged, on the road, discussing it in round table conversations held in eight regions across the state. The purpose of our conversations was to see if we were on the right track as we headed into ArtServe’s board retreat, where the board would make the final determination of our direction.

The themes that emerged from the round tables were:
1) In no uncertain terms from every corner of the state, advocacy defined broadly and done in partnerships that include grassroots organizing, coalition-building, education, research and political lobbying should be a top priority for the new organization.

2) A second, related focus on strategic communications is seen across the state as an equally high priority for ArtServe. This would include how we frame the discussion about arts and culture, the words we use and the values propositions we make.

3) A third, capacity building (defined differently by each constituent group) is seen as absolutely critical in most communities and regions of the state, but is viewed of less importance in a few areas where there are already capacity building efforts in place.

4) There was also total agreement that ArtServe would need to do its work through a web of partnerships and that an early part of our work would include fleshing out and formalizing this web, perhaps through the establishment of regional advisory groups.

5) There was consensus that the new ArtServe must be truly strategic and willing to take calculated risks in the process.

6) There was the confirmation that ArtServe needs to develop the combination of both a robust web site and personal interaction in order to be relevant throughout the state.

7) We heard that there is much good will and hope that the new ArtServe can deliver on its promise.

8) Lastly, we heard that ArtServe will need to demonstrate its new direction and commitment in real, practical ways within the next 6-12 months.

On September 20th, the ArtServe board held a retreat to consider all of the above and I’m delighted to say that they heartily endorsed the direction in which we’re headed and the three strategic focus areas of Advocacy, Capacity Building and Strategic Communications.

Over the next 3 months, we will be working with you, our constituents and stakeholders, to turn our strategic focus areas into concrete programmatic goals, the action plan to achieve them and the metrics to assess them.

Within the next 6 months, you can expect to see our website developed into a resource hub and forum for discussion and a formalized statewide regional network in place through which our advocacy, capacity building and communications work will flow. We will also be restructuring our staff to make sure we have the capacity to accomplish and sustain our work on your behalf. During this same period, our advocacy work in Lansing will continue and we will host our Arts Education Leadership Conference on October 29 - 31 in Lansing and the Governor’s Arts Awards for Arts & Culture on November 29th at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

The ArtServe Board will formally approve our full-blown strategic plan at its February 2008 meeting but you will see evidence of the new ArtServe long before then.

ArtServe is grounded in a simple but ambitious mission, one that affirms the positive role that arts and culture can play in making Michigan more resilient by cultivating the creative potential of citizens, communities, regions and collectively, the state as a whole.

Our vision for Michigan is:

• Growing appreciation for innovation, ingenuity, talent and imagination…
• Equals more vibrant places to live, learn & work
• Recognition that arts & culture help catalyze such outcomes…
• By attracting creative people who foster renewal, problem-solving, entrepreneurial behavior, personal creativity.

I want to thank all of you for your engagement and patience over the past seven months. The real, concrete work and benefits that will flow from it are right around the corner. This is the exciting part where we begin to build our relevance and future together.

Neeta Delaney
President/CEO
ArtServe Michigan