A Long Range Plan for the Arts in South Carolina,
2011-2020

Thursday, March 18

S.C. Arts Alliance board meeting

Here's what we heard at a board meeting of the S.C. Arts Alliance:

What is one thing that is working in the arts, either in your community, the state or elsewhere?

• Participation: asked public/ prioritizing/programming
• Children’s productions – great involvement
• Spoleto festival – individual contributions up, ticket sales up
• Columbia museum, S.C. Philharmonic – increased audience
  -others doing well with participation, depth of knowledge increased
• Rural – cognitive awareness of arts – they’re vital, there will be a benefit from the arts (Florence)
• Surge in personal participation, dance, etc. (Spartanburg); increase in the use of technology (texting $ to Haiti, e.g.)
• Salkahatchie Stew – taking what we learned from national group and translating it to totally local grassroots effort- ages 3 to 9, very diverse
• ABBCH counties – five-county regional effort

  Charleston – collaboration (school or arts, Gibbes) classes; art history and drawing; innovation/ participation – new arts groups; Pecha Kuchu; art in empty storefronts: walk gallery (art in windows); arts coalition – young innovative visual artists; enthusiastic

• Arts education - when understanding of arts happens, participation happens – state arts infusion (it’s working) model ; Shy student learning in new way, e.g.
• Florence - centralizing of arts – redevelopment of downtown; art trails gallery (empty furniture store); arts groups working together – all groups contributing to this effort
• People looking for ways to come together – not cocooning as much
• Arts infusion works: Hilton Head High School creative arts
• Arts groups working together: bravo
• Arts groups + community + tourism = collaboration
• Artist community in Rock Hill
• ACE public art
• Four school districts Public Banner Project
• Teachers choice art show
• Brooks Center – free ticket; goal of making arts available to those not usually engaged – women’s shelters
• Economic development in Greenwood – museum, arts co-op, artist in residence
• More visibility, more requests for space to exhibit (new and emerging artists)
• More partnerships with schoolsFrom 10 – 25 exhibits in one year
  

What is one of the biggest challenges facing the arts?

• Charleston - Fear that established organizations are fighting over limited donor pool
• How do professional artists continue to earn living in this climate? 
• Spoleto sucks up the air (well established orgs. v. young/new ones)
• Challenge of audiences – younger at “spectacle-oriented” events
• New ways of communicating
• Being creative in using technology
• Tourism shifting – changing demographic; younger families want bikes, pizza
• Regular audience
• The message and the medium – demographic is looking for specifics; seeing split in cultures and expectation – need common ground in stories we tell
• Testing pushes arts aside in classrooms
• Emphasis on tracks in K-12 (SC Education  Econ. Dev. Act)
• STEM needs to integrate arts to merge left brain thinking with right brain
• Elected officials
• Time to manage FaceBook and Twitter communications
• Frenzy may be affecting quality purpose/relevance or art; reason why we’re doing art; blurring of lines
• Do we have greater responsibility to advance creative side of the arts v economic development by arts?
• Perception of art by parents that does not lead to encouraging students to participate or pursue

What is a great opportunity for the arts in our state?

• Creative clusters (new ways of marketing, money moving and possibilities)
• New arts standards now include media arts
• Mobile data
• Virtual arts
• In push for innovation, arts should lead the way
• Making connecting between artists/artisans and business – state as arts incubator
• Look back and consider successes; accentuate positives