DATE

TOPIC

SPEAKERS

January 28

The Creative Engine

Neil Scott Kleiman, Director, and Robin Keegan, Deputy Director, Center for an Urban Future, New York

In dialogue with Terry Clark, Professor of Sociology, University of Chicago

Subtitled "How Art and Culture is Fueling Economic Growth in New York City Neighborhoods," the report documents the roles of arts and culture in growth from Harlem to Queens over the past decade, and offers recommendations on how to make arts-fueled economic development happen. The issues it raises are important for both arts and culture organizations and for cities and neighborhoods, many of which could reap great benefits from the type of arts and culture-fueled growth that some communities already have experienced.

February 18

The Lessons of the Chihuly Show

Melissa Harris-Lacewell, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago
Respondent TBA.

The Chihuly exhibit has created a citywide and national buzz, has attracted visitors from all over the world, and has reminded Chicagoans of a previously neglected landmark in the city. But has it contributed to the economic and social development of the poor and predominantly African-American neighborhood that surrounds it? What is the impact of this show on the mostly middle-class audiences visiting it for probably the first time? What lessons can this show provide city and arts planners looking to integrate arts and culture projects into community development? This project includes an examination of key economic indicators, an analysis of public and leadership opinion, and an investigation of similar art based redevelopment strategies, and recommendations for future endeavors of this type.

March 11

The Social Impact of the Arts

Mark Stern, Professor, University of Pennsylvania School of Social Work and Director, Social Impact of the Arts Project.
Respondent TBA.

The Social Impact of the Arts Project (SIAP) has done extensive investigations of the importance of the arts and culture for community building, focusing its research on Philadelphia. For instance, SIAP evaluated the William Penn Foundation’s Culture Builds Community initiative, which sought to improve the organizational capacity of community cultural providers and to support their efforts to strengthen their role in community building, and in 2001, SIAP collaborated with The Reinvestment Fund (TRF) on a project designed to combine SIAP's indicators of neighborhood assets with TRF’s more extensive set of indicators. In 2002, SIAP received funding for a new project -- "Documenting Culture's Reach" –- that will allow them to examine the dynamics of the cultural sector and its relationship to other social factors.

April 29

The Visual Art Critic

Andras Szanto, Deputy Director, National Arts Journalism Program, Columbia University
In dialogue with James Elkins, Professor of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, School of the Art Institute.

In 2002 the NAJP completed an intensive survey of visual arts critics and released the results in a detailed report. Does the popular news media provide sufficient exposure for artists, arts institutions and the ideas that govern their work? The findings of this unprecedented survey suggest that although arts critics have carved out an important role at many news publications, on the whole criticism has been struggling to keep up with the swift evolution of the art world. Art is underrepresented in news coverage and critics are underemployed. These signs of vulnerability contrast with the art world’s exuberance during the last two decades.