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A+ Art Blog 2024 Archived A+ Art Blogs  Californians for the arts recently put on a webinar on the State of Funding and Legislation for Arts, Culture and Creativity . The most interesting part of this presentation was made by Priscilla Quiroz fromShaw Yoder Antwih Schmelzer & Lange, the advocacy, public affairs and association management firm in Sacramento. Yes, this is a lobbying firm. She was the only one that actually addressed the topic. She pointed out that the democrats still have a super majority in both the CA Senate and Assembly. There are now more women than ever (58) and coming close to a majority (61 men) in the senate, and they are lots of new members as during this election some of the older members retired or decided to try for higher offices. There is a feeling that a more moderate approach will be forthcoming and this conclusion is based on the bills that passed and were defeated. Governor Newson has set aside $25M for the department of justice to fight a variety of national law suits against CA. He has worked to get that done before the new president is inaugurated. This includes protecting civil right, reproductive freedom, climate action and immigrant families, We in the arts realize this is more than the whole budget of the CA Arts Council but these are important concerns. Please note: Even though our state only spends 54 cents per person to support the arts, California made it into the top ten most vibrant art states in the county, but only just at #10. This is ranked by per capita supply, demand and public support for the arts by SMU DataArts. San Diego county ranking in Arts Vibrancy is just above 90%.That means it is higher than 90% of other counties in the USA. Not too bad, but we are brought down by public/government support and the lower numbers employed by the arts indexes. There was concern that there would be a $60 billion deficit in CA this year, but it turned out to be only $2 billion, so even though there are projections for a $20-$30 deficit next year, that has yet to be determined. Julie Baker of CA for the Arts then gave us a run down of the state of the arts projects which are numerous. We know there was lots of federal and state money for recovery and relief from the pandemic with that often being a one -time payment. Now lots of federal funding are stopping. And there are many cuts for example the Cultural District funding went from $30 million down to $10M.(More info: North County Networking Event: Affordable Housing for Artists through Cultural Districts.) The Arts in the Park program went from $25 M to $14m. There is a big need for sustained funding so that the fight for funding does not have to be won over and over again. (more info: State Funding Proposed Cut for the Arts) In San Diego County, in particular, the Creative project is called Far South/Border North where artists, cultural practitioners, and organizations implemented 71 campaigns across 20 sectors, from education and healthcare to environment and transportation and various artistic and creative forms, from performing arts, visual arts, and literature to music, film, and media. Their work involved 700 artists, created 940 jobs, and engaged people across 37 zip codes in the region’s most disproportionately impacted communities. It brought awareness to urgent issues shaping our region today – including public health, civic engagement, climate, and social justice. The other programs that were discussed included: Prop 28 arts education, AB812 for artist housing connected to Cultural districts, individual arts fellowships, SB127 a new workgroup to make a strategic plan for the creative economy, two part of prop 4 #91000 ($20m) and #94000 ($25m) from the Natural Resources Agency. She ended with the announcement that for the first time the creative arts are being identified as an official strategic sector. This has never happened before. And finally, the Californians for the Arts Policy Priorities for 2025/26 The two other presenters were concerned with the film industry: Kerri Wood Einertson, SAG-AFTRA Film Industry announced that they are asking the CA government to double their tax credit incentive program from $330 to $750M per annum to keep film project in CA. This needs to happen to stay competitive with the enormous rise in film making throughout the world. Alex Torres, NIVA CA is a lobbyist for the film industry who discussed the crisis in live entertainment industry's ticketing practices. The secondary sales market has nothing to do with the production of the product, but they making a profit off the industry and not giving anything back to it. There are lots of bills that have been proposed about this issue, some good, most bad, and none have passed. This is a real problem with no known solution yet. You can watch the entire video of the presentation. To read about how the election affect the arts at the national level: And the Pendulum Swings: How the election results of 2024 will affect the arts A+ Art Blog by Patricia Frischer And the Pendulum Swings: How the election results of 2024 will affect the arts
In a zoom webinar in November, American from the Arts (AFTA) arranged a panel of speakers to try to give us a clearer picture of what the future might mean for the arts post-election. These last days before the end of the year are always called the Lame Duck session, and very little is expected to happen until the handover. The word often used to describe our future is uncertainty. We know that there was a lower turn out for this election, but Trump did manage a bigger majority. The Republican only have a very slight majority in the House and but now also hold the Senate. This is known as the trifecta and is very powerful. Bill Harper , partner Harper Downing helped us understand that Trumps may well shift arts funding priorities with major cuts expected:
David Reed , Policy Director Brownstein, tacked the subject of the Reconciliation process: this is a special way to fast-track certain budget legislation in the Senate by enabling just majority (instead of a 60-vote supermajority) for budget issues only with no filibuster from the Senate allowed. Reconciliation cannot affect the NEA which is discretionary funding. But caps could be put on spending and tax reduction in general could ultimately affect the arts. Then there is Schedule F, which is a way to fire civil servants and gov appointed positions, and that could undermine the arts. Good news is that tax deductions for charity donation might come back for non-itemizers. Americans for the Arts sees the Republican strategy as one to raise disruption where ever possible. But we all know the government could strive for more efficiency. There will probably be work force reduction and re-locations, and a mandate to come back to in person office work but with a smaller government. Some describe this a death by a thousand cuts. Time will tell as the civil service is a well-organized body that goes through political and appointed leadership changes over and over. There was then a presentation of the new members and the old guard that are supporters of the arts in the House and Senate by Tooshar Swain, Public Policy Director AFTA, and Olivia Tarpley, Public Policy Manager AFTA, There was a lose of some key champions for the arts and lots of unknowns. But the bipartisan Senate Cultural Caucus leadership is still very strong with Susan Collins (R Maine) and David Reed (D Rhode Island) and House Art Caucus with Mike Turner (R Ohio) and Chellie Pingree (D Maine) with good track records. When it comes to Governors and Mayors, although there were changes, the balance stayed about the same and almost equal. There are just a few more split legislatures. Split legislatures made for good government in general so that may be a good sign. You have to remember that the local not federal agencies are the largest funders for the arts. But there was speculation that if the NEA was somehow eliminated, then those states that gave matching funds to the NEA might also stop their funding. Good news is that the few ballot initiatives for funding the arts around the county did pass, although AFTA did say it was hard to track this information. If you know of any others, please contact jay@artsusa.org. Finally, there was a strong please for extra support through advocacy and engagement. Here is the link to see the Webinar yourself: https://www.americansforthearts.org/advocate/2024-post-election-webinar-impact-on-the-arts Here is the link to add your support: https://www.artsactionfund.org/arts-action-center?vvsrc=/campaigns/119049/respond The is the link to the June AFTA conference in Ohio: https://afta2025convention.org/ If you want to know more specifics about California thenThe State of Funding and Legislation for Arts, Culture & Creativity in California is on Dec 11 at noon PT presented by Californian for the Arts. With the 2024 election, more than 25% of the CA legislature is new, Federal Funding resources are increasingly uncertain and the California state budget remains unstable. There is a further Americans for the Arts Webinar on Jan 22 at noon PT: Advocacy 101: Introduction to the new 119th Congress
Carol Rogers: How the Arts helped me find community Her very impressive list of volunteer associations include: Carol Rogers is a also a new board member of the North County Arts Network where she is on the Government support committee which advocates for paid arts administrations in all cities. She is dedicated to bringing more attention to the arts in her community.
The First City of San Diego Cultural Plan The City of San Diego draft Cultural Arts Master Plan has been released. This is the first ever cultural plan for the city of SD and was led by Jonathon Glus over the last 18 months. The plan outlines four main goals, each with specific strategies and actions: 1. Centering Artists: Support artists and cultural organizations through affordable spaces, expanded funding, and capacity building. 2. Arts in Community: Increase access to arts and culture throughout the city, with a focus on historically under-resourced areas. 3. Creative Entrepreneurship: Foster growth of the creative economy through business support, workforce development, and industry partnerships. 4. Global Creative City: Elevate San Diego’s profile as an international hub for arts, culture and creativity. Some of the strategies we appreciate include: Expand San Diego’s branding image to incorporate the arts, culture and creativity. Create a formal designation and support program for arts and cultural districts and creative enterprise zones. Expand funding available for individual artists and Create artists fellowships or residencies Facilitate targeted convenings, Streamline procurement and contracting processes Expand existing “culture pass” programs leading to free access Julie Dixon Evans from KPBS adds to that list with the following strategies for funding: “The "Penny for the Arts" policy, which allocates 9.52% of Tourism Occupancy Tax revenue to art and culture; research and development of an "admissions fee" for public/private entertainment and sporting events; a foundation to lead funding efforts; …partnerships with the specific goal of affordable housing for artists and affordable creative spaces…”. All of this calls for more staffing positions besides coordination with Park and Rec and Libraries. There were lots of convening with the Commission , staff and with the public to complete this document and recommendations are still be accepted. It is hoped that the plan called Creative City will be approved by the City Council early in 2025. Both Carlsbad and Oceanside have an approved up to date arts master plans and Encinitas has had one percolating for years. We would like to see all cities set these goals and have strategies to achieve them.
In the last few years, I have seen proof that if you have a vision and group together with like minded people, there is a distinct possibility that vision will come to be. I have a list of those dreams like the San Diego Visual Arts Network, the San Diego Art Prize, the SD County Commission for Arts and Culture, and the Pacific View Art Center. They are all realities now. Recently I realized that I have some new visions: The county wide Arts and Culture Tourism Agency. A cultural district designation for all the cities in our county. Paid full time art administrators in our all cities. A push to have Art Prescriptions issued by doctors and paid for by insurance companies A line items for all the school district budgets adding transportation for arts and culture field trips. Affordable housing for artists. I am not saying I will personally be working on all of these ideas, but I do love to plant seeds in fertile ground. So maybe not in my life time, but maybe for the good of the arts community, some of these visions will come true. Do you have a vision for arts and culture in San Diego? .Advocacy is all about putting our voices together. I would love to hear your voice.
In this hour lecture, you can learn about all the Advocacy issues that are currently affecting the arts in the county of San Diego. There is also a presentation of some of the visual arts exhibitions on view in SD for the summer and fall of 2024. This is presented by Patricia Frischer coordinator/founder of the San Diego Visual ArtsNetwork and Interim Chairman of North County Arts Network. The lecture was video tapped at MiraCosta College in Oceanside by the LIFE Organization. Advocacy issues covered are: Exhibitions areas covered are: In North County Now The California Arts Council (CAC) has been in the news recently because of possible 58% cuts in the budget of the organization. This was fully discussed at a public meeting on Friday, May 24 from noon to 4…yes four hours. Here are some of the highlights. The CAC seems to be against the recently proposed possibility of being relocated within the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. (GoBiz) They want more information and want to remain independent. If this move does happen, then having the budget cut at the same time seems counter intuitive. Being acknowledged as part of economic development, then why would the arts not get more funding instead of less? Please note that the new San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture here is also under a business and economic development department in our county. The cuts of the budget that are proposed are $10M reduction in Local Assistance (grant programs) plus a state wide cut of 7.9% for all administration cost. The past budget was $27m with $10m taken away and a commitment is already made for $6M for General operating grants, that leaves only $4m for new grants. There was a committee formed on the request of the state staff to make suggestion of how to deal with this $10M loss. These kind of policy decisions are made with rigorous regard to equity. The suggestion was that general operating funds (GEN) grants will be closed for Tier 2 and 3 (i.e. organization with budgets $250K to $1.5M). Only tier one grants will be considered. Instead, application for other types of grants will have the deadline extended from June 6 to June 20. This is the give time for those who had submitted GEN grant in tier 2 and 3 be able to rewrite them (with aid and guidance from CAC) to other needs and programs. There was large public input from many arts organizations in person in LA and online. Many just cried for the cuts not to be made. But a few gave good advice: the best one recommended don’t make it easy for the cuts to happen by accommodating those cuts! So, when the CAC had to vote on the proposal to stop funding tier 2 and 3, they voted 4 for and 4 against which means there was not a majority so the proposal did not pass. Because it did not pass, they could not vote on the extension of timing on the grants. I believe the issue is now in the hands of those who will advocate for no cuts directly to the Governor. We will be turning to CA for the Arts for more information on advocating. Hopefully, our own SD Art Matters will be a leader for our county as they our regional arts advocacy organization.
The Encinitas City Council approved two of Deanne Sabeck's glass and metal sculptures in a meeting at the beginning of April. One will go at the entrance to Oakcrest Park at 1219 Encinitas Blvd and the other at the southeast corner of Newcastle Avenue and Liverpool Drive in Cardiff by the Sea, across the street from the Cardiff Library. Both of these works, that were presented anonymously to the public, got very high ratings. Another sculpture by Peter Mitten was accepted for placement at the new Pacific View Arts Center that will open later this year as well as Bunny Serenade by Adrian Litman for the pad at Little Oaks Equestrian Park in Olivenhain on Lone Jack Road. But two other sites will remain empty. The Encinitas Commission for Arts and Culture chose other art works for these sites taking into consideration the public comments and ratings, but the council deemed to decide for what might be personal reasons, that these artists were not suitable, ignoring the recommendation of their professional body of experts. This is not an isolated problem. Cities with no art master plans and cities with no coherent public art plan often run into divided opinions about how art in the public realm should be chosen and funded. We have seen examples of how major works of art by renowned creators are turned away by cautious politicians who are out of their league when judging art. The latest fiasco was in Del Mar when the Isamu Noguchi’s sculpture worth half a million dollars was rejected.READ MORE
Affordable Housing for Artists in your Cultural Districts and Patricia Frischer, Woman of Impact 2024 The new AB 812 bill approved Oct 11 by the governor and authored by Tasha Boerner allows cities and/or counties to give up to 10% of its very low, low, or moderate-income housing to eligible artists as long as they are within one-half mile from a state-designated cultural district or within a locally designated cultural district if certain income and occupation conditions are met.
Front Porch Gallery , in collaboration with Surfing Madonna Oceans Project is holding the fourth annual Save the Ocean art and poetry exhibition through Feb. 29, 2024. In conjunction with this exhibition, a Ekphrastic Poetry Writing and Collage Workshop was held. That means the poetry is inspired by a work of art and that part of the workshop was led convincingly by Dr. Marit Anderson. Cathy Carey, the new Director of the Front Porch Gallery, led the collage component. READ MORE The big question is always how do I get funding or help for my cause? Although the answer is often “get involved”, the feeling is often ‘why weren’t we asked?”. So I am going to spell it out here. To get involved you have to volunteer your time, energy or even some inkind service. You don’t wait to be asked. You seek out opportunities to collaborate. When you volunteer you meet other committee members and volunteers and you get to really know them if you make an effort. You can then start to create a network of advisors and supporters. You find out about volunteer opportunities and calls for by reading newsletters and social media. So you have to sign up for those from groups that interest you and you have to actually read those newsletters. (like the twice monthly SDVAN message: sign up now if you have done so). But you don’t have to wait for a call for volunteers/artists, you can suggest a gap that you see that you could fill. You could have a vision for a strategic plan. You could write up a report for use in a grant. You could curate am exhibition. You might even be able to collaborate with that organization to do a joint grant. And I am not talking about just arts organizations, but also civic agencies and not even just arts commissions but maybe public safety commissions or planning commissions. You could join the local tourist association or the chamber of commerce. This all takes time and effort, and you have to be willing to give in order to get. Never wait to be asked or you will end up asking, Why weren’t we asked?” There are environmental disasters, financial uncertainty with high inflation, post COVID impact and ongoing wars in the Ukraine and Israel/Palestine as well as a controversial upcoming election, is CRISIS also the defining word of the state of the arts? In San Diego, we have two fabulous new developments. The county came together to produce the first county wide AEP6 Arts and Economic Prosperity report (joint public presentation of results on Jan 24, 10 – 12:30 at MOPA) and the county supervisors approved the formation of a new Commission of Arts and Culture which is well on its way to producing a strategic plan. READ MORE 2023 past A+ Art Blogs including: Legacy Advocacy Issues for the region of San Diego , Illustrations by Keith Haring (Broad Museum) Our Hats are Off to our Volunteers and Supporters Diary of a Clearance Fiend, London, 2023 SDVAN/Synergy 20th Anniversary Celebration HATS ON!Black Women Artists in the Marketplace California Creative Corp in San Diego State of the Arts 2023- DEI, Money for the Arts and Women Arts Leaders 2022 past A+ Art Blogs including: SDVAN New Normal Cookbook: Eating Your Art In Selling the Soul California Creative Corps Pilot Program Development Update A Red Letter Day with the passage of a proposal for a County Commission for Arts and Culture The Blue Economy Desperate Times VAPA Asks: What is your superpower? On the Occasion of our 200th SDVAN RAW Column Simply the Best: A Step Too Far and actually quite dangerous! A Tale of Two Learnings Finger on the Pulse State of the Arts 2021: San Diego Creative Industry by the Numbers 2020 past A+ Art Blogs including Artist Guide to Surviving the Pandemic: 5 things you can do which will keep you working Understanding AB 2257, Follow Up Legislation to AB 5, and Its Impact on the Arts Sector Guiding Principles and Manifestos San Diego + Imperial counties Regional Conversation Summary 2020 Brain Candy: A Virtual Salon Series – The Curators The Power of Art Part 2 The Power of Art It's Not Easy, Being Difficult Remember when Corona was a Cigar or a Beer Constance White at The Residency Project in Pasadena The Role of the Arts in Defining Democracy State of the Arts California, 2020 2019 past A+ Art Blogs including Who wants to be a millionaire artist? Immigration, Migration, Integration: SD Chinese Historical Museum Isolationist or Globalist? Ocular Artist Birthing a New Art Organization Three Things You Need to Know Passport to Dance produced by Encinitas Friends of the Arts Life Doesn't Frighten Me: Hope Inspired through Art at Fallbrook Library The Cotwolds: Purton and Cirencester Modern Couples at the Barbican Great Big Indian Wedding: Cultural event that ends my year! India: Monuments and Museums India: Modern and Contemporary Art Barnsley House Hotel and Spa State of Mind, State of the Arts, 2019 2018 past A+ Art Blogs including 2016 Past A+Art Blogs including 2015 Past A+ Art Blog including Mural by Paola Villasenor at SDAI and Art Fair Miami Turn on, chill out and Pop up Incubator for Innovation - final 9 teams for San Diego London Journal 1: Tate Britain Folk Art London Journal 2: Horst at the Victoria and Albert Museum London Journal 3:Today's Special: Pace Gallery, Tate Modern Matisse London Journal 4: National Portrait Gallery and Saatchi London Journal 5: London Fashion Week and London Design Show at Tent and Super Brands London Journal 6: Gilbert and George, Boyd and Evans, Anslem Kiefer and AI WEIWEI A Call to Action SD Fringe Festival Art Exhibition at Ten Street Art Center ILLUSION: Nothing Is As It Seems at the Ruben H. Fleet Science Museum Deborah DeLisi and One Minute Mandalas at SDVAN sponsored Mission Federal ArtWalk DNA of Creativity Introduction at Oceanside Museum of Art Notes on Aesthetics and Authenticity Symposium SD Art Prize has its roots in the Turner Prize 2013 Past A+Art Blog including State of the Arts: The Rise of the Living Artist, 2013 New Art at the SD Airportt: Flying High San Diego Incubator for Innovation Arts Leaders Motivations Politics and Art in San Diego Art Eats Food Alternative Materials Panel Discussion - Sparks Gallery London Art Newsletter 2013 Maximal San Diego: Identity Crisis or Identity Opportunity? March 2013 Palm Springs Art Fair, Feb, 2013 Corporate Collecting Book Review, Jan 2013 2012 Past A+Art Blog including 2009 Past A+ Art Blogs including 2008 Past A+ Art Blogs including 2007 Past A+ Art Blogs including 2006 Past A+ Art Blogs PATRICIA FRISCHER, author of "The Artist and the Art of Marketing" has lectured extensively on marketing for artists. She is a trainer of artists’ agents, art dealers, consultant and collectors. Frischer has taken on the roles of gallerist, curator, writer, teacher, website coordinator and artist. Her many metamorphoses make her difficult to fit into any of the usual art world categories. She is a founding member and coordinator of the San Diego Visual Arts Network, (www.SDVAN.net ) which funds the SD Art Prize, directory and events calendar and SmART Collector features. Her own artwork (www.DrawsCrowd.com ) has been shown internationally and her most recent one person show was at Oxford University. |
