Emerging Arts Leaders

EMERGING ARTS LEADERS ORGANIZE
Creative Conversations Part II: Advocacy in a Changing Market
Wednesday May 23, 2007
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Langston Hughes Cultural Arts Center
104 17th Ave S
Seattle, WA

As arts programming evolves in the Puget Sound region, arts advocacy takes on new meanings. “Advocacy in a Changing Market,” Part II of the Emerging Arts Leaders Creative Conversations series, will explore the issues of arts advocacy on a legislative, community building, and personal/professional level. The event will kick off with the insights of panelists Gretchen Johnston (Washington State Arts Alliance), Denee McCloud (Central District Forum for Arts & Ideas), Richard Andrews (Henry Art Gallery) and James Keblas (Office of Film and Music), and will open up to a moderated forum for response and group discussion.

The Creative Conversations are a collaborative initiative organized by emerging arts leaders for emerging arts leaders. The events provide opportunities for emerging arts leaders to engage with the professionals that have helped build the foundation for arts in Seattle. Moderators at each forum help initiate and guide successful dialogue.

The conversations are being recorded by the documentary team, Nonfiction Media. Their “docuportrait” will bring the Creative Conversations series to a wider audience of arts leaders at a public meeting in October 2007 (Arts & Humanities Month).

Part II panelist bios:
Gretchen Johnston, Executive Director, Washington State Arts Alliance (wsartsalliance.com)
Gretchen Johnston elected as SAAN Council Vice Chair, is the executive director of the Washington State Arts Alliance, the statewide membership organization dedicated to arts advocacy. Ms. Johnson has a B.A. in theater from Eastern Washington University. She has worked in both the visual and performing arts as an individual artist, a teacher, a gallery owner, and an administrator.

Denee McCloud, Program Director, Central District Forum for Arts & Ideas (cdforum.org)
Denee McCloud currently serves as the Program Director for the Central District Forum for Arts & Ideas where she curates and directs a multidisciplinary season of lectures/discussions, performances, youth/family programs, and community collaborations. While at the CD Forum, she is dedicated to creating programs that enhance the appreciation of contemporary African-American culture and offer new perspectives on African-American history. Prior to moving to Seattle, Denee was the Cultural Participation Programs’ Associate, for the Association of Performing Arts Presenters in Washington, DC, a membership organization, dedicated to bringing performing artists and audiences together in every place and way imaginable. Denee has held positions with the Ohio Dance Festival, Momentum Dance Theatre, and Experience Music Project. Currently, Denee is an On-site Evaluator for 4Culture and serves on the board of the Washington State Arts Alliance Foundation. Denee holds a B.A. in Management and Minor in Accounting from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and has completed her course work towards a M.A. in Arts Administration from the University of Akron.

Richard Andrews, Director, Henry Art Gallery (henryart.org)
Richard Andrews has nineteen years of experience as the Director of the Henry Art Gallery. Under his leadership, a $24,000,000 Capital and Endowment Campaign for the renovation of the existing facility and a 37,000 square foot addition was successfully completed in 1997. In addition to his responsibilities as Director, he was the curator for Maya Lin: Systematic Landscapes (2006), and James Turrell: Knowing Light (2003), and served as co-curator for Art Into Life: Russian Constructivism 1914-1932, (1991), and James Turrell: Works 1967-1992. Mr. Andrews served as Director of the Visual Arts Program at the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, D.C. from 1984 – 1987, where he administered a $6 million program of fellowships and grants and was responsible for developing national policies affecting visual artists and arts organizations. Mr. Andrews is currently a board member of the Skystone Foundation, the Washington Art Consortium, the Seattle Arts Commission and previously served on the board of trustees for the Association of Art Museum Directors.

James Keblas, Director, City of Seattle Mayor’s Office of Film and Music (seattle.gov/filmandmusic)
James Keblas is the Director for the City of Seattle’s Mayor’s Office of Film and Music. James is responsible for developing strategies and policies that support Seattle as a place to create, produce and enjoy film and music. Self described as a “punk rocker with an education” he has made waves in Seattle’s music and political scene. He first made his mark working at NastyMix Records and later organizing events at the legendary Velvet Elvis Arts Lounge.
James took that experience and his passion for civic engagement to another level when he and other community members turned Seattle’s once oppressive stance towards music into one of support and growth. James was Co-founder and the original Executive Director of the Vera Project, a nationally recognized nonprofit, music-arts center run by and for youth in Seattle. As a graduate from the University of Washington’s School of Urban Design and Community Planning, James has worked with a handful of cultural organizations and served for two years both as a Seattle Arts Commissioner and a Music Advisory Member.
He is also nurturing the Music Office Network, a group of diverse, critical thinkers from government music commissions and agencies to share creative ideas to successfully balance community concerns with enhanced opportunities for music and entertainment.

In October 2006, emerging leaders from 4Culture, the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs, the City of Bellevue, Shunpike, the Capitol Hill Arts Center, and the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center co-hosted two gatherings for the region’s emerging arts leaders. Over 100 leaders participated, emerging and established alike - dedicated and passionate artists, administrators, non-profits, governmental organizations, and arts commissioners from around the Puget Sound area. These meetings gave birth to the Creative Conversation series. It is clear from the level of participation that there is a far-ranging interest in sustaining this dialogue.