About a year ago I met with
Tamara Real, who is the president of
The Arts Alliance, and a tireless advocate for arts and culture in Washtenaw County. She was picking my brain about the state of arts in the region and I mentioned that from my point of view, Ann Arbor didn't really have an arts community per se, but rather a community filled with artists.
It was strange hearing that statement quoted back to me Monday at a brainstorming meeting for what is being called the Ann Arbor Cultural Plan (sounds vaguely authoritarian, doesn't it?). Arts and community leaders gathered at the downtown library to discuss how the region's many many artists and organizations could better ensure both their value to and success in the community. From UMS's
Ken Fisher to Mayor Hieftje to Arts Commission Chair Margaret Parker to
A2 Film Fest's Donald Harrison to
Russ Collins of the Michigan Theater, the usual suspects, stakeholders, and supporters were at the very cramped table.
And like most early discussions, there were far more comments batted around than tangible goals or strategies. In trying to define a trifecta of priorities, Tamara found that corralling artists is not unlike herding cats, hep cats to be sure, but nevertheless, cats that weren't used to working together. The one thing everyone seemed to agree was needed was funding (Ie. money). Which is about as revelatory as stating that the world is round.
The consensus was that Ann Arbor, through its millages, has financially demonstrated its progressive values, supporting schools, parks and public transport. The lack of local funding for arts, however, is not in sync with our purported values.
Now, I'm no shrinking violet when it comes to believing in the value of public arts funding. But I'm also a realist. Times are tough. While there are many compelling reasons to financially support arts and culture initiatives (all of which I subscribe to), the public at large is in triage mode. People aren't likely to invest in something they don't perceive as vitally important to the future of their community. Trying to get them to commit to what
might be is a lot harder than getting them to support something they already clearly value. And Ann Arbor has yet to demonstrate that we can work toward a coherent and cooperative arts identity.
Besides, we already have the beginnings of a local funding mechanism for the arts. A couple of months ago
I wrote about the role of public art in helping to define and bring together the larger community. The city's Percent For The Arts program is a good first step toward that goal. But its administration will require incredible vision and savvy in these resource-strapped times. Its stewards will need to prove to city residents that art can and should become a part of our everyday lives, that it's both economically and personally valuable. Generous cooperation, communication, and mutual support will become necessary tactics -- not only from the
commission but also the city's myriad arts organizations.
Because if we can't demonstrate innovative and aggressive ways to work together, advance local arts
en masse, and seed the ground for future creatives, there's no reason the public should invest in our efforts.
Night & DayBecause
Event Of The Week was so damn bland, this weekly weigh-in on cultural ideas and entertainment spotlight needed something a little more, well, suggestive. And I've always been a big fan of the Cole Porter tune.
So, you've been shut out of
Wilco tickets (they were sucked up in like all of 15 seconds). What to do?
Well, how about checking out
Mike Doughty's acoustic show at The Ark tonight? Yeah, I'm biased. I was a big 'ol Soul Coughing fan back in the day and, being a former poetry slammer, even bought the dude's collection of verse.
Dark, dense, ironic lyrics, tight grooves and a staccato guitar, Doughty's slightly nasal hip hop vocals perfectly counter balance his acoustic jangles. I mean, come on, this is the guy who sang "Bustin' Up The Starbucks" and got my four-year-old to sing along.
Of course, there are five other happenin' happenings this week in
filterD. Probably a close second on the must-attend list is the Quite Scientific Bash at Elbow Room in Ypsi. Not only are the three featured acts --Chris Bathgate, Frontier Ruckus, and That's Him! That's The Guy!-- topnotch singer-songwriter acts, they're homegrown.
So, check 'em out and let me know if any of these recommendations fed your fancy. If I steered you wrong, I wanna know. If a suggestion rocked your world, I wanna know that too. Email me
here.
Until next week, remember to consume your entertainment locally.
-Jeff Meyers
Editor
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