So much of what we do in America is based on the assumption of growth. Growth in value and market share are keystones of success in the for-profit world, of course. Among arts organizations and their funders, there’s a notion that success should be measured by the addition of new programs and an increasing annual […]
The old (sacred) bait and switch
What do you do when what you offer the world isn’t immediately appealing to a good chunk of the public? Or when, in fact, what you offer has negative social stereotypes that put people off? Well, if you’re part of an emerging group of evangelical sites (not arts…but wait), you rely on the old bait […]
Cash flow (or lack thereof)
An article in today’s New York Times highlights the cash flow problems of American Ballet Theater, a company who’s history is plagued by that common arts challenge. Similar doom and gloom came in this overview of the Denver arts scene, showing that for many Denver organizations, subscriptions are down, memberships are down, and attendance is […]
Only $6 per month for entertainment nirvana
The Register has a whimsical, number-crunching overview of a proposed music and movie distribution/compensation model from Harvard professor William Fisher. What are the benefits? To quote Fisher himself: Consumers would pay less for more entertainment. Artists would be fairly compensated. The set of artists who made their creations available to the world at large […]
The co-construction of the arts experience
Chris Jones offers this interesting but odd opinion piece in the Chicago Tribune about the changing behaviors of arts audiences, and the disconnect with traditional practices in presenting the arts. The core of his argument is as follows: ‘this is the age of arts consumer as an empowered co-generator.’ The piece is interesting because it […]
How people think vs. how we want them to
A seemingly unrelated news item about a new book speaks volumes about arts audiences, patrons, and friends. The book is by social/political researcher Katherine Cramer Walsh, about how people talk about politics (Talking About Politics: Informal Groups and Social Identity in American Life, for speed readers, here’s a news summary to get the gist of […]
Of local arts, casinos, and economic impact
My hometown of Madison, Wisconsin, is in a bit of a spin over a proposal to upgrade a nearby Native American bingo facility into a full-fledged casino. There’s lots of local color in the conflict — with equal enthusiasm both for and against the proposal (the pro-casino group promotes the large payments to the city […]
Enabling or unraveling ‘the big sort’
There’s some interesting stuff for arts and cultural mavens in Richard Florida’s latest salvo on the implications of the ‘creative class’ mindset. Sure, it’s a bit over the top and chicken-little-esque (that’s what polemics do, after all), but there are bits of wisdom along the way, as well. Florida is alarmed at the efforts of […]
If they were only smarter, they’d LOVE us
Bernard Holland had a good piece in the Sunday New York Times about arts education. In it, he tugs apart the assumed connection between arts education and arts appreciation: An implicit contract has been signed but is not necessarily being honored. It states that if I understand a piece of music, I’m likely to like […]
Some pointers to keep you busy…
I’m on the road AGAIN, this time for a board meeting of the Association of Arts Administration Educators, the professional association of degree programs like the one I direct at UW-Madison (note the shameless link to my place of employment…marketing theory at work). As such, I only have time to point you somewhere else today, […]
