Theresa Cameron

Last weekend I was lucky enough to attend another amazing Americans for the Arts Annual Convention in San Antonio. The theme of this year's meeting was "The New Normal" which was perfect for these times of change and transition in the arts in America.

Sessions ranged from very practical like New Ways of Doing Business and Arts Education as Social Reform to the innovation sessions like How Changing Demographics are Shifting Your Community. Every session was designed to get folks thinking about ways they need to look ahead and rethink and reimagine ways they are currently dong business.

In many ways it reminded me of an Americans for the Arts Convention I attended as  a young arts administrator in Los Angeles. That convention was another time of change in America and it was an important time for conversations around money, power, and the arts in the community.

Just like those times in L.A., this year's event helped return us to important discussions around change and where are we going as community.

What will we look like in five to ten years?

Who will be leading us?

What are the new creative funding opportunities and how can we stay relevant?

Of course, besides the sessions, there were many hallway discussions with attendees focusing on where we are going and how to get there.

It was so refreshing to hear how folks who are working to create positive change in their communities are using their local artists and organizations to move a community forward. We are all about creating change using the arts—especially in light of "The New Normal."

I can't wait to see where we go from here...

You will be able view many sessions from the 2012 Annual Convention via our Convention On-Demand service which will be available in about a month, but you can pre-order and preview several sessions on the site now.