NEA Chief Gives A Speech And Raises A Few Questions

Before sitting down to comment on Rocco Landesman's plan to take a whistle-stop tour of arts places and arts spaces across the U.S., I thought I'd better read the whole speech he gave to Grantmakers in the Arts on Wednesday. I'm glad I did -- his buoyant tone was obvious even to readers, not just listeners, and I was glad to hear it. 

More important, there was lots more in the NEA chief's first big speech demanding comment than the tour itself. A few observations:

1) Landesman lived up to his reputation as outspoken -- and plain-spoken. But he does gloss over some areas and makes great leaps. For example, he said, "England is the European country that is the worst public supporter of the arts. Their budget? $900 million. That would translate with our population to an NEA budget of $4.6 billion." Well, maybe -- I didn't check his figures -- but our system is different from Britain's and arts here, in some states and some cities, receive local government funding. So, is the comparison relevant? Or it it apples and oranges?

2) "Art Works" is an excellent slogan for the NEA, especially as he described it as a noun, a verb and a declarative sentence. 

3) With "strong footnoting" to Richard Florida, he said "Create an arts scene downtown, and small towns have downtowns too, and you change the place. Artists are great place-makers, they are entrepreneurs, and they should be the centerpiece of every town's strategy for the future." Well, not so fast: many academics have shot holes in Florida's work. The last thing the arts need is the pressure to be a locale's economic engine. Now, a museum is not the same as an artist-driven scene, but haven't we seen enough failed Bilbao's already?

4) "We need to compare notes, we need to get together and find where the best ideas are--in fact we are planning a gathering in the spring on art and neighborhood revitalization and we hope to have your active participation in that--but we need to do more than talk. We need to begin lasting partnerships in this arena." This is a good thing, too. I hope it's open to the press.

5) One of the best things Landesman brought up was his career as a theatrical producer: "Fewer than 20% of the shows that open on Broadway earn back their investment, it is an absolutely terrible business and the people who invest in it know that." So, as he pointed out, producers have to be optimists -- a great trait for an NEA chief.