Arts Northwest

State of the Art in New Orleans

2005-11-16T02:06:00.000-08:00

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ... The baseball-sized French glass Mardi
Gras beads still dangle on live oak trees outside the New
Orleans Museum of Art. Somehow, they defied Hurricane Katrina's
fury.

The Degas, Monet and Gauguin paintings, the jeweled Faberge
eggs, the Ansel Adams photographs, they're all safe inside.
Even though storm winds uprooted 60-foot-tall trees nearby and
8-foot-deep floodwaters surrounded the museum like a lake with
an island castle, the art treasures were spared.[EP

But the museum wasn't and its scars are just beginning to
show.

The New Orleans Museum of Art has been forced to lay off
most of its 86 workers, it must raise millions of dollars to
survive the next few years and it will not reopen its doors for
months. And that's just for starters.

``It's going to take years to get back to where we were,''
says Jackie Sullivan, the museum's deputy director. ``The
toughest time is definitely now.''

The museum's plight typifies the dilemma a cultural
institution here ... especially one dependent on city dollars ...
faces in this post-Katrina era. New Orleans has no money, no
sizable number of tourists and no crystal ball to predict when
all will change.

Then there's the matter of priorities
In a city where hundreds of people died, thousands of homes
were destroyed, jobs are gone and schools and businesses
closed, the preservation of an art museum just doesn't rank at
the top of the must-do list.

But E. John Bullard, the museum's director, argues that art
must be a part of the city's revival.

``Obviously, the people have to have houses to live in,'' he
says. ``They have to have hospitals. They have to have schools.
I think museums ... are on the same level. You can't live in a
cultural desert. Especially in New Orleans. You just can't.''

The 94-year-old museum, a neoclassical white stone building
set on a circle, is important, too, because it attracts
out-of-town visitors ... and that means money.

``I think the city has wakened up to the fact that tourism
is its last great hope,'' says John Keefe, one of the laid-off
museum workers.

The museum needs $15 million in the next three years and is
now trying to raise money to make up for losing visitors (about
150,000 a year) and fees from its 10,000 members, many of whom
have fled New Orleans.

``We're hanging out a little tin cup,'' says Bullard, who
says his recent trip to New York to appeal to foundations for
help brought in pledges of $900,000.

The museum's crisis came after the storm. Mayor Ray Nagin
announced in October that New Orleans was broke and had to lay
off as many as 3,000 people, about half the city's work force.[EP
That had a dramatic impact on the museum because 60 percent
of the staff are civil servants, including most curators. One
of them, Dan Piersol, suddenly found himself out of work after
25 years.

``If there's anyone expendable, it's got to be museum
people,'' says Piersol, who was curator of prints and drawings.
``I feared that and it came true.''

Piersol says even as the flooding, looting and chaos that
enveloped the city were unfolding in horrifying TV images, he
was determined to return. ``The more I watched, the more I
thought this is not going to work,'' he says.

Friends, he says, urged him to look for a new job and he did
even before his layoff notice arrived. He quickly was hired as
deputy director at the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson.[EP
``It was self-preservation,'' he says. ``Everyone did or
will get to that point.''

Piersol also had another bit of luck. When he returned to
his New Orleans house in the Bywater neighborhood, ``it was dry
as a bone'' and 30 years of his paintings were not damaged.
``It was just astonishing to see everything exactly as we left
it,'' he says.

While Piersol has a new career, some colleagues scattered
around the country are in limbo ... and waiting to return to
their old jobs.

``I can't imagine not being there,'' says Victoria Cooke,
the museum's curator of European painting who is living in New
York, working on her dissertation and planning an impressionist
exhibition for 2008.

Cooke, who just bought a new house near the museum last
year, says it's painful being laid off but she understands. ``I
have to put my faith in the people who have to deal with this,
that they'll find a solution,'' she says. ``That's my hope. I'm
trying to be patient.''

But for Keefe, curator of decorative arts, these are
worrisome days. After 23 years at the museum, he says he
thought he had enough seniority to still be working and is
annoyed the board didn't give the staff even a few hundred
dollars each to tide them over. At age 64, he fears he'll be
forced into retirement without a good pension.

``After all these years of service,'' Keefe says, ``you kind
of feel, 'Why did I do this?' ``

Sullivan, the deputy director, says the museum had to pare
its staff to 14 workers and with the doors closed, there's no
need for people such as education curators or a volunteer
coordinator.

She's also aware there will be permanent losses. ``The void
is tremendous,'' she says. ``It's hard to replace someone who
was a curator with 30 years of experience.''

Bullard worries, too, about the obstacles in reopening: Will
workers want to return? Where will they find housing? How will
his museum compete with other places offering fatter paychecks?[EP
``How many people will want to come to New Orleans at the
salary we pay? ... When we go to rehire people, it's going to
be hard,'' he says.

Many staff members had worked at the museum for a decade or
more and were a close-knit group, working as a team even as
they prepared for Katrina: They took paintings off the walls
that were near skylights and put others on wooden blocks in
basement storage areas. Some sculptures were brought inside and
some others ... including the Mardi Gras beads ... were tied to
trees.

Several workers ... maintenance and security crew, along with
their families ... took refuge in the building and stayed there
in the turbulent first week after the storm. They were so
determined to protect the treasures from possible looters, they
refused to leave when they had the chance.

Some stayed downstairs, while others kept vigil on the main
floor. They had already stocked up on food and filled giant
garbage cans and ice chests with water. They watched the news
on a television powered by a generator until they were finally
ordered out by the National Guard.

On the Saturday after the storm, Sullivan, the deputy
director, finally made her way to the building in a harrowing
nine-hour journey in a two-boat convoy, passing floating bodies
along the way. She was accompanied by M-16 rifle-toting
security guards, mostly former New York City police working for
a firm that had been hired by the museum's insurer.

The security force remained there for six weeks. Two Orleans
Parish sheriff's deputies now guard the museum.

Sullivan says she was thrilled at what she found. ``I could
have just screamed,'' she says. ``Everything was pristine.''[EP
Though there was no flooding in the galleries, the ground
floor had cracks that caused some water to seep in the storage
and office areas. Only one sculpture, a piece of furniture, two
Kachina dolls and a pair of Japanese screens were damaged but
the inventory is still being taken.

Only a fraction of the 40,000 or so pieces in the museum's
$250 million collection is normally on display. The museum also
remains a temporary home to about 1,000 works from private
collectors.

The museum needs to make repairs valued at more than $6
million, including fixing the huge freight elevator,
waterproofing the basement, landscaping, new outside lights and
other improvements in the sculpture garden. Most of those costs
will be covered by insurance or the Federal Emergency
Management Agency.

The public will be able to walk around the sculpture garden
next month, but the museum won't be open until March 1, Ash
Wednesday, the day after Mardi Gras.

Meanwhile, Bullard plans a fund-raising campaign, making
stops in such cities as Los Angeles, Chicago and Palm Beach,
Fla., to encourage more people to open their checkbooks.[EP
Already, there are signs of good will. French officials
recently announced they'll loan some 50 paintings from their
institutions, including the Louvre, to be displayed in a
special exhibition late next year or in early 2007 at the New
Orleans Museum of Art.

The museum will also bring some works to a New York gallery
next year to raise money and pay tribute to the security force
that guarded the building.

Meanwhile, George Roland, who was a donor, volunteer and
eventually an assistant at the museum, wonders about the future
... the museum's, the city's and his own.

``I don't think anything in the city is going to come back
the way it is,'' he says. ``I think New Orleans is gone, at
least the New Orleans that everyone thinks about.''

But he says the camaraderie with his co-workers and the
museum are reasons enough for him to return.

``It's not New Orleans as a city that will bring me back,''
he says. ``It's the museum.''

Keefe, his former colleague, says even though people are
worried about housing and other essential needs now, he's
certain the museum will survive because it's part of the fabric
and the future of New Orleans.

``Art is not a luxury,'' he says. ``It's something that
enhances life. And this city is all about the enhancement of
life.''

Capitalism

2005-10-17T03:36:00.000-07:00

To make society happy, it is necessary that great numbers should be wretched as well as poor.

- English moral philosopher, 1723

ADAM SMITH

(1723-1790)

Congressman Jay Inslee on the Downing St. Memo

2005-08-09T18:47:00.000-07:00

Dear Mr. Hudgins:

Thank you for contacting me regarding the revelation by the London Times and Seattle Times that prior to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the White House and British Prime Minister Tony Blair intentionally fabricated evidence to support the case for war. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

As you know, the allegations that the Bush Administration has used questionable intelligence to palliate the invasion of Iraq are not new. Like you, I believe that the American people deserve the truth, yet this Administration continues to withhold the truth from us on many important policies. Please rest assured that I will continue to monitor this development and keep you abreast of any information you might find useful.

I want you to know that I have and will continue to fight for what I believe is in the best interests of the American people. Congress must do its job of oversight and investigation, especially concerning the Bush Administration's policies in Iraq. We must focus on several particular claims that now appear dubious:

1) Repeated statements on behalf of Administration officials that Iraq was reconstituting its nuclear weapons program, including President Bush's reference to an Iraq-Niger uranium link in his State of the Union, even when scientists or intelligence officials disputed the accuracy of this information prior to such speeches.

2) The claim that Iraq had chemical and biological weapons that could be deployed within 45 minutes.

3) The asserted connection between Iraq and Al Qaeda, despite the fact that there has been no proof of any collusion between the two groups, and that there has not been any solid proof of a connection between Iraq and the September 11 tragedy.

Please continue to contact me about the issues that concern you, as I both need and welcome your thoughts and ideas. As a service to my constituents, I maintain a website which contains valuable resources and information on Congressional activities. Please feel free to visit the website at http://www.house.gov/inslee for information on recent issues and to learn more about the services my office provides. If you have not done so already, please visit http://www.house.gov/inslee/signup.htm to subscribe to my e-mail updates.

I encourage you to contact me via email, telephone, or fax, because security measures are causing House offices to experience delays in receiving postal mail. My email address is: Jay.Inslee@mail.house.gov. Please be sure to include your full name and address, including your zip code, in your message.

Very truly yours,

JAY INSLEE
Member of Congress

JRI/db

Confirmation # 1970751

The wisdom that comes with hindsight

2005-08-05T00:51:00.000-07:00

I watched the excellent film The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara created by Errol Morris and I highly recommend this film if you have not seen it. One interesting fact is that McNamara tried to talk both Kennedy & Johnson out of Viet Nam. During the Kennedy administration, withdrawal was already underway. Johnson however, decided to escalate our involvement. Johnson: "how in the hell does McNamara think, when he's losing a war, he can pull men out of there?"

Wikipedia has a great collection of quotes from the film. But below are the Eleven Lessons. When you first think of Robert S. McNamara, you may think war manager, ogre, and hawk. But refer to rule #8 and be prepared to reexamine your reasoning. This is a man who has been where most of us will never be and helped talked us out of nuclear war on two occasions.

#1 Empathize with your enemy.
#2 Rationality will not save us.
#3 There's something beyond one's self.
#4 Maximize efficiency.
#5 Proportionality should be a guideline in war.
#6 Get the data.
#7 Belief and seeing are both often wrong.
#8 Be prepared to reexamine your reasoning.
#9 In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil.
#10 Never say never.
#11 You can't change human nature.

Unbelievable

2005-08-04T18:46:00.000-07:00

I heard a TV Preacher on Larry King today say, "If we had abortion in Jesus' day, we might have been short one messiah." Doesn't put a lot of faith in his religion does he?

Town Hall Meeting

2005-07-24T01:27:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure to attend the Town Hall Meeting produced by the Backbone Campaign at Seattle Labor Temple today(7/23/05). It was a great event and it was really inspirational to hear Congressman Jim McDermott speak about how there are hearings in the works concerning the manipulation and misuse of pre-war inteligence and Rovegate. It made me feel that there is hope despite how bleak things are in Iraq right now. It really seems to me like the time to bring the troops home is NOW. Not later. Be sure to look up the Backbone Campaign. These folks are doing good work. (206) 408-8058, www.backbonecampaign.org.

New Influence

2005-07-24T01:21:00.000-07:00

Isn't it interesting that Camel is now emerging on the scene in Seattle and a prominent advertiser in The Stranger? And sponsoring Capital Hill Block Party? And isn't it really interesting that Camel's recent promotion is Camel Casino?

Here your opportunity to gamble on your health and your future. Here's your chance to sell your soul to yet another purveyor of death. Same old, same old.

Wisdom from Yogi Berra

2005-06-29T15:07:00.000-07:00

"The future ain't what it used to be." - Yogi Berra

Scott Adams On Creativity

2005-06-04T21:34:00.000-07:00

Creativity is allowing oneself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.

Scott Adams - The Dilbert Principle

CALL TO ARTISTS: Publishing Opportunity for Artists, Musicians, Poets, Theaters, Dance Companies and Non-Profit Arts Organizations

2005-06-02T23:46:00.000-07:00

Sedrat Arts is organizing and publishing a National Arts Calendar for 2006. Each month will feature subscription and individual listings for events by local and national arts organizations.

Each month the photo portion of the calendar will feature an artist or arts group selected by juried competition. Winning artists and organizations will also be featured as Sedrat Arts Supported Projects.

A special award of $100 will be given to the artist or organization selected for the calendar cover.
Deadline for entry is August 1st, 2005.

Proceeds support calendar production costs and help support Sedrat Arts Mission.

See complete details and entry instructions

DIY Academy - a very cool project @ Hugo House

2005-05-30T04:06:00.000-07:00

Deep in the bowels of the Hugo House Basement is a wonderful group of young people working on exciting new ideas and a great project called DIY Academy. I’ve included info below about what it is and what they are up to but be sure to visit the website for the full skinny. http://hugohouse.org/diy/

The night I visited, plans were well underway for DIY OR DIE! The party to celebrate the opening of the DIY Academy:

Monday June 6, 2005
7:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Featuring: Awesome Possum, PartMan PartHorse and Rosyvelt and DJs Kinoko, Superjew and members of the Mixtape Mafia, including DJ Fucking in the Streets

The party includes craft booths, games and a raffle with prizes donated by local artists, stylish scavengers and DIY-friendly businesses (hint hint). DIY Academy students get in for free, otherwise, admission is only $5 and all proceeds will go directly to DIY Academy and ZAPP.

Closely associated with DIY is THE ZINE ARCHIVE & PUBLISHING PROJECT (ZAPP). This is a wonderful resource of materials and a great place to relax and read.

The Zine Archive & Publishing Project Located downstairs in the Hugo House basement ZAPP collects zines, comics, chapbooks, pamphlets, journals, gazettes, city papers, fan 'zines, art mags, monographs, short anthologies, personal transmissions, and other not-so-easily classified independent publications for preservation and display.

I’ve included a link to the WISH LIST for DIY and believe me these guys really need these items. There was much talk of various dumpster resources and scavenging during the brain storm session I attended. These are very resourceful young people and I’m sure they will get what they need to make their project and workshops a great success. (These guys made great little catalogs by hand from QFC shopping bags. You can have mine by prying it from my cold dead hand)

But let’s try to make it a little easier for them if you can by making a cash or in-kind donation! Some of these items are very basic and I’m sure there are folks reading this post that have some of these things just sitting around in cabinets or collecting dust. Maybe your office has some spare paper around? Also, if you have loyalty coupons or reward cards from office supply stores that are about to expire, those would get a lot of this done. Just mail them to DIY c/o Hugo House or drop them by. These kids are working hard and giving up a big chunk of their summer for a worthy cause and really deserve our support.

DIY c/o Richard Hugo House
1634 Eleventh Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122

http://www.users.qwest.net/~hdon7/sedrat/Projects/DIY/DIY%20Acad%20wish%20list.htm

You could also give some thought to taking a class at the academy as a way of showing support and for personal learning and fulfillment. Who couldn’t benefit from some Vegan Baking, Sock Puppets, or How To Make Beer? And if you can pay even a little more than the very nominal fee they are asking, please do so. It will help support scholarships for others. And don’t miss the party. Monday June 6, 2005; 7:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. There was talk of “shanking the crumpet” at the planning meeting and I’m sure that’s something you don’t want to miss.

PLEASE! Be sure to direct any questions about DIY to their effervescent leader, Adam Beadle beadelbeadel@gmail.com and not to Sedrat Arts.

On an entirely separate note, you can now buy Sedrat Arts t-shirts, buttons, tote bags and more at: http://www.cafepress.com/sedrat

Stop using plastic and paper bags at the market and get a nice canvas tote. Your planet will appreciate it and your purchase helps to support Sedrat Arts and art in Seattle and the Puget Sound region. Best wishes and thank you for your attention and support.

DIY ACADEMY
What is it?

DIY ACADEMY is a series of low cost workshops that can enrich your life and local Seattle culture through the do-it-yourself movement. This series will run from June - August 2005. DIY is sustainable, affirming and really fun! Every person should have a chance to use the work of their hands and minds to empower themselves. Why fill your life with only what the corporate machine can sell you?
What are the workshops like?

DIY ACADEMY focuses on the everyday practice of DIY, rather than the theoretical aspect of the movement. Every workshop teaches skills that you can apply directly to your life. Because our classes are low budget, they are low cost to you. DIY believes that eliminating expensive equipment and supplies can make sustainable living more accessible for everybody.

All DIY Academy classes will be held at theZine Archive and Publishing Project (ZAPP) in the basement of Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave., between Olive and Pine on Capitol Hill.

What's Happening When?
On June 6 we'll be kicking off the summer with DIY OR DIE!, an opening party and fundraiser for DIY ACADEMY and ZAPP. DIY OR DIE! will feature great local bands, games, craft booths and a raffle with prizes donated by local DIY-friendly businesses. This party is your chance to check out the workshop spaces and have an awesome time! Workshops will be in session from June 6 until August 16. On August 16, DIY ACADEMY will host an open house to showcase all the amazing art, zines, food, theater and other creations students have made in DIY ACADEMY workshops. Check out the calendar for more dates and events!

How did it all come together?
DIY Academy formed out of a pure and unfettered desire to spread knowledge, skill and enthusiasm within a broad community and to do so at low cost, no budget and high accessibility. Through the unyielding dedication of its committee members, this project has blossomed beyond an idealistic dream and into living, breathing reality. The document you hold in your hands is the product of the passion of a group of people who unironically dream of the free passing of information and skill from one group to another; a new paradigm of mentorship and quite possibly the next Seattle renaissance. We are excited to welcome you into the DIY Academy circle and hope to have the honor of your participation and input.

The DIY Academy Committee
Credits
DIY Committee Members: Abby Bass, N. Adam Beadel, Raleigh Briggs, Marianne L. Goldin, S. Naomi Finkelstein, Kristian Kofoed, Rachel Mason, Davey Oil, and Zapata
Coordinating: N. Adam Beadel, Davey Oil
Copy writing: Raleigh Briggs, Davey Oil
Catalog Layout: Rachel Mason
Catalog Cover: Marianne L. Goldin
Printing Support: N. Adam Beadel, Sara Medlicott
Web site: Marianne L. Goldin
Donations: Abby Bass, Raleigh Briggs, Zapata
Booking Aassistance: Emer McKenna

Trade Wisdom

2005-05-29T23:08:00.000-07:00

"When we build, we think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor be for present use alone. Let it be such work as our descendants will thank us for: and let us think, as we lay stone on stone, that a time is to come when those stones will be scared because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor and wrought sustance of them, "See! this our father did for us. -John Ruskin (from 1923 Audell's Carpenters & Builders Guide)

More Right Wing Crap

2005-05-28T23:20:00.000-07:00

I'm absolutely embarrassed these people are in Seattle.

From the New York Times:

"May 28, 2005
Smithsonian to Screen a Movie That Makes a Case Against Evolution By JOHN SCHWARTZ Fossils at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History have been used to prove the theory of evolution. Next month the museum will play host to a film intended to undercut evolution.
The Discovery Institute, a group in Seattle that supports an alternative theory, "intelligent design," is announcing on its Web site that it and the director of the museum "are happy to announce the national premiere and private evening reception" on June 23 for the movie, "The Privileged Planet: The Search for Purpose in the Universe."
The film is a documentary based on a 2004 book by Guillermo Gonzalez, an assistant professor of astronomy at Iowa State University, and Jay W. Richards, a vice president of the Discovery Institute, that makes the case for the hand of a creator in the design of Earth and the universe.
News of the Discovery Institute's announcement appeared on a blog maintained by Denyse O'Leary, a proponent of the intelligent design theory, who called it "a stunning development." But a museum spokesman, Randall Kremer, said the event should not be taken as support for the views expressed in the film. "It is incorrect for anyone to infer that we are somehow endorsing the video or the content of the video," he said.
The museum, he said, offers its Baird Auditorium to many organizations and corporations in return for contributions - in the case of the Discovery Institute, $16,000.
When the language of the Discovery Institute's Web site was read to him, with its suggestion of support, Mr. Kremer said, "We'll have to look into that."
He added, "We're happy to receive this contribution from the Discovery Institute to further our scientific research."
The president of the Discovery Institute, Bruce Chapman, said his organization approached the museum through its public relations company and the museum staff asked to see the film. "They said that they liked it very much - and not only would they have the event at the museum, but they said they would co-sponsor it," he recalled.
"That was their suggestion. Of course we're delighted."
Mr. Kremer said he heard about the event only on Thursday. He added that staff members viewed the film before approving the event to make sure that it complied with the museum's policy, which states that "events of a religious or partisan political nature" are not permitted, along with personal events such as weddings, or fund-raisers, raffles and cash bars. It also states that "all events at the National Museum of Natural History are co-sponsored by the museum."
Evolution has become a major battleground in the culture wars, with bitter debates in legislatures and school boards, national parks and museums. Although Charles Darwin's theory is widely viewed as having been proved by fossil records and modern biological phenomena, it is challenged by those who say that it is flawed and that alternatives need to be taught.
When asked whether the announcement on the Discovery Institute's Web site meant to imply that the museum supports the film and the event, Mr. Chapman replied:
"We are not implying in any sense that they endorsed the content, but they are co-sponsoring it, and we are delighted. We're not claiming anything more than that. They certainly didn't say, 'We're really warming up to intelligent design, and therefore we're going to sponsor this.' "

* Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company Home

Inspiration from Dee Hock

2005-05-18T14:12:00.000-07:00

"It is no failure to fall short of realizing all that we might dream.
The failure is to fall short of dreaming all that we might realize."
-- Dee Hock

Music Quote

2005-05-18T14:05:00.000-07:00

"Music is your own experience,
your thoughts, your wisdom.

If you don't live it,
it won't come out of your horn."
-Charlie Parker

With thanks to Jovino Santos Neto

Thought for the day

2005-05-17T01:26:00.000-07:00

When you are down and out something always turns up—and it is usually the noses of your friends. - Orson Welles

Thought for the times

2005-05-04T01:33:00.000-07:00

Better to be a dog in times of peace than a human being in times of trouble. - Chinese proverb.

Quote of the day.

2005-05-03T01:21:00.000-07:00

“For me one of the most beautiful thing's about art is that it is one of the last strongholds of magic. It is one of the few areas of human activity in which it is possible to do something for which you might be otherwise locked up or incarcerated” --Roy DeForest

Oranges to Apples

2005-03-20T15:13:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, even though all things are not equal, I find it useful and informative to compare similar but unlike issues. In this case, two government programs. Both have importance and bear fruit. Both are socially valid. But in reading the below excerpts from an article carried by the Seattle Times on Saturday, March 19th, 2005, keep in mind that the FY 2004 National Endowment for The Arts budget is $139.4 million.

You can view the complete article at:

http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=std19&date=20050319&query=condoms

*****Begin Excerpts*****

"Teenagers who take virginity pledges - public declarations to abstain from sex - are almost as likely to be infected with a sexually transmitted disease (STD) as those who never made the pledge, according to an eight-year study released
yesterday."

"The study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, found that 20 percent said they had taken a virginity pledge. Bearman and co-author Hannah Bruckner broke them into two categories - "inconsistent pledgers" and "consistent pledgers" - to reflect that some changed their status or their responses between interviews. Among those youngsters, 61 percent of the consistent pledgers and 79 percent of the inconsistent pledgers reported having intercourse before marrying or prior to 2002 interviews."

"Not only do virginity pledges not work to keep our young people safe, they are causing harm by undermining condom use, contraception and medical treatment," said Bill Smith, public-policy vice president for the Sexuality Information and Education
Council of the United States."

"Conservative academics said the paper overlooked earlier important findings about adolescents who take virginity pledges, most notably that they have fewer pregnancies and out-of-wedlock births."

"It's hugely successful on those variables," Rector said. "Bearman has focused in on the one variable he thinks can show they (pledgers) don't do better."

"President Bush has requested $206 million in federal funding for abstinence-only programs this year."

***** End Excerpts - begin author opinion *****

Fewer unwanted rug rats is a good thing. Nobody wants more pregnant teenagers. But does this program really accomplish even that? You can certainly bet that there won't be sufficient arts education funding or sufficient public arts funding for the unused condom babies.

The report fails to detail any federal funding for condom awareness or birth control awareness programs. Now could that be because there isn't any at all? And couldn't this be seen in terms of class and cultural warfare? Doesn't this type of thinking help propagate a steady and sufficient supply of lower class, under educated, ill informed, republican voting, bible thumping, right wing citizens for our "all volunteer" military to help fight the war on global terrorism? Keep the populace ignorant and hungry enough to need to pay the loans on the Camaro and the community college education and they will sign up for the Marines in droves.

The Creative Class

2005-03-20T14:36:00.000-08:00

One need only look to the research of Richard Florida to understand why it is so important that Seattle be an impeccable national model for arts funding.

Richard Florida is a professor of regional economic development at Carnegie Mellon University and a columnist for Information Week. This article was adapted from his forthcoming book, The Rise of the Creative Class: and How Its Transforming Work

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2001/0205.florida.html

Ranked 5th amongst the Top Ten Cities according to Florida's Creativity Index, Seattle is continuously referred to as a model of choice for livability and financial success.

The reasons cited by Florida reflect my own reasoning in choosing Seattle over Chicago, Baltimore, Richmond, or any other place I've lived for any length of time. His report also accurately reflects my original home town area of Norfolk, VA (I grew up in smaller adjacent Portsmouth) as one of the bottom ranking cities on the Creativity Index. This accurately reflects the assessment of the area by my creative peers as the "arm pit of the south". Amongst my peers, the artist (myself), the actor, the aspiring scientist, the hi tech worker, and the civil engineer all moved on to other larger, more vibrant and creative cities. The one amongst us who stayed works in the service sector. The creative amongst us all saw the area as a black hole where careers disappear.

Advocacy and "Americans for the Arts"

2005-03-07T22:28:00.000-08:00

Americans For The Arts has a current billboard campaign in Seattle (and probably other cities as well). "Art, Ask For More." http://ww3.artsusa.org/ The intent (and I applaud it) is to create awareness and motivate parents to ask for more funding for arts education through advocacy.

Take note that the Arts Advocacy page of Americans for the Arts is sponsored by Altria. (I'm just asking for more like the cigarette company told me to.)

The campaign was produced by the Ad Council.

“The Ad Council is a private, non-profit organization that marshals volunteer talent from the advertising and communications industries, the facilities of the media, and the resources of the business and non-profit communities to deliver critical messages to the American public. The Ad Council produces, distributes and promotes thousands of public service campaigns on behalf of non-profit organizations and government agencies in issue areas such as improving the quality of life for children, preventative health, education, community well being, environmental preservation and strengthening families.”

- The Ad Council http://www.adcouncil.org/about/

While it is unclear who paid for this campaign, the cost for the billboards alone is estimated to be around $609,000 or more. This is based on Clear Channel Communications rate sheets. That amount would handsomely fund CoCA, ConWorks, and several small theater groups for a full year. Who is getting advocated here? Artists or tobacco?

Is it appropriate to have Altria (and therefore tobacco) fund or sponsor advocacy of any kind? For any social cause? And what has the greater and more positive impact on the community? Buying big media or supporting activities which provide real income and opportunities for artists? Is this under the radar and indirectly marketing tobacco to youth?

The NEA vs Big Tobacco

2005-03-04T11:57:00.000-08:00

FACTS

So you tell me? Why does the tobacco industry spend more advertising dollars annually, in Washington state alone, than our entire National Endowment for the Arts Budget for FY 2004?
Is this right for either side?

NEA 04 Annual Budget = $139.4 million?????
And George Bush INCREASED IT by $18 Million?????

Estimated annual tobacco industry advertising and marketing in Washington Statesource = WA State Dept. of Health) = over $160 million

************************************************
January 29, 2004

Contact:Felicia Knight 202-682-5570

Washington, D.C. - Mrs. Laura Bush announced today that President George W. Bush is requesting an $18 million budget increase for the National Endowment for the Arts to fund a major new initiative, American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius. This ambitious three-year program will combine arts presentations with education programming to introduce Americans to the best of their cultural and artistic legacy. American Masterpieces will sponsor presentations of the great American works across all art forms, and will reach large and small communities in all 50 states.

The President's request would raise the Arts Endowment's budget by $18 million from $121 million in FY 2004 to $139.4 million, the largest increase since 1984. Fifteen million dollars of the increase would fund the American Masterpieces initiative, with the remainder going toward other grantmaking and administrative costs. The new budget also includes more than $53 million in support for state arts organizations and underserved local communities.
For more information, contact the NEA Office of Communications at 202-682-5570 or visit the NEA Web site at www.arts.gov. For a complete NEA funding history, visit http://www.nea.gov/about/Facts/AppropriationsHistory.html

Arts Funding Issues

2005-03-04T01:38:00.000-08:00

This is the first posting to my blog about arts funding issues reflecting my personal views and research on this issue. I invite others to submit comments, resources, ideas, and suggestions about how we can improve arts funding and better support the activities of creative people.

In the time since I becoming involved with Center on Contemporary Art, I have immersed myself in nonprofit fundraising and governance issues. I have taken a number of classes and done extensive research and while I possess some personal knowledge and experience; I by no means consider myself an expert in the field. My personal education is ongoing and a process of growth and awareness.

My most intensive current involvement is Art Patch. http://www.artpatch.org/ Art Patch is engaged in creatively displacing funding by tobacco related sources. This is a cause I am happy to be associated with and a cause I believe in strongly. I have in the past been involved with organizations which, for lack of alternatives and healthy choices, were on the receiving end of tobacco related funding. I am also a reformed smoker and somewhat of a zealot on the subject.

It is my firm belief that sources of funding for the arts need to be not only more abundant and accessible; but must also be altruistic and healthy for artists, organizations, and the community. I hope that you will join and assist my efforts in making this a reality for both the regional and national arts community.