I’m in Austin, Texas, for a two-day conversation on the ‘creative ecology’ leading to a public presentation/discussion on Wednesday night. So, I’ll likely not be posting to the blog this week.
In the meanwhile, take a moment to watch this segment of Doug McLennan’s recent interview with Bill Ivey, former NEA chair and recent lead adviser to the Obama White House’s transition team for arts, culture, and the humanities. Interesting insights on the transition, the stimulus funding, and the need for a national ‘arts czar’.
We are in some of the most difficult economic times I have seen in many years. It would seem to me it should be a time to think out of the box just a bit, and look at the fact that putting money into the arts could in fact help the whole economic picture. In times like these, all the talking heads are gushing about the unemployment numbers, but you have to know that artists are suffering as well. People who had large amounts of money to use towards purchasing art, of any sort, three years ago, are by and large unable to do so today.. Why does it always have to be just the good old boys of the republican party are heard? That is just plain sad!!!