UPDATES

A Conversation with the Mayoral Candidates of Pawtucket

In 2002, RI4arts hosted a successful Mayoral Forum on the Arts with then Democratic Primary Candidates for Mayor of Providence. This year, long-time Pawtucket Mayor James Doyle (D) faces City Councilor Donald Grebian (I) in a race that is gaining a lot of attention within the Pawtucket community, including the burgeoning arts community that has participated in the city's growth in recent years. In response, the Pawtucket Alliance for Downtown Success (PADS) and RI4arts is co-sponsoring A Conversation with the Mayoral Candidates on October 7, 2008, 6:30 pm, in the intimate setting of the Gamm Theatre. The event, sponsored by the Pawtucket Times, is free and open to the public.

The evening will bring the candidates together in an open conversation moderated by Richard Kazarian, Jr., a local arts/antiques dealer and historian, Chair of Pawtucket’s Riverfront Commission and named Pawtucket’s Citizen of the Year in 2005 by The Pawtucket Foundation. Various topics will be explored including Economic Development, Arts and Revitalization and Civic Improvement. The conversation is geared towards gaining a broad understanding of the candidates feelings about the City and its Future.

With the adoption and advertisement of the Pawtucket Arts District and the recent initiation of a city grant program for arts organizations, the arts community has become a significant constituency of Pawtucket in recent years.

If you are a Pawtucket resident, or not, please join us to hear what the Candidates have to say about the arts and Pawtucket ’s future as a growing destination city in Rhode Island!

Senate Commission on Graffiti – Arts Programs to be Explored

Towards the end of the 2008 legislative season, RI4arts worked with Senator Maryellen Goodwin (D-Providence) in passing a Resolution that creates a special Senate Commission to study and make recommendations related to the growing graffiti problem in the State of Rhode Island. Per legislation, the nine-member Commission will include three members of the Senate, three appointees by RISCA, and three members of areas including law enforcement, social service and/or nonprofit groups.

Appointments were made by the Senate President office and include Lisa Carnevale, Director of RI4arts;  Teny Gross, Executive Director of the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence; and, Lt. Dean Isabella, Providence Police Department.  The RISCA appointees are Umbert Crenca, Artistic Director at AS220; Elizabeth Keithline, Grants and Communications Manager at RISCA; and Carrie Zaslow, Vice Chair of RISCA and Treasurer for RI4arts.

Given Sen Goodwin’s request for the arts to be included on the Commission, arts-related programming is expected to be explored. The Commission is expected to hold its first meeting in mid-September.

Public Art Program Saved - Commission to investigate best practices

In the last week of the 2008 legislative session, RI4arts worked diligently with member and RISCA board member William Brackett of Coventry, in countering final attacks on the 1% for the Arts Public Art Program. Legislation introduced by Senator Leonidas Raptakis (D-Coventry) would have capped the Public Art Program at $100,000. In the last hours, we were worked with the sponsor of the bill and Senate Finance to allow time to investigate best practices and propose improvements to the program more directly tailored to Rhode Island’s needs. The result is the creation of a Senate Commission to Study the Public Art Program. The Executive Directors of both RI4arts and RISCA will be appointed to the Commission per the legislation.

The Public Art Program was also challenged earlier in the year with a piece of legislation in the House that would have limited the program to RI artists only. RI4arts coordinated a meeting with chief sponsor of the bill Representative Steven Costantino (D-Providence), taking five Rhode Island public artists to speak about the issue. Rep Costantino agreed to suspend the legislation for one year to allow for further investigation into the program.

It is expected the recommendation from the Senate Commission Study will address all legislator concerns that arose around the Public Art Program in the 2008 legislative season.

NATIONAL

NEA Chairman Gioia Steps Down to Continue Poetry

Sept 12, 2008: Dana Gioia, the ninth chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), announced he is leaving the position in January 2009 at the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies in Chattanooga , TN. In his speech, Gioia noted, “[The] reason I am leaving is that I am an artist… I want to return to poetry.” Gioia will split his time between writing and a position at the Aspen Institute directing a new arts program. Gioia’s term would have run through December 2010. He is largely credited in spearheading initiatives that stave off criticism of the agency, especially from conservative groups, and helped revitalize its stature. He is also known for giving adult literacy a platform through a landmark study on reading, thus beginning his crusade on arts education.

The NEA was established in 1965 after consistent Congressional efforts attributed to the late Rhode Island Senator Clairborne Pell. Read the press release about Gioia’s departure.

From Americans for the Arts

Congress Returns for Pre-Election Session

09-08-2008: Congress returns to Washington , DC , today after a month-long August recess. With the possibility of only three weeks remaining before they are scheduled to adjourn prior to the November elections, there is little time to complete a large slate of unfinished legislation, including the FY 2009 appropriations bills which fund all federal programs, including funding bills for the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities. At this time, it appears that Congress may pass a continuing resolution—a measure to primarily keep the government running at the previous year's funding levels with a few exceptions until a new budget is passed.

Draft of 2008 Democratic National Convention Platform Includes Arts

08-18-2008: The Democratic National Convention Committee recently released a draft of their guiding principles for this year’s convention in Denver , August 25–28. In the “Renewing the American Community” section of the platform, legislators, party leaders, and policymakers included a specific policy section on the arts, citing the need to increase support for the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, arts in education, and cultural exchange. The language in the platform is the most comprehensive language on the importance of the arts and culture this political season, thanks in large part to Americans for the Arts Action Fund’s work with committee members to include statements from its ArtsVote2008 Pro-Arts Policy Brief. Read the arts section on page 48 of the PDF draft.

Federal Arts Funding

Last year, President Bush signed into law the “omnibus” Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2007 which included $144.7 million for the National Endowment for the Arts—$20 million more than the previous year’s appropriation and representing the largest increase in 28 years! This 16 percent increase was a result of a compromise between the House and Senate provisions which were $36 million and $ 9 million, respectively, over the previous year’s budget. The National Endowment for the Humanities also saw an incremental increase in its funding, receiving $144.7 million for FY 2008 over the FY 2007.

On the heels of signing this increase, President Bush proposed a senseless $16.3 million cut for the NEA in his budget request for FY 2009—from $144.7 million to $128.4 million. The president also asked for a slight cut to the NEH, from $144.7 to $144.3 million. In response to this dramatic cut, the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, led by Chairman Norm Dicks (D-WA), has proposed a $15 million increase for the NEA, which would bring the budget to $160 million. Additionally, the National Endowment for the Humanities was also given an increase to match the NEA at $160 million. The Senate is expected to take up Interior Appropriations in the coming weeks as the House struggles to get full Appropriations Committee passage due to contentious oil-drilling proposals that have stalled consideration.

ARTS in the NEWS

Wanted: A Healthy Cash Infusion for Italy ’s Starved Cultural Institutions, NY Times, 9/3/08

So long, thanks for your time says M. Charles Bakst, Providence Journal, 9/14/08

RI Public Radio:  Here at last!

Bob Leddy:  Art and Politics at the Beijing games