Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance

Today is National Arts Advocacy Day, a united effort spearheaded by Americans for the Arts to “tell Capitol Hill how important culture is to our communities, how much arts education means to our children, and how much the arts improve our daily lives.” Baltimore and Maryland are well represented in the group. At last night’s events I saw Theresa Colvin and several commissioners from the Maryland State Arts Council, John Schratwieser of Maryland Citizens for the Arts, and Fred Lazarus from MICA to name a few.

Even if you didn’t join the team in Washington, Americans for the Arts urges you to contact your Members of Congress today to support the arts. Visit their E-Advocacy Center, and you’ll be able to send a message in less than two minutes.

On a local note, I want to give a shout out to GBCA member Art with a Heart. Last Friday, I attended their event featuring the work of Aaron Maybin and Matthew Rice as well as their collection of Art Wares. Aaron and Matthew are truly inspirational both in their commitment to their own work and to ensuring that children in Baltimore have access to arts education.

On Monday, the Jewish Museum of Maryland sponsored a lunch to acquaint a small group of us with their collection. Outgoing Director Avi Decter also used this opportunity to introduce Martin Pinkert, who was recently appointed as his successor after an illustrious term of leadership with the National Archives. The museum has an amazing collection of ordinary and extraordinary objects, documents and photographs of Jewish life in Maryland—a real treasure for Baltimore.

Remember this Friday and Saturday is the Young Audiences 2012 National Conference. If you can’t be there in person, GBCA will be Livestreaming video from the plenary session. Join the conversation on Livestream, or on Twitter at @arts4learning, by using the hashtag #BuildingConnections. See the “Live Webcast” section for more details.

Best,
Jeannie

April 25 is the big day for the Mary Sawyers Baker Prize winners who will be announced during a broadcast on MPT at 8:00 pm. The show will be hosted by Rhea Feikin of MPT fame and Tom Hall of Baltimore Choral Arts and WYPR. You can join us for the festivities and meet the 2012 award winners at a reception at Metro Gallery at 1700 North Charles Street.

It was fascinating last week to attend the National Symposium on Arts/Cultural/Entertainment Districts. The keynote speaker, Mark Stern, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, has been principal investigator for the Social Impact of the Arts, a research program of Penn’s School of Social Policy and Practice, and has also recently written about Arts Districts.

In addition, local superstars including Will Backstrom (PNC), Doreen Bolger (Baltimore Museum of Art), Gaia (street artist currently curating Open Walls Baltimore), and Fred Lazarus (MICA), all helped to underscore the vibrancy of Baltimore and its Arts and Entertainment Districts in Station North and Highlandtown. What a great way to show off the City’s arts leadership to a national audience. Kudos to Ben Stone, Executive Director of Station North for an inspiring two days.

Also a shout out goes to the performers at the Creative Alliance on Wednesday evening that included ellen cherry and Femi the DriFish. It was rocking.

Don’t forget the CityLit Festival at the Pratt Library on Saturday, April 14—talk about a superstar line up AND the price is right (free).

Best,
Jeannie

Spring has sprung and along with the early blooming red buds there is a lot of big thinking going on in and around Baltimore. In my travels this past week, many conversations have revolved around creating a better understanding of the composition of the cultural community and quantifying its valuable contributions to the region. The cultural sector makes this area a more vibrant, successful, livable and interesting place to be. Research (complete and ongoing) is available to aid our efforts through the Maryland Cultural Data Project, Americans for the Arts, Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, Open Baltimore, Art + Justice at MICA and much more. We want to know what might be missing and how GBCA’s Advocacy Committee can use information and models to help articulate a compelling case for support and demonstrate our strengths.

GBCA is also interested in the needs of individual artists. In addition to ever-present funding challenges, what’s next on the list? Affordable health insurance? Access to studio/performance space? And what is GBCA’s role in helping to leverage such resources in a meaningful way? We will be looking for answers in the coming months and year.

On another note, our thanks go out to the Maryland Historical Society and the Maryland Archives for a wonderful and engaging happy hour. Last night, more than 60 people joined us for refreshments and a chance to learn more about two very special installations that tell the story of “The African American Experience through the Lens of Art and Culture.” Now, watch for news about our April 17 Brown Bag “Fear and Loathing: Demystifying the Simple Art of Writing a Grant” and our May 7 Happy Hour at the Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center.

I look forward to seeing many of you this week at the National Symposium on Arts/Cultural/Entertainment Districts produced by Station North and taking place on April 4 and 5.

Last week, I met with Chris Stewart from the Maryland State Arts Council, Gregg Wilhelm of CityLit, and author Scott Fuqua to learn more about our writing community and how GBCA can provide support. It was a lively and insightful conversation about building connections. Plans are well underway for the upcoming CityLit Festival sponsored by the Enoch Pratt Free Library on April 14. Also in the works is the next Literary Arts Week October 2012. More details to come.

The first 2012 GBCA Brown Bag with Fanon Hill and Mariska Jordan sparked an insightful conversation about diversity. The crowd of 50 people from a wide range of organizations and media were fully engaged in the dialogue that felt more like a starting point than a resolution. GBCA is committed to helping continue the dialogue.

I hope you will join us for the April 2 Happy Hour featuring “Maryland’s African American Experience through the Lens of Art and Culture” at the Maryland Historical Society from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. This will be followed by an event on May 7 hosted by the Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center.

Mark your calendar for April 17 for the next Brown Bag Talk Back “Fear and Loathing: Demystifying the Simple Art of Writing a Grant” with Melissa Warlow, Executive Director of the William G. Baker, Jr. Fund and Lara Hall, Senior Program Officer at The Blaustein Philanthropic Group. This will occur in The Exchange Building (1122 Kenilworth Drive, Suite 201, Towson MD, 21204) from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Finally, be sure to check out the exciting program for the 2012 Young Audiences National Conference on April 20 right here in Baltimore.

Best,
Jeannie

This Wednesday, GBCA launches its 2012 Brown Bag Talk Back series at Arena Playhouse. Join our discussion with Fanon Hill, Co-Director of Art on Purpose’s ‘Black Male Identity’ and Co-Founder of Baltimore City Youth Resiliency Institute, and Mariska Jordan, Director of Jubilee Arts, as they reflect on opportunities, challenges, and best practices for achieving diverse participation in Baltimore’s arts and cultural institutions and activities. This event will be webcast live on our livestream channel and archived for those who cannot attend.

Additional noontime events are being scheduled with local experts to talk about recruiting the perfect intern, unraveling the mysteries of grant writing, Baltimore as a laboratory for community art and much more. Additional details will be announced soon.

In other news, Happy Hours are now underway and I am excited to announce our next event “Maryland’s African American Experience through the Lens of Art and Culture” will be held at the Maryland Historical Society on April 2 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. In addition to refreshments, guests will have a special viewing of the Maryland State Archives (MSA) titled “Flee” about the experiences of slaves who escaped from bondage. Staff interpreters will be on hand for this and the Paul Henderson Collection of Baltimore photographs.

I hope you will join us for all or some of these events and look forward to meeting you there.

Best,
Jeannie

Next Wednesday marks the first of the 2012 GBCA Brown Bag House Talks. In a region that is rich in its diversity, many institutions (and others) continue to wrestle with ways to be genuinely inclusive. With that in mind, we are excited to launch the series with a discussion about achieving diverse participation in Baltimore’s arts and cultural institutions and activities. Fanon Hill, Co-Director of Art on Purpose’s ‘Black Male Identity’ and Co-Founder of Baltimore City Youth Resiliency Institute, and Mariska Jordan, Director of Jubilee Arts will lead the conversation with plenty of opportunity for questions and dialogue. I hope you will join us on Wednesday, March 21 at the Arena Playhouse for what promises to be a helpful and thought-provoking discussion.

As we plan for future events, we welcome topic suggestions from the field. Currently in the works are sessions on best practices for recruiting interns, creating meaningful city-county partnerships, and the funders’ perspective on drafting effective fundraising proposals.

If you are not yet a member of GBCA, please take a moment to find more information and join through our website. In addition to organizational memberships, we encourage individual artists and supporters of the arts to join our community.

Best,
Jeannie

It was great to see folks at the Creative Alliance for our first Happy Hour of 2012. Among the conversations, Scott Burkholder, Executive Director of The Baltimore Love Project, talked about his plans and has some amazing new projects coming up. We’ll be watching to see what’s next.

Today, Burt Kummerow gave me a guided tour of the Maryland Historical Society. In addition to the treasures of the Civil War and other conflicts that deeply touched Baltimore, I was moved by “Baltimore’s Civil Rights Era in Photographs., ca. 1940-1960.” This exhibit showcases the work of local news photographer, Paul Henderson. It features shots of Pennsylvania Avenue, Baltimore luminaries like Clarence Mitchell, Jr. and his family, and key protests such as the one in front of Ford’s Theatre. I understand from Burt that in addition to the exhibit, the MDHS owns thousands of prints. What a treasure.

Congratulations to GBCA Board member, Beatbox artist, AND Mary Sawyers Baker award winner Shodekeh. At the end of the month he is performing with Rony Barrak and The Boulder Philharmonic in Colorado.

I hope to see you this evening at the Open Walls launch in Station North Arts District tonight at 5:30 at the Windup Space. Open Walls Baltimore is an unparalleled street art project in the Station North Arts & Entertainment District. Open Walls Baltimore will build through April and May with the installation of more than twenty additional murals in time for a Final Friday celebration on May 25th.

Best,

Jeannie