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Arts Insider News
There’s always arts-related news happening in creativity-rich California that deal with funding, administrative, and other arts-related business issues. The California Arts Insider News keeps the arts community up-to-date with arts-related information that might not be included in major news outlets. Other information resources on the California Arts Council’s website include Arts in the Media (arts news items from major news outlets), California Arts Features (arts-related feature stories from the California Arts Council), At the California Arts Council (eNewsletter cover stories and content summaries), and Press Releases from the California Arts Council. To have us include an Arts Insider News item, please submit information to the web page editor at editor@caartscouncil.com. Because of space limitations, calendar listings of individual arts events cannot be included. Some items may be more appropriate for our Arts Happen, Arts in the Media, or California Arts Features sections. Opinion pieces or items with a strong editorial event may not be posted in this section. The information in this section is provided as a service only, and the California Arts Council does not endorse or support the organizations listed. Opinion pieces or items with strong editorial content may not be posted in this section, and posting of Arts Insider News items is at the discretion of the California Arts Council. Questions and/or concerns about listings may be directed to the web editor at editor@caartscouncil.com . NEA Chairman Dana Gioia Honors National City Public Library Volunteers Dana Gioia, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, today awarded Ilona Gardner, Roger Palmer, and Nancy Vandever, California volunteers at the National City Public Library in National City (San Diego County), the President's Volunteer Service Award, a national honor offered in recognition of volunteer service. The award was presented following remarks by Chairman Gioia at the Eureka! Leadership Program Institute for library professionals. Ilona Gardner, Roger Palmer, and Nancy Vandever are all tutors at the National City Public Library, contributing 671 and 734, and 121 lifetime volunteer hours, respectively. "In San Diego County over 20 percent of adults read at or below the 5th grade level. The National City Public Library has an adult literacy program that addresses that challenge." Established in 2003, the President's Volunteer Service Award is available on an annual basis to individuals, groups, and families who have met or exceeded requirements for volunteer service and have demonstrated exemplary citizenship through volunteering. As one of thousands of Certifying Organizations participating in the President's Volunteer Service Award program, the National Endowment for the Arts confers the award to recognize the outstanding achievements of volunteers at arts organizations. "According to our NEA report, Arts and Civic Engagement: Involved in Arts, Involved in Life, people who make the arts a part of their lives are demonstrably more active in their communities," said Chairman Gioia. "They are more likely to volunteer and give their time freely to help make their communities better for everyone. Clearly, Ilona Gardner, Roger Palmer, and Nancy Vandever are vibrant illustrations of what it means to be involved in arts, involved in life." Californians named 2008 Guggenheim Fellows The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation announced on April 3 its 84th annual competition for the United States and Canada the Foundation has awarded 190 Fellowships to artists, scientists, and scholars, with awards totaling $8,200,000 for 2008. The successful candidates were chosen from a group of more than 2,600 applicants. "Guggenheim Fellows are appointed on the basis of stellar achievement and exceptional promise for continued accomplishment," noted the press release. "One of the hallmarks of the Guggenheim Fellowship program is the diversity of its Fellows, not only in their fields of endeavor but in their geographic location and ages. This year's Fellows continue that tradition." On the list are a significant number of Californians. The California Arts Council congratulates the artists and academics who received fellowships this year and contribute in California. Below is a list of the Californians, and a full list can be found on the Guggenheim press announcement page. ** ** ** ** ** Margaret Lavinia Anderson, Professor of History, University of California, Berkeley: The Armenian Genocide: A German story. Rae Armantrout, Poet, San Diego, California; Professor of Poetry and Poetics, University of California, San Diego: Poetry. Mason Bates, Composer, Oakland, California: Music Composition. Toni Bentley, Writer, Los Angeles, California: General Nonfiction. Stanley Brandes, Professor of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley: Pets and their people. G. R. F. Ferrari, Professor of Classics, University of California, Berkeley: Fiction and the limits of social meaning. Edward Fowler, Writer, Irvine, California; Professor, School of Humanities, University of California, Irvine: A family memoir. Susanna B. Hecht, Professor of Urban Planning, University of California, Los Angeles: Deforestation in the rubber boom of the upper Amazon. Martin Kersels, Artist, Sierra Madre, California; Codirector and Faculty Member, Program in Art, California Institute of the Arts: Installation art. Chandrashekhar B. Khare, Professor of Mathematics, University of California, Los Angeles: Motives, Galois representations, and automorphic forms. Simon Leung, Artist, Los Angeles, California; Associate Professor of Studio Art, University of California, Irvine: Post-studio art. Beth Levin, William H. Bonsall Professor in the Humanities, Stanford University: Crosslinguistic variation in event encoding. Glen M. MacDonald, Professor of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles: Climate warming, epic drought, and society. Paolo Mancosu, Professor of Philosophy, University of California, Berkeley: The interplay between philosophy of mathematics and mathematical logic. Jack Marshall, Writer, El Cerrito, California: Poetry. Don Mitchell, Distinguished Professor, Department of Geography, Maxwell School, Syracuse University; Visiting Scholar, Annenberg School, University of Pennsylvania: Bracero: remaking the California landscape, 1942-1964. Rebecca Morris, Artist, Los Angeles, California; Associate Professor of Painting, Pasadena City College: Painting. Ruben Ochoa, Artist, Los Angeles, California; Adjunct Professor in Sculpture, University of California, Irvine: Installation art. Arthur P. Shimamura, Professor of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley: A neurocognitive approach to the psychology of art and aesthetics. Kaja Silverman, Class of 1940 Professor of Rhetoric, Film, and Art History, University of California, Berkeley: The miracle of analogy. Ruth Lewin Sime, Professor Emeritus, Department of Chemistry, Sacramento City College: A biographical study of Otto Hahn. Katherine V. W. Stone, Professor of Law, University of California, Los Angeles: The remaking of labor relations in the twenty-first century. Marc A. Suchard, Assistant Professor of Biomathematics, Biostatistics, and Human Genetics, UCLA: Towards solutions to the fundamental problems in statistical phylogenetics. Keith Terry, Choreographer, Musician, and Dancer, Oakland, California; Artistic Director, Crosspulse: Choreography. Marc Trujillo, Artist, Sherman Oaks, California; Professor of Drawing and Painting, Santa Monica College: Painting. Roger D. Waldinger, Distinguished Professor, Department of Sociology, University of California, Los Angeles: America's new immigrants and their homeland connection. Funds, artists sought for wood from Sacramento historic trees The Capital Morning Report (a California political insiders daily web-zine), which often publishes information about political happenings and fundraisers, had a notice about a different kind of money-raising event: a fundraiser to take historic (but dying) trees and turn them into artwork. From the posting: "There is a fundraiser on Saturday, May 3, at the Art Foundry (in Sacramento) to benefit those who would like to make public art from the remains of two old and ailing trees. The story begins last spring after James Cooper, executive director of Sacramento Educational Events for Art (SEEART) got word that the Dept. of General Services planned to cut down a 100-ft Tulip Poplar on the North Lawn of Capitol Park. Planted in 1878, the tree had passed its life expectancy and was succumbing to disease.... "A short time later Cooper learned that the City of Sacramento had planned to take down another big,ailing tree, this one an 80-ft Black Walnut at the northeast corner of Fair Oaks Boulevard and Howe Avenue (Sacramento). Cooper, who got the wood from this one too, doesn't know the tree's age but he's sure it shaded travelers when Fair Oaks was a wagon trail. "Now that the wood has cured for a year, it's ready for the sculptors who'll make the art. They must be from Northern California and their proposals must be accepted by a SEEART review committee. The artists may be students, hobbyists or professionals. But since professionals want money for their work, SEEART is holding fundraisers .... "Cooper hopes that sometime next spring or summer he'll be organizing, not a fundraiser, but a big art show of pieces made from those once magnificent trees which will go back on public display, only in another form." James Cooper of SEEART can be contacted at 916-910-4458. The Santa Monica Beach Cultural Mapping Project receives $100,000 from Preserve America The Santa Monica community has received $100,000 for the "Santa Monica Beach Cultural Mapping Project" from the Preserve America program, a matching-grant program that provides planning funding to designated Preserve America Communities to support preservation efforts through heritage tourism, education, and historic preservation planning. The Preserve America program is part of the National Parks Service. From the April 7 announcement: "Capitalizing on its greatest asset -- its beach -- Santa Monica's goal is to highlight people and events that shaped the history and culture of the Southern California beach that significantly influenced popular culture in America and abroad." Stories from the days of Jim Crow relate how use of the beach was the subject of racial tensions as African-Americans fought for equal access. Later the beach provided the backdrop for the birth of beach volleyball, the international physical fitness movement launched at Muscle Beach as well as the American skateboarding revolution. 2008 Preserve America funds will support an experienced historian to survey key sites, events, and individuals to create an inventory of resources and materials. This will provide the foundation funds for the future development of cultural markers and interpretive plaques, walking tours, and exhibits. James Irvine Foundation gives $500K to O.C. Community Foundation The James Irvine Foundation announced on Thursday, March 6, that it's giving $3.2 million in grants to eight California community foundations to support regional arts efforts. The Orange County Community Foundation is receiving $500,000 over three years to support local efforts to raise the visibility of, and increase donor involvement in, the arts. The $500K grant is the second of two grants from the Irvine Foundation. The O.C. Community Foundation received a $600,000 grant in 2004 for phase one of the program. The foundation partnered with Arts Orange County to survey residents on their attitudes toward the arts, and offered fundrasing help to the Anaheim Ballet, Ektaa Center and Laguna Art Museum. Bay Area Community Groups Get $3.2M Arts Funding Two Bay Area community groups are receiving grants from the James Irvine Foundation as part of its Communities Advancing the Arts initiative, officials said. The East Bay Community Foundation and The San Francisco Foundation are among eight community foundations in the state that received grants totaling $3.2 million from the Irvine Foundation, a private nonprofit that awards grants in the areas of arts, youth and state issues. LA Philanthropists Give $10 Million to New SMC Theater Los Angeles philanthropists and arts patrons Eli and Edythe Broad announced on March 6 that they had given $10 million to create an endowment for programming and arts education at the new Santa Monica College performing arts center. In honor of the gift from The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, the new modernist steel, stone, glass and wood performing arts center at 1310 11th Street will be named The Broad Stage and The Edye Second Space. More details available on the Santa Monica Lookout webpage. Chabot Theater Teacher Wins Award Chabot College theater instructor Rachel LePell has received the 2008 "Excellence in Theater Arts Education Award" in her region from the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. LePell has been teaching Theater Arts at Chabot College in Hayward (eastern SF Bay Area) for 15 years, and has been building a playwriting program that is receiving local recognition. One of her students, Claire Onyett, had her new play, "To Say the Least" showcased at the conference in Los Angeles where LePell was honored. NAMM names top 100 music-education communities; only 2 Californians The NAMM Foundation on April 29 announced the results of the ninth annual "Best Communities for Music Education" survey, which includes 110 school districts across the U.S. The designated programs exemplify community commitment to include music education as part of a quality education for all children. The NAMM Foundation and its music education advocacy efforts work to ensure that all children have access to quality music education programs that encourage lifelong participation in music-making. California school districts that were part of the communities that made the "Best 100" list include: Folsom Cordova Unified School District (Folsom) and Santa Monica-Malibu USD (Santa Monica). This year's roster of musical schools represents 29 states with New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia representing the most districts. SEE PRESS RELEASE Participants in the survey answered detailed questions about funding, enrollment, student/teacher ratios, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program, private music lesson participation, and other relevant factors in their communities' music education programs. The responses were verified with district officials, and the sponsoring organizations reviewed the data. California Poet Gary Snyder Wins Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize California poet Gary Snyder was named the winner of the 2008 Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize. Established in 1986 and presented annually by the Poetry Foundation, the award is one of the most prestigious given to American poets, and at $100,000 it is one of the nation's largest literary awards. The prize will be presented at an evening ceremony at the Arts Club of Chicago on Thursday, May 29. In announcing the award, Christian Wiman, editor of Poetry magazine and chair of the selection committee, said: "Gary Snyder is in essence a contemporary devotional poet, though he is not devoted to any one god or way of being so much as to Being itself. His poetry is a testament to the sacredness of the natural world and our relation to it, and a prophecy of what we stand to lose if we forget that relation." From the Poetry Foundation press release: Snyder is the author of more than a dozen books of poetry, essays, and translations. His poetry collections include Riprap and Cold Mountain Poems, The Back Country, Regarding Wave, No Nature, Mountains and Rivers Without End, and Danger on Peaks. His essays are collected in Earth House Hold, The Real Work, A Place in Space, and Back on the Fire. A committed environmental activist who has received the John Hay Award for Nature Writing, Snyder has also been recognized for his contributions to the theory and practice of Buddhism. His many honors include the Pulitzer Prize in 1975 for Turtle Island, an American Academy of Arts and Letters award, the Bollingen Prize, a Guggenheim Foundation fellowship, the Bess Hokin Prize and the Levinson Prize from Poetry, the Robert Kirsch Lifetime Achievement Award from the Los Angeles Times, and the Shelley Memorial Award. Snyder was born on May 8, 1930, in San Francisco, and began writing in the 1950s as a member (with Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac) of the Beat movement.. He is professor emeritus of English at the University of California, Davis, and lives in northern California. Shakespeare for a New Generation--Six California Organizations Receive NEA Grant The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced on April 23 that 40 nonprofit, professional theater companies will receive grants to participate in Shakespeare for a New Generation from June 1, 2008 to May 31, 2009. Six California organizations are recipients of the NEA grant: -- African-American Shakespeare (San Francisco) -- California Shakespeare Theater (Berkeley) -- East L.A. Classic Theatre (Los Angeles) -- A Noise Within (Glendale) -- Shakespeare Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz) -- The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum (Topanga) Part of the NEA's Shakespeare in American Communities initiative, Shakespeare for a New Generation targets middle and high school students, introducing young people to the power of live theater and the masterpieces of William Shakespeare. For a complete listing of all 40 organizations nationwide, see the NEA's press release at www.arts.gov. Nominations Needed for 2008 Silicon Valley Arts & Business Awards Luncheon Nominations are sought for the 2008 Silicon Valley Arts & Business Awards (ABBYs) Luncheon, a biennial event produced by Arts Council Silicon Valley to celebrate the individuals and businesses that support the creative and cultural activities of the region. Categories include: large business support, small business support, individual contributor, and outstanding volunteer. Nomination guidelines and forms can be found at http://artscouncil.org/abbysorgs. (Due to technological limitations, the online Nomination Form will not save a partially completed application and must be completely filled in before it can be submitted. It is recommended that you print out a copy to use as a worksheet before completing the application.) All nominations must be received no later than 5:00 PM on Friday, May 23rd, 2008. Sold-out crowd attends event in Orange County with author Daniel Pink Daniel Pink, acclaimed author of the bestselling book, A Whole New Mind--How Right-Brainers will Rule the Future, spoke to a sold out crowd of over 800 businesspeople, educators, parents and arts administrators on "Innovation, Education, and the Changing World of Work - A Community Conversation" on March 19 in Irvine. Sponsored by the Orange County Department of Education and Arts Orange County (the county's nonprofit arts council), Pink received a standing ovation at the end of his 60 minute presentation, and the majority of the crowd stayed another half hour to ask questions. It was an unprecedented opportunity for community leaders, political entities, business owners and managers, educators and parents to convene for what was described as "a mind-changing event." At the center of Pink's argument was the fact that changes wrought by technology and globalization are enormous and will continue to impact the way we live, work and imagine our world. Pink provided a compelling picture of individual and organizational changes that are necessary to thrive in the new world of employment where right-brain thinking is essential.
Katz on "Arts and the Brain:" an expert's look at new study The Dana Foundation--an organization that arts advocates say should be commended for sustaining its arts education program and connecting it with its brain research activities--released a study on the relationship between the brain and the arts in March, 2008. Jonathan Katz, the Executive Director of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA), takes a look at the long-awaited findings of their investigation since 2004, titled Learning, Arts and the Brain on the relationship between study of the arts and the brain in a monthly column from NASAA.
Two California organizations part of the NEA "Jazz Master Live" program Two California organizations -- the Monterey Jazz Festival (Monterey) and SF JAZZ (San Francisco) -- are part of the first phase of the National Endowment for the Arts' (NEA) "Jazz Masters Live," a series of multiple event, extended engagements in selected communities, featuring NEA Jazz Masters as part of an expansion of the NEA's Jazz Masters Program. The National Endowment for the Arts has supported jazz artists and organizations since 1969, providing millions of dollars in grants and awards. In 2004, the NEA significantly expanded its NEA Jazz Masters program and in 2005 created the NEA Jazz Masters Initiative, a comprehensive program of jazz support that includes awards, touring, presenting, educational activities and programs, radio programming, CD and other components. To find out more, see the NEA's press release about Jazz Masters Live. California poet Robert Hass wins Pulitzer Former U.S. Poet Laureate and California writer Robert Hass won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize in poetry for his collection "Time and Materials." Hass, who teaches at the University of California-Berkeley and heads a regular lunchtime poetry reading on campus, is well known as one of the most prolific and influential California poets, and his work from the 1970s often depicted the land of California. "Time and Materials" represents poetry written by Hass from 1997-2005 and was published by Ecco/HarperCollins in 2007. See the New York Times review of "Time and Materials" or the online Slate magazine review of the collection. Smithsonian Magazine highlights California cities' arts scene for places to retire This month's Smithsonian magazine takes a look at ideal American cities to live in during retirement in an article titled "Where to Live Next," and highlights two California cities: Oakland and San Luis Obispo. One of the great benefits for both? Arts and culture. Life in the SLO lane "It's the downtown feel - streets, awnings, sidewalks - of 40 or 50 years ago, and people enjoy that," said Karen Kile, executive director of the San Luis Obispo Art Center in the article that pointed to the area's seven museums as a reason to highlight the city, as well as the Plein Air Painting Festival (a weekend-long gathering of artists), the month-long Mozart festival, and the book-and-author festivals. "It's unspoiled," continued Kile. "San Luis Obispo people have a pride. We're smart but not snobbish. We live in a rural setting, but we're worldly. San Luis has that social vibrancy. It's a very special place." Rising Up in San Francisco's Shadow "For decades Oakland has been the gritty working-class cousin to nearby San Francisco and Berkeley," notes the article. "It's still not as picture perfect as those two, but it's also more affordable, and it's attracting more and more urban pioneers who understand the city's main attraction--affordability, weather (far more sun and less fog than other Bay locations), great public transportation and a wealth of ethnic diversity, reflected in its cultural fusion of arts and cuisine." Some of that culture the article referred to? Try 17 public libraries, 11 museums, and a rich cultural diversity reflected in the arts, music and culture scene. "It's a happening place," said retired UC Berkeley genetics researcher Dianne Fristrom in the article. "I think it's the best thing we've ever done, to move to Oakland." See the article on San Luis Obispo. See the article on Oakland. Asian Art Museum of SF Appoints New Director The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco recently announced the appointment of Jay Jie Xu as the museum's new Director. Mr. Xu (pronounced shu), 45, will begin his position June 15, 2008. His appointment coincides with the fifth anniversary (March 20) of the museum's much heralded opening of its $170 million facility at Civic Center. He succeeds Emily J. Sano, who retired in January, 2008 after fifteen years of service to the museum. California Council for the Humanities Names Ralph Lewin as Executive Director The California Council for the Humanities announced that Ralph Lewin will become the organization's new executive director, assuming the position on March 10, 2008. Lewin replaces current Executive Director James D. Quay, who will retire in March after 25 years of serving the Council in the lead executive position. Lewin currently serves as associate executive director of the Council, where he oversees Council-conducted programs and grantmaking. The California Council for the Humanities is an independent nonprofit organization and state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Since 2001 the Council has been engaged in a statewide initiative, California Stories, designed to tell the larger story of California. A press release from the organization noted that over the past 15 years, Lewin has been at the helm of the California Council for the Humanities's programming efforts. He first joined the organization in 1992 and that year opened the organization's San Diego office and directed the award-winning cultural program Searching for San Diego. Lewin oversees the Council's multiyear California Stories initiative and directed the highly successful statewide California Stories: Reading The Grapes of Wrath campaign in 2002. For more information on Lewin, see the press release from the California Council for the Humanities. San Juan Bautista is a 2008 Historic "Distinctive Destination" Each year since 2000, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has selected 12 vacation destinations across the United States that offer an authentic visitor experience by combining dynamic downtowns, cultural diversity, attractive architecture, cultural landscapes and a strong commitment to historic preservation and revitalization. For 2008 the Trust named California city San Juan Bautista as one of the twelve. "Known as the 'City of History' because of its unparalleled collection of Spanish colonial architecture, San Juan Bautista exudes the charm and the character of the past," states a press release from the Trust. To see the list of cities for 2008, visit Cultural Heritage Tourism. To date, there are more than 100 cities listed. |
