Thank you to the many people who have been blog contributors to, and readers of ArtsBlog over the years. ArtsBlog has long been a space where we uplifted stories from the field that demonstrated how the arts strengthen our communities socially, educationally, and economically; where trends and issues and controversies were called out; and advocacy tools were provided to help you make the case for more arts funding and favorable arts policies.

As part of Americans for the Arts’ recent Strategic Realignment Process, we were asked to evaluate our storytelling communications platforms and evolve the way we share content. As a result, we launched the Designing Our Destiny portal to explore new ways of telling stories and sharing information, one that is consistent with our longtime practice of, “No numbers without a story, and no stories without a number.”

As we put our energy into developing this platform and reevaluate our communications strategies, we have put ArtsBlog on hold. That is, you can read past blog posts, but we are not posting new ones. You can look to the Designing Our Destiny portal and our news items feed on the Americans for the Arts website for stories you would have seen in ArtsBlog in the past.

ArtsBlog will remain online through this year as we determine the best way to archive this valuable resource and the knowledge you’ve shared here.

As ever, we are grateful for your participation in ArtsBlog and thank you for your work in advancing the arts. It is important, and you are important for doing it.


Liz Bartolomeo

Top 10 iPhone Apps for the Arts

Posted by Liz Bartolomeo, Mar 10, 2010 4 comments


Liz Bartolomeo

This week Stanford University released a study on iPhone addiction. The 200 college students surveyed said: “On a scale of one to five, where five is full blown addiction and one is not addicted at all, 10 percent of the respondents ranked themselves as a five, 34 percent a four …”

Now, I am a few years out of college, but I am whole-heartedly addicted to my iPhone. That’s why I was excited to hear about Americans for the Arts’ inclusion in a new free app called CauseWorld (also available for Android). It’s a micro-giving social media app that is easy to use and allows you quickly (and frequently) support your favorite causes. CauseWorld works similar to Foursquare: just open it up when you are near retail stores or local businesses, check-in to receive Karma Points, and then donate those points to one of the featured causes such as bringing art to schools. Karma Points are actually real funds provided by sponsors, Citibank and Kraft foods.

It seems that everyday cell phone apps are opening up new doors for promotion, fundraising, and productivity for those working in the nonprofit arts. So here is my list of the Top 10 iPhone Apps for the Arts.

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Barry Hessenius

An Arrogant Conceit and a Strategic Misstep (Part 2)

Posted by Barry Hessenius, Mar 10, 2010 0 comments


Barry Hessenius

Expanding on my first post, we need to:

  1. Identify what business wants from, thinks about, and considers the obstacles, challenges and opportunities to continued, substantive talks between the two sectors, and;
  2. Ascertain what changes in the arts sector’s approach to building meaningful coalitions and collaborative efforts are essential prerequisites to address the business community’s needs. 

This knowledge would help the arts sector to move the status of potential collaborative efforts from the current “conceptual level” to more active status by developing strategies that could move towards specific action steps in fostering working alliances – by designing action steps that are in alignment with stated business needs.   Specifically, it is incumbent on the arts sector to fully understand and appreciate what factors the business community identifies as essential for its involvement to be of benefit to them.

That kind of inquiry might include the following discussions with business:

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Mary R. Trudel

Thinking Local

Posted by Mary R. Trudel, Mar 10, 2010 5 comments


Mary R. Trudel

As the late Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill said famously, “all politics are local.” Could this be a lesson for the arts sector? I was interested in a recent article in The New York Times on February 17th about the formidable Huntington Theater in Boston which is charting a new course to become more relevant to its neighbors. Artistic Director, Peter DuBois noted – “The fact is, the artistic and business models of the regional theaters in the 20th century are over, given the costs of creating theater and the competition for people’s time, so I needed to rethink our relationship with our home community.  To thrive we need a theater with work and audiences that look more like the city of Boston in terms of class, age, race, background. And you have to talk to people here to learn how to do that.”

Maybe that’s our answer for this arts-challenged time, listen first, then talk and make sure you speak the local dialect.

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Mr. Graham Dunstan

Baltimore’s Burgeoning Culinary Scene: Do You Know Charm City? (Part 2)

Posted by Mr. Graham Dunstan, Mar 10, 2010 0 comments


Mr. Graham Dunstan

by Kristin Symes

The James Joyce Pub

The James Joyce Pub, just a short walk from the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront.

Wondering what the food is going to be like in Baltimore this summer when you come to visit during the Annual Convention? It should come as no surprise that a city generating so much buzz about its recent growth and downtown development also boasts some of the greatest chefs and cuisine to match. It's as if Baltimore has experienced a gastronomic renaissance. The locally grown culinary scene has sprouted a new crop of extraordinary restaurants for you to harvest.

Baltimore has an emerging culinary scene and is quickly becoming a hot spot for foodies from around the globe. With culinary accolades appearing in Gourmet, Food & Wine, and Bon Appétit, and with two Baltimore chefs recently featured on The Food Network’s hit show, Top Chef, it’s clear that Baltimore is finally gaining the culinary recognition it deserves.

Local restaurants feature sophisticated and original menus that embrace the farm-to-table concept. No longer is Baltimore thought of as only the home of the crab cake (although we do have the best!). The city's progressive compilation of cutting-edge eateries pedaling fresh, funky-fusion recipes like crispy Thai string beans, lobster mac and artisan beers has put Baltimore on the map as an up-and-coming culinary city not to be missed.

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Mr. John R. Killacky

Essential Skills for Making the Most of Resources in the Nonprofit Arts

Posted by Mr. John R. Killacky, Mar 10, 2010 0 comments


Mr. John R. Killacky

In January, The San Francisco Foundation and Grants for the Arts, with support from The Wallace Foundation, hosted a daylong Dynamic Adaptability Conference.  Over 700 community members attended, learning from creative thinkers from the arts, neuroscience, business, media, and philanthropy. Neuroscientist Jonah Lehrer encouraged us to reclaim our value proposition and have faith in our stories.  His research on meta-cognition drew upon many examples of artists.  Lehrer also stressed the importance of building in periods of relaxation as part of the creative process, cautioning when people get too focused on solving a particular problem, this often results in being ‘locked in’. James Rucker from Color of Change and Hugo Morales from Radio Bilingüe called for rethinking relationships to audiences and donors and forming deeper and more authentic connections to communities.  Merely broadcasting invitations isn’t enough in the socially engaged, interactive, high-touch, and multi-platform online environment.

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