Individual artists brainstormed about the future for artists in San Diego. They addressed the question: What would the DREAM community for individual artists in San Diego look like?
Based on the brainstorm, we identified several categories: collaborations, network, venues, work opportunities, government/infrastructure, funding, outreach/marketing, cultural shift and education.
Here are detailed notes from that brainstorm:
COLLABORATIONS
· People/person whose job it is to connect artists with venues/a “go-to” person (at the SD Foundation?)
· Angel
· Formal structure for creating collaborations (a job, a non profit organization)
· Cross-collaborations/partnerships. For example, galleries host music series, dancers dance in the museum. Expand the audience for each genre and would lead donors giving outside their usual giving niche.
· Focus on diversity and multi-culturalism
· Educational institutions should become more integrated in the San Diego arts community.
· More inclusion eg. Museums
NETWORK
· More parties!—to connect artists with venues/spaces and with each other
· Everyone in this room, connected to each other; via e-mail, e-newsletter, in real life!
· Affiliated artist directory—with an e-news featuring artist of the week/month
· Network/Think Tank: ongoing conversations with arts organizations and artists. (Monthly/multiple times a year). Cross-discipline/multiple levels of experience. Break down “self enclosed” arts communities and become ONE art community.
· Get together IN REAL LIFE; not online!
· Attract cutting edge artists.
VENUES
· Permanent arts district/cultural arts center with focus on diversity and multi-culturalism
· Create development program for more spaces; galleries, workspaces
· Using the outdoors in a more creative way as a venue.
· Increased avenues for exhibition. It’s one thing to make art—we want new places to show it!
· Provide low-cost space for organizations/individual artists.
· Provide insurance for spaces.
· Venues in a range of sizes; small, medium and large, but an emphasis on smaller galleries, black boxes, stages.
· Rent-free spaces for artists
· To deal with issue of spread out geography—have a “trolley” art walk.
· (Direct transcription) More chances to step up to recreate what needs to be beautified. More open/broad, selective for artists for where they create or perform for keeping the environment in all aspects clean and more wonderful living saces, homes, city. Effect.
· Permanent affordable living and working space.
WORK OPPORTUNTIES:
· Possible for a “gigging” musician to make a living; more chamber music series, not necessarily big budget, smaller organizations presenting concerts
· Online clearinghouse/skills bank for artists with a searchable database
· Established Artists-in-Residencies (year-long) that includes support for showing the work/performing beyond the residency
· We need writers and critics!
· More public art opportunities
GOVERNMENT/INFRASTRUCTURE:
· Arts Infrastructure; build financial requirements into government interactions with the private structure-
· Financial incentives for arts organizations and galleries
· Affordable housing for artists
· City/government policies like 2% for art in which real estate developers have to pay a portion to support arts.
FUNDING
· Arts a priority with the city, county
· Individual artists have access to funding without being affiliated with a 501 C3
· Collectors would actually be interested in BUYING art in San Diego.
· (Direct transcription) Budget/Loan options: asking for a money loan for half or less. Negotiate what’s needed, what is already met and what could be used reasonably. Straight forward/put down. Extremely tight. Structural and only when proven validations and qualifications.
OUTREACH/MARKETING
· Centralized website that addresses cultural events; with a calendar, but MORE—links to arts blogs, reviews, reflecting a diversity of voices. Ideas include: links, music and arts departments, ability for artists to make their own page/link/profile.
· More coverage of what is already happening; newspapers, magazines, all forms of media
· (Direct Transcription) More Advertisement opportunities. Media/News/radio/business opportunities. Arts buildings not just schools. Imagine a small school or large library sized building with many rooms. Possibly a small auditorium, a teacher, rent room space for classes, personal business opportunities at community center.
· Market ourselves as artists.
· Tie in with “Americans for the Arts” conference
CULTURAL SHIFT
· Help people understand the “value of art” and to value the role of artists
· Make the arts important: cultural shift valuing arts/vibrant force in the community.
· Local artists need to believe in themselves! We are deserving.
EDUCATION:
· Education for artists; seminars, new technology, social networking
· Develop educational programs for collectors
· Arts education: build art appreciation in schools with partner organizations.
· Arts education: Restore arts programs in the schools and community to support arts education and artists as teachers; awareness, invest in service learning.
· Forums/education sessions for buyers to learn where/how to buy art. To generate a demand for art by developing the collector population.
· Teach creativity (in schools too much emphasis on academics)
· Showcase border culture
