Abstract Art: Making way in the White House

President Obama has made some good progress for the arts in the first 9 months of his presidency: see stimulus package. He can do more, and I am sure he will- once this Health care reform business is on its way into being, the economy is fixed and you know he has resolved two horrific wars. Or shall I say WE- cause after all it takes two to tango- and 51% of the voting public to elect a president.

This could very well be a post about volunteerism- which is more valuable now when more people need- access, educational opportunities, and hope... but it isn't.

This is just a fun blurb about how President Obama is making some changes to the permanent collection of the White House- which has been lacking in modern art- not to mention art made by people other than affluent, old, dead, white men- not that they are bad artists, just not representative of the arts, by any means. OFF THE SOAPBOX. I am excited to share with you this blog post, about what is a big step forward in arts in the white house:

By bringing works by the likes of Diebenkorn, Thomas, and Albers, as well as Jasper
Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, and Louise Nevelson, into the White House, Obama is
symbolically ridding the executive mansion—and, by extension, the U.S.
Presidency—of the xenophobia that has informed the American rejection of
abstraction. Our national fear of abstract art— “I don’t get it”—and the anger
that it can provoke—“You call that art?”—are, at least in large part, vestiges
of the anti-foreigner attitudes of the forties and fifties, which informed those
fundamentalist congressional objections to abstractionism, and gave rise to such
blots on our history as the House Un-American Activities Committee, McCarthyism,
and the electrocution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg.

Obama’s selections also demonstrate that we are smart enough to “get” abstractionism.
He’s smarter than we are, and more eloquent—and, as a graduate of Columbia and
Harvard Law, as much a member of the Ivy League elite as is President Bush. But
President Obama has repeatedly endeavored to make himself, and even his
heterogeneity, relatable. A person from a blended family, a background colored
by loss, with the problems, struggles, internal conflicts, and flaws familiar to
so many other Americans. Perhaps if one ordinary American is willing to take the
time to appreciate and understand abstraction, the rest of us may find ourselves
inspired to do the same.

Now, doesn't this give you hope that we have a president that will support the arts?

arts: its not glamorous, but you should still get paid

This is an issue close to my heart... Artists deserve to make a living wage for their art. It costs money to produce art, it takes time, training and skill. For corporations to approach artists to present their art for free is grotesque. Now- I give art away all the time- for auctions, for gifts- the same way I end up giving advice to friends for their nonprofits, and the theatre I volunteer for is an all volunteer staff... this is totally normal in the arts.

Do we deserve the tax write off or the stipends we get- yes. Does this dictate the work we do to support our passions- no. But artists should not be expected to give private industry or friends and family free or reduced cost on their items- otherwise we will never make it our livelihood. Rant inspired by Internet behemoth Google... Read about the debate here and here.

Note- when I say living wage we are a far way from it- musicians, artists and performers are all included and make relatively little compared to the cost of creating their art0 say nothing of the value. ArtistTrust has some good programs to help get artist's health care and manage businesses. If art is such an important part of our lives and culture why do we refuse to take care of our artists, our musicians and our nonprofit workers making it all happen?

Art as stimulus

National Endowment for the Arts gets a cut of the economic stimulus package- after years of cuts this is great news! Read more here. The arts are a vital part of the economy... Now lets stimulate our small not-for-profits! Everyone, go buy a ticket to something! Please!

Americans for the Arts, using Facebook to talk about arts policy

Americans for the Arts is great about using Facebook to get the word out on important Arts Policy issues. Yesterday, I received a simple message and was redirected to their policy suggestions on how the arts can become a part of the economic recovery plan- pretty smart! (This is not an entirely new idea, artists were very involved in the economic recovery program at the end of the Great Depression, Wikipedia has some information here).

Americans for the Arts released its policy recommendations to President-elect Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress, as they begin consideration of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan. The nine recommendations detail how existing federal programs, as well as new proposals, can provide critical support to the country’s arts, as well as economic infrastructure.

Go Americans for the Arts! They are harnessing the power of Social Networks, to access a demographic at the right moment of engagement, and inform people about the issues using new platforms!