eNews - July Edition

From the Director		WSAC Deadlines
Poetry		Opportunities
Public Art Year in Review		Events
Articles and Information		Photo Credit

From the Executive Director

Relevance. Impact. Purpose. Mission.

We’ve just completed a strategic plan for the next five years that brings new focus to our work. To be as effective as possible in today’s environment requires new commitment to our mission – and channeling our limited resources to ensure the greatest relevance and impact. To do so, we must be more deliberate with our grants and our public art programs, and more strategic in leveraging local resources to benefit Washington communities. We must further our work to provide quality arts education for students and explore some new possibilities (such as pre-K learning in the arts). Our responsibility is to advance and support arts and culture throughout the state through leadership, knowledge, funding and resources that build participation in and access to the arts.

Three strategic pathways provide a framework for our strategic plan:

EDUCATION: Pathway to learning in, through, and about the arts for children, youth, and adults. Directs funding and services to arts learning opportunities for children, youth, and adults to improve individual and community quality of life.

COMMUNITY: Pathway to cultural vitality of communities throughout the state. Directs funding and services to strengthen communities and to provide arts opportunities for the public, including a wide diversity of peoples. Strategies along this pathway will nurture creativity and will contribute to quality of life, community aesthetics, and cultural vitality.

STEWARDSHIP: Pathway to vital artistic resources through development, conservation, and promotion. Directs funding and services to provide stewardship of the state art collection, and to nurture and promote artists, arts organizations, and traditional and folk arts.

The plan represents more focused investments that will expand arts opportunities across the state – and provide better stewardship for our cultural resources. Our priorities include:

Develop local support for the arts through coordinated strategies to assist local arts agencies.
Build public awareness of Washington’s artistic resources.
Strengthen community-based arts learning partnerships for K-12 students.
Partner with arts organizations across the state to ensure arts opportunities that meet specific public value criteria such as community outreach, lifelong learning, and artistic excellence.
Shape the growth of the state art collection with significant, deliberate public art acquisitions.

To do what’s necessary will require some new resources, yet we realize that public funds are very tight in the next few years. Our requests will be focused on priority investments to achieve important, measurable results. We’ll need your help as we move forward.

Keep in touch,
Kris Tucker Signature
Kris Tucker, Executive Director

Stroke

Where is the axe, says the ice in the trough, left in the field for the cows.
          Here, says the file on the bench in the shed, stuck in a hole by the vise.
Where is the cup with a chip in its rim, says the sink with its saucer & spoon.
          Here, says the kitchen linoleum square, in fragments the color of bone.
Where is the milk, says the pail on the porch, scalded, and shining and worn.
          Here, say the bells of the shuffling heifers, stalled at the door of the barn.
Where is the cream for the cinnamon cat, says the tuna can under the stairs.
          Here, says a shelf in the cold box, with the butter and leftover pears.
Where is the heat for the dinner, says the skillet and pans on the range.
          Here, say the split chunks of alder and fir, carefully dried and arranged.
Where is the ball made of leftover twine, says the unfinished rug on the stool.
          Here, says the awkward crochet hook made from an old-fashioned nail.
Where is the woman who lives in this house, says the work coat still hung on a chair.
          Here, says the wind through the grass of the field,
          here says the white on the waves past the bluff,
          here says the bird in the air.
Not here, says the cow, not here, says the cat, not here, say the boots by the door.
Not here, says the stove, not here, says the coat, not here, says the shape on the floor.

Public Art Year in Review

Robert Irwin, "9 Space 9 Trees", 1983. Photo by Kurt Kiefer. Americans for the Arts announced 45 selections for the 2008 Public Art Year in Review, which celebrates the most successful, innovative, and creative public art projects.

The State Art Collections' 9 Spaces 9 Trees, a seminal work by conceptual artist Robert Irwin, was included in this prestigious list.

Presented by curators Jody Pinto and Ted Landsmark, the winning submissions were selected out of a pool of over 200 and showcased during the closing session at the Americans for the Arts annual convention in Philadelphia.

Commissioned by the City of Seattle in 1983, 9 Spaces 9 Trees, was originally Robert Irwin, "9 Spaces 9 Trees" (detail), 1983. Photo by Kurt Kiefer. situated on the roof of the Public Safety Building. When its existence became threatened after the building was slated for demolition, the work was re-installed at the University of Washington, adjacent to the Henry Art Gallery.

Because the work was site-specific and included elements that could not be disassembled and stored, the City needed a creative solution for preservation. Through a complex partnership involving the City of Seattle, the Washington State Arts Commission, the University of Washington, and the artist, 9 Spaces 9 Trees was transferred to the State Art Collection, redesigned, and reconstructed in its new location based on the original concept.

Irwin traveled to Seattle to help locate the new campus site and substantially reworked his installation as an improvement on the original and one more responsive to its new home.

Artwork acquired through Washington State’s Art in Public Places Program becomes part of the State Art Collection - a collection of over 4,500 works of art located at state agencies, public schools, colleges and universities throughout the state.

Articles and Information

An article on Poet Laureate Samuel Green, A life dedicated to the art of poetry: State's first laureate travels to hold readings, workshops, by Evi Sztajno appeared in the Seattle Post Intelligencer.

Read WSAC's Invite, Welcome, and Respect: Planning Accessible Meetings and Events (PDF) for information, tips, and instructions for planning meetings, performances, and other events that are universally accessible.

A recent article highlighted the artistic workforce in Washington State, Washington ranks high in number of artists, by Nicholas K. Geranios, Seattle Post Intelligencer.

Artist Trust invites you to post your organization's events on their online Event & Workshop Calendar. Posting is free and easy, and reaches thousands of artists and arts enthusiasts across Washington State.

WSAC Deadlines

Grants to Organizations
Project Support Round 2, applications will be accepted later this summer for projects that take place between January 1, 2009 and end no later than June 30, 2009. Deadline: 10/13/08.

Community Arts Development
Professional Development Assistance program has an ongoing deadline. Apply at least six weeks before the opportunity.

Opportunities

Tacoma Art Museum is accepting entries for the 9th Northwest Biennial. The Biennial is open to current residents of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Only work created since January 2007 will be considered. Artists working in a wide variety of media, including traditional forms, craft-based work, conceptual, performance, installation, and digital projects, are encouraged to apply. Deadline: 06/26/08.

Guild’s Northwest chapter is presenting its first-ever Chapter Retreat - community arts education leaders are invited to participate. The full-day event will include tours of the Pratt Fine Arts Center and Seattle Art Museum’s Olympic Sculpture Park, networking opportunities, and an intensive professional development workshop led by expert community arts administrator and consultant Jerry Yoshitomi. The retreat begins at 9 am on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 at the Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle.

Northwest Film Forum (NWFF), a Seattle-based non-profit organization serving as a center for film artists, has a number of exciting opportunities:

The 2008 Karaoke Challenge, now in its third year and scheduled for August 7, is accepting submissions. Rules, formats, and submission information is available at NWFF call for entries. Deadline 07/31/08.

Submit a film for the Children's Film Festival Seattle 2009 and REDCAT International Children's Film Festival. The Festival, now in its fourth year, will be held January 23-February 1, 2009 at Northwest Film Forum. Last year, the festival presented 80 films from 20 countries. Deadline 10/15/08.

The National Park Service helps partners plan successful, locally-led outdoor recreation and natural resource conservation projects. Applications for the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) Program are now being accepted. Applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss project ideas with RTCA staff before submitting an application. Deadline: 08/01/08.

Next year's Americans for the Arts convention in Seattle will provide an opportunity for more than 1,600 arts leaders and their allies in business, education, and government to discover the arts at work in the Pacific Northwest. They are accepting session proposals that emphasize audience engagement, that incorporate “doing” as well as “talking,” and that respond to the convention theme or session topic in an innovative way. Proposals must be submitted online. Deadline 08/01/08.

The City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Arts Commission are developing a juried, online public artist registry of visual artists who are interested in creating public art. This free, public-service registry will be a valuable resource for architects, designers, public and private organizations, and community groups that wish to identify and contact artists for commissioning or purchasing works of public art. Artists who work within the categories of functional and architectural artist-made elements, public art and fine art, and graphic design are encouraged to apply (PDF). Deadline: 08/08/08.

Visual artists working in Washington, Oregon or Idaho, are invited to apply for the Seattle Art Museum’s (SAM’s) Annual Betty Bowen Award. This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the Betty Bowen Award. In honor of this milestone, the Committee has raised the award amount from $11,000 to $15,000 to be given to a single artist. The PONCHO Special Recognition award winner will be awarded $2,500 and this year, one artist will be awarded the Kayla Skinner Special Recognition award in the amount of $2,500. Deadline: 08/15/08.

The Spokane Arts Commission has announced an open call of nominations (PDF) for the 2008 City of Spokane Arts Awards. The 17th Annual Arts Awards will be presented in six categories during a public meeting of the Spokane City Council Monday, October 6 at 6 pm. A reception will be held following the presentation to honor this year’s nominees and recipients. Deadline 08/29/08.

4Culture's most recent Touring Arts Roster is now available. The juried directory of some of King County's most talented performing artists, the roster is available as a free community resource to regional presenting organizations, local arts agencies, commercial venues, convention and travel industry insiders, schools, libraries, festival coordinators and event planners. The roster is available online or in a print edition, which includes a published booklet with artist contact information, photographs, performance description and fee range, as well as a two-disc set of audio work samples from featured artists.

Bainbridge Arts and Crafts, a 60-year-old nonprofit gallery and arts organization, will hold open juries eight times in 2008 for artists who are interested in showing and selling their work in the gallery. They are looking for Northwest artists whose work displays mastery of medium, contemporary style, and professional presentation.

Employment / Internship / Volunteer

WSAC's Arts in Education program seeks a part-time contractor to manage the Poetry Out Loud program. This contract will run from late August 2008 through March 2009, and will require an average of 8-12 hours/week for most of the contract time period, increasing to closer to 20 hours/week from late January through early March. Please review additional position description/requirements (PDF); responses to this posting must be received no later than August 6, 2008.

Seattle Opera has several positions available.

As does the Seattle Art Museum - employment opportunities;

and the Pratt Fine Art Center - employment.

Events

Spokane - Spokane's First Slavic Cultural Heritage Celebration - Saturday, July 26 in Riverside State Park. This event is part of the Folk and Traditional Arts in the Parks Program, offered in cooperation with the Washington State Arts Commission, which highlights Washington's rich cultural heritage in state parks throughout Washington.

Seattle - The Pilchuck Glass School annual Open House is Sunday, July 13 from noon to 5:00 pm. Glass blowing demonstrations, studio visits, hands-on art projects for children, and much more. Advanced registration (PDF) required.

Port Townsend - The Port Townsend Writers’ Conference, July 13-20 at Centrum, features workshops in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and cross-genre writing that, combined with a vibrant Readings and Lectures Series, turns the Victorian seaport and arts community of Port Townsend into a center for the literary arts.

AND... Jazz Port Townsend, Washington’s largest summer jazz festival, headlined by such internationally renowned musicians as Taylor Eigsti, Wycliffe Gordon, Eric Alexander and Paquito d’Rivera, turns the Victorian seaport and arts community of Port Townsend into the summer jazz getaway July 24–26.

Seattle - A Central District Forum Community Partnership event, featuring Excerpts from the Soul of a Woman, by Vania C. Bynum, will be held July 11-12, at 7 pm at the Broadway Performance Hall. Excerpts from the Soul of a Woman is a powerful telling of the human experience from the heart of a woman, expressed through the artistry of dance, music, poetry, and video.

Whidbey Island - The Whidbey Island Music Festival will explore music from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, featuring period-instrument performances of some of the greatest chamber music ever written. Presented over two weekends for a total of six performances, August 8-17, at venues in Langley (Bayview Community Hall), Freeland (St. Augustine's) and Greenbank (Greenbank Farm) on beautiful Whidbey Island.

Spokane -The Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture is presenting Living Legacy: The American Indian Collection, starting July 19. View the entire Manning American Indian Collection acquired in 1916 as the founding collection of the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture. This exhibition explores the legacy of “Victorian” collecting and the period during which Native Americans saw their cultural objects institutionalized in glass cases. The exhibit also offers an alternative and culturally appropriate viewpoint that honors indigenous Plateau life-ways by contextualizing the Manning collection with objects drawn from the now vast and nationally important American Indian collection.

Photo credits

Public Art Year in Review: Robert Irwin, 9 Space 9 Trees, 2007. Winter King hawthorns, aluminum fencing, Turfstone paving, concrete, wood, 20' x 60' x 60'.
Originally commissioned by the City of Seattle, 1983. Photos by Kurt Kiefer.

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