Summer 2009 Workshops at Camac in France

I had the pleasure of meeting Jean-Yves Coffre, director of the Camac residency program, at our annual conference in Seattle in November 2008. He had traveled all the way from Marnay-sur-Seine, France to be with us. Jean-Yves asked me to let those interested know about two Camac workshops to be offered in the summer of 2009.

New NEA Funding Category for Artists Communities!

Last week the National Endowment for the Arts created a new funding category for artists' communities -- those organizations whose primary purpose is providing artists' residencies! As the national association for artists' communities, I was thrilled to be able to announce this at the Alliance's annual conference last week. This change is in part a result of the Alliance's advocacy work to the NEA, and we are so grateful to NEA Chairman Dana Gioia for his tremendous vision to provide greater recognition and resources to artists' communities. more >>

Election Results + Impact on the Arts

Americans for the Arts Action Fund President and CEO Robert L. Lynch gave the following statement on the results of Election Day (read the complete statement):

"The historic election of Sen. Barack Obama to be the 44th president of the United States will have tremendous impact on the nation's arts community, public schools, and creative workforce. His commitment to arts and arts education on the campaign trail is just a preview of what his administration can accomplish. President-Elect Obama demonstrates the leadership and vision to advance the arts in America through investing in more arts education in public schools, advocating for increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, promoting cultural diplomacy, and supporting artists rights." more >>

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation Releases Guidelines for Artists & Communities Program

The Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation has announced program guidelines for the 2009-2010 cycle of the Artists & Communities program. This year, artists from any of the foundation's nine partner states are eligible to participate.

Walter Kitundu, artist-in-residence at Exploratorium and Headlands Center for the Arts, receives MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship

Walter Kitundu, a composer and multimedia artist, is a 2008 recipient of The MacArthur Foundation's "Genius" Fellowship. The MacArthur Fellows Program awards unrestricted fellowships to talented individuals who have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction.

Kitundu has been at the Exploratorium -- a museum of science, art, and human perception in San Francisco -- since 2003. He is currently artist-in-residence at Headlands Center for the Arts in Sausalito, California. more >>

The MacDowell Colony Announces New Fellowship for Emergent Women Writers

The MacDowell Colony and The Rona Jaffe Foundation are pleased to announce a new Fellowship to support emergent women writers. The Rona Jaffe Foundation Fellowship will be awarded annually to women writers who will be first-time residents at The MacDowell Colony. A generous gift from The Rona Jaffe Foundation has endowed this Fellowship in perpetuity in memory of its founder Rona Jaffe, who was the best-selling author 16 books, including Class Reunion and The Best of Everything. more >>

A Somewhat Unsettling Tour of Artists' Residencies in the South

A TRIP TO THE HEARTLAND
A report from Taylor Van Horne, Director of the Instituto Sacatar 

more >>

A Somewhat Unsettling Tour of AAC Residencies in the South

A TRIP TO THE HEARTLAND

A report from Taylor Van Horne, Director of the Instituto Sacatar   

NEA Study on Individual Artists

The National Endowment for the Arts just released "Artists in the Workforce: 1990-2005," the first nationwide look at artists' demographic and employment patterns in the 21st century." Artists in the Workforce" analyzes working artist trends, gathering new statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau to provide a comprehensive overview of this workforce segment, its maturation over the past 30 years, along with detailed information on specific artist occupations.

As a leader among artist-centered organizations, the Alliance is thrilled to have this much-needed data to provide important benchmarks on how we as a field are supporting today's artists. more >>

On the road... Seattle

Russ (3 weeks after starting as the Alliance's Development & Program Manager) and I are in Seattle working out plans for this year's conference, and the trip isn't complete without a visit to Hedgebrook and their director, Amy Wheeler.