National Endowment for the Arts - How would you run it?

Fortunately I attended public schools (1956-1968) when art and music were required in elementary schools and I participated in concert choir through high school, yet I know these days the first to go is usually the art or music teacher and sometimes both. I found this out first hand this past Friday when I was showing 3-5 year old's at an early learning school the fine art and importance of handwashing. A video and music were involved and we were in a music room, but I don't think it qualified as "art."

There were 25-35 kids in each of the four sessions, and between sessions the music teacher would describe her day and about rock n' roll Fridays when the kids could really cut loose and how some would play air guitar and slide across the floor as if on a stage. There were hand instruments and songs on flip charts written out with text and pictures, but it was the child size rectangle table in the corner that you couldn't help notice. Taped to the table on all four sides was a paper representation of a piano keyboard, now I remember using something similar to practice hand position and finger exercises, however my elementary school did have upright pianos and lessons available.

As the kids came into the room her eyes would light up as she greeted them, and they obviously loved the teacher as they took turns giving and getting hugs from her. She said that for some of her students school may be the only place where they received a hug. There was an art teacher last year, but it wasn't in this years budget and as you might expect some kids responded to and preferred art while others music.

So, if art and music is the first to go and they have been proven to help kids in other areas of studies why doesn't the National Endowment for the Arts spend more on public school funding of the arts? Why isn't there a "entertainment tax" on music, theatre, movies...that specifically goes to funding public school arts programs. Better yet since the real money is in the sports programs of schools why doesn't the NFL, NBA, MLB fund sports programs in school freeing up money for arts programs.

You can click on the February 27, 2009 LA Times link photos to see what contributors (I didn't seen any sports figures) had to say about how they would run the National Endowment for the Arts. The NEA, whose 2008 budget was approximately $144 millon, will receive $50 million out of the $787 billion stimulus package. I believe that former President George W. Bush's Fiscal Year 2009 budget request for the NEA to the House Interior Appropriations Committee was $128.4 million.

How would you fund and/or run the NEA?

Documentary Photography Project

I came across calls for proposals at the Open Society Institute site if there are any documentary photographers out there.

Also take a look at the work of 5 photographers at Moving Walls 8. The first memory that popped into my head when I saw the title "Peru's Truth and Reconciliation Commission" was reading George Orwell's 1984, however in this case the purpose of this commission is to remember and not rewrite. I would love to see the other 1,725 photographs that these were chosen from. For me the first photo of the Peru series, Ashaninka, women is incredibly powerful and moving.

Need more? Look at Moving Walls 15 especially photographer Shehzad Noorani's photo gallery.

What the hell do we have to bitch about..........

Will Beijing Be The Creative Capital?

The latest buzz word from China is "creative industries" which is defined as "individual creativity, skills and talent that generate wealth, increase employment, and improve the overall living environment". Commercially this includes advertising, architectural art, artworks, antiques, fashion design, films, interactive software, music, performing arts, publishing, and television and radio broadcast. Also included is tourism, museums, art galleries, cultural heritage and sports. Sports? I wonder what the Cowboys would think if they were lumped in with the arts.

Could China redefine what is art?

Who's Influencing the NEA

Out of the $787 billion stimulus package Congress voted for $50 million has been allocated to the National Endowment for the Arts. President Obama's choice to head the NEA is Michael Dorf, a Chicago attorney who helped shaped art policy in Chicago and nationally in addition to teaching university courses on art policy and has been an early supporter of Obama's political career. Dorf also has the support of union leaders from the Screen Actors Guild, Actors Equity and the American Federation of Musicians.

I admit I do not understand why unions should be influencing the choice for NEA chairman while art and music teacher positions are being eliminated in public education from early education on up.

Of the $50 million stimulus approximately 40 percent for the arts will go to state arts agencies and the country’s six regional arts agencies, which in turn will then redistribute those allocations via their existing funding channels. It is expected that 25 percent of the funding will go toward cuts made at the state level.

Looks like art teachers for our public schools will still be looking for work.