RACC Blog

Candidates Take on Arts and Culture

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Eloise’s Blog:

First of all, thanks to the many hundreds of people who just about filled the Gerding Theater at the Armory for our candidates forum. Your numbers underscored for the candidates on stage how important this topic is for our city. Thanks also to the five candidates who came prepared and spoke with eloquence, passion and ideas about how as elected officials they can work with all of us to continue strengthening this vital sector. And last but certainly not least we thank Portland Center Stage for hosting, OPB for providing the stellar moderator, April Baer and her crew, and City Club for helping to publicize and for adding Civic Drinks to the a post-forum discussion.

You may hear the edited version of the forum on April’s “State of Wonder” on OPB radio.  Meanwhile I will share a few highlights that struck me.

When asked about their vision for the City, both Mayoral candidates, Jules Bailey and Ted Wheeler, characterized themselves as passionate arts supporters and promised to be future champions for the arts.  Both will reinstate arts staffer(s) to the Mayor’s office and collaborate with Commissioners around placement of the arts portfolio. Jules focused on wanting to make the city great for everyone and highlighted the role of the arts as “bedrock of the community” – a fundamental service. Ted cited statistics about arts related jobs, cultural tourism, the huge impact of the city’s modest investment in RACC, and reminded the audience that he was on the Cultural Advocacy Network Steering Committee with Mayor Adams, which ultimately resulted in the passage of the Arts Education and Access Fund. Jules pointed out that he was responsible for almost doubling RACC’s Multnomah County’s allocation this year and pledged to do more. Ted championed his leadership in bumping the Percent for Art set aside to 2% when he chaired that County Board of Commissioners.

And speaking of the Arts Tax, Commissioner Fritz stated how proud she is to have voted with Council to unanimously refer the tax to the voters and how important the new art and music shopantibioticsonline teachers are to Portland schools. And, while the tax has not resulted in the expected funds to support arts organizations there is  increased support as a result of the measure’s passage. Commissioner Novick and candidate Stuart Emmons agreed with Commissioner Fritz that the regressiveness of the tax and its collections’ cost and process could use improvement, but no one on stage suggested taking the measure back to the voters nor did they offer concrete solutions about how to improve it. Jules Bailey did suggest that the City should take responsibility to “back fill” the financial short-comings.

Photo: John Strieder/OPB

Photo: John Strieder/OPB

There was universal concern about  critical problems facing the city — homelessness, affordable housing, aging infrastructure, the potential loss of artists, arts venues and Portland’s creative edge. Stuart vowed to bring connectivity and creativity back into City Hall. Amanda commented on the need for repairing broken services and noted that she passed a measure requiring half of surplus funds be spent on these basic services. Steve admitted that sometimes Council makes funding decisions without as much discussion as might be warranted, such as for the indoor track and field finalists events. Jules is very committed to connecting arts and social services and vowed to work with RACC to ensure that funds are spent in that direction benefitting people who need safety nets. Ted echoed this need for accountability for all public funds. He also believes the city can work with the state on new solutions to affordable housing issues.

There was so much more.  I urge you to listen to OPB. Also, RACC will soon send a survey to all candidates asking for their thoughts on these and other important issues to the arts community. Since we were unable yesterday to accommodate the many people who have generously stepped up to run, some of whom are arts supporters and/or practitioners, we hope that all will participate in the survey  and that you will follow their responses on RACC’s website. The season appears to be well under way.

-Eloise Damrosch

RACC extends the John C. Hampton Award for Outstanding Leadership in the Arts to The Standard’s Greg Ness

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PORTLAND, ORE — On February 24th the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) will host the annual Arts Breakfast of Champions where it will award The Standard’s Greg Ness with The John C. Hampton Award for Outstanding Leadership in the Arts. The award has only been given out three times and will be presented to Ness by Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish.

Ness is the Chairman, President and CEO of The Standard, where he started in 1979. He is a strong advocate for The Standard’s giving in the arts sector. He has personally given 16 years of service to Portland Center Stage, six of which he served as Board Chair. Ness has also chaired the Armory Theater Fund Board and was instrumental in securing funds for the acquisition, development and maintenance of the Bob and Diana Gerding Theatre.

Under Ness’ leadership, The Standard consistently ranks in the top five for arts giving, and each year runs an unsurpassed employee giving campaign during which the company matches employee giving dollar-for-dollar. In 2015 alone, The Standard’s employee campaign raised more than $2.2 million for the arts, schools and other nonprofits. They are leaders in the Work for Art program, and Ness’ personal commitment to supporting art is clearly infused throughout his company.

Ness believes that arts and cultural organizations play a major role in vibrant communities and that they have the potential to change the way we look at things. The Hampton Award honors and celebrates his commitment to supporting the arts in the Portland metropolitan region.

John C. Hampton was head of Oregon’s largest lumber manufacturer, Hampton Affiliates. In the early 1980s he took the idea to provide long-term funding for three of Portland’s major arts institutions—Portland Opera, Portland Art Museum and Oregon Symphony—and helped establish permanent, restricted endowments for each.

Hampton has said to business leaders, “The arts are not a frill. The arts are not a luxury. The arts are vital to our existence. Without art, without literature, without theatre, without music, without culture, we are a barren society that will atrophy and die. The arts are essential components of the fabric of our society. The arts stimulate the part of our being that is central to progress. The arts are not peripheral to our existence. They are fundamental to our core values.”

The award is for a business leader who not only gives, but inspires others to give; shares his passion for the arts; encourages his employees to participate in the arts and has chaired arts boards or major fundraising campaigns.

The Arts Breakfast of Champions was started in 1995 by Northwest Business for Culture and the Arts as an annual celebration of corporate philanthropy. As NWBCA closed its doors in the summer of 2015, RACC adopted this important event and established a new Business Committee for the Arts that is continuing this breakfast.

In addition to the John C. Hampton Award, the event will honor Business Champions for the Arts,  Work for Arts Champions, Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, a Small Business Champion and an Inspirational Creative Partnership.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council serves artists, arts organizations, schools and residents throughout Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties. RACC values a diversity of artistic and cultural experiences and works to build a community in which everyone can participate in culture, creativity and the arts.

Event details:

Wednesday, February 24, 2016
8AM event, with pre-event coffee and networking starting at 7:30AM

Portland Art Museum
1219 SW Park Ave.
Portland, OR 97205

Tickets are $125 at www.regonline.com/2016ABOC.  

Issued by RACC on 2/17/16

Battle of the Bands scheduled for May 12 at the Crystal Ballroom

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PORTLAND, ORE — Tickets are now on sale for Work for Art’s first annual Battle of the Bands competition, a celebration of employee creativity at the Crystal Ballroom on May 12, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. All proceeds benefit Work for Art, a program of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

Eight company bands (employees who play music on the side) will perform in front of friends, family, co-workers and a panel of celebrity judges as they vie for the title of Best Company Band. Several other prizes will be awarded as well, including Audience Favorite.

Each band will have 10 minutes to perform any genre of music they choose, with a five minute break between each band. Six of the eight available spots have been filled; confirmed bands include NW Natural, Portland General Electric, KeyBank, The Standard, Tonkon Torp and ZGF Architects.

Work for Art, celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year, is on a mission to raise $1 Million for local nonprofit arts organizations by June 30th, primarily through workplace giving and other partnerships with local businesses. The 2015-16 campaign co-chairs are Mike Golub, President of Business Operations for the Portland Timbers, and David Lofland, President of KeyBank Oregon and SW Washington. All proceeds from Work for Art and Battle of the Bands will be granted to approximately 100 nonprofit arts and culture organizations in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties.

Sponsorship and underwriting support for Battle of the Bands is provided by Alpha Media/KINK 101.9, Burgerville, NW Natural, Portland General Electric, Portland Timbers, KeyBank, Oregon Cultural Trust, The Standard, Willamette Week and ZGF Architects.

Tickets are $10 each, available at The Crystal Ballroom box office at 1332 West Burnside Street in Portland; by phone at 1-855-CAS-TIXX; or online at http://bit.ly/WFABattleOfTheBands. A limited number of VIP tickets are available for $100 each, including complimentary food and beverage plus reserved seating. For sponsorship opportunities and other information, contact Jeff Hawthorne at 503-823-5258 or visit http://workforart.org/bob.

LINK: VISIT WEBSITE
Issued by RACC on 2/17/16

“FMRL,” an installation by Tyler Corbett & Erinn Kathryn at the Portland Building, 2/16—3/11

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PORTLAND, ORE – The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is pleased to present FMRL, a new installation by Tyler Corbett and Erinn Kathryn on exhibit February 16 through March 11, 2016 at the Installation Space in the Portland Building. Viewing hours are Monday – Friday, 8 am to 5 pm, or by special appointment.

FMRL is constructed from thousands of ephemeral bits of refuse collected from the streets of Portland’s inner city. Throughout 2015 the artists systematically scoured the sidewalks, bridges and gutters of the downtown and eastside industrial neighborhoods gathering tiny pieces of plastic, paper and metal. The amorphous, fractured fragments are arranged across the walls, floor and ceiling of the Installation Space to form a radiating network of colorful pathways and meandering trails. With careful study individual objects emerge from the sea of trash. The once unrecognizable forms become familiar, yielding an intimate examination of the ubiquitous products and materials that are consumed and discarded in our town.

About the Artists: Interdisciplinary artists Tyler Corbett and Erinn Kathryn are a collaborative team working in Portland, Oregon. Through painting, sculpture, installation, photography and video, they address geography, space and scale. They spend extensive time studying topographical maps, aerial photography and satellite data, and traversing landscapes that are eventually interpreted in their work. Corbett and Kathryn were 2014 RACC Project Grant recipients and as collaborators have had featured exhibitions at the Multnomah Arts Center and Lightbox Kulturhaus in Portland, Lovell Showroom in Astoria, Oregon, and at the Alaska House Gallery in Fairbanks, Alaska. They have participated in group exhibitions at the Peoples Art of Portland Gallery and at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Their work based on Denali National Park has become part of the permanent collection of the Museum of the North in Fairbanks. For more information please visit http://tylercorbett.com and  http://www.erinnkathryn.com

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. FMRL runs from February 16 through March 11, 2016.

For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space, including images, proposals, and statements for all projects dating back to 1994, go to  http://racc.org/installationspace.

Issued by RACC on 2/2/16

Arts champions to be honored on February 24

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PORTLAND, ORE — The 2016 Arts Breakfast of Champions is coming up fast! More than 400 community leaders will celebrate some of the region’s most powerful partnerships between arts and business on Wednesday, February 24 from 7:30-9:00 a.m. at the Portland Art Museum. Tickets are on sale now at http://bit.ly/1RUiQUV.

The Arts Breakfast of Champions was established in 1995 by Northwest Business for Culture and the Arts (NWBCA) as an annual celebration of corporate philanthropy. RACC has established a new Business Committee for the Arts (BCA) that is continuing the breakfast event to recognize top corporate donors to the arts, and to provide motivating examples of how businesses are using the arts to inspire employees, stimulate innovation and foster creative collaboration.

This year’s honorees include:

  • Top corporate donors to the arts, including Portland General Electric, US Bank, Umpqua Bank, Wells Fargo, Vulcan Inc., The Standard, The Boeing Company and KeyBank.
     
  • The John C. Hampton Award for Outstanding Leadership in the Arts: Greg Ness, CEO, The Standard
     
  • Inspirational creative partnership: Umpqua Bank and Portland Center Stage
     
  • Small business champion: Bill Dickey, Owner, Morel Ink
     
  • Work for Art champions: Portland General Electric, Burgerville and the Oregon Cultural Trust

In addition, Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici from Oregon’s 1st Congressional District will receive special recognition for her work on arts education. As part of congressional committee to reform public education in late 2015, Representative Bonamici won unanimous approval for her amendment to integrate the arts into science, technology, engineering and math education. Her “STEM to STEAM” provision was included in the Every Student Succeeds Act, which President Obama signed into law on December 10, effectively restoring arts education for millions of students and our nation’s future workforce.

The 2016 Arts Breakfast of Champions is presented by The Regional Arts & Culture Council and sponsored byPortland General Electric. Supporting sponsors include Columbia Bank, Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, The Standard, US Bank and Vibrant Table.

Tickets for the Arts Breakfast of Champions are $125 each, or $75 for employees of local nonprofit arts organizations. Tables and sponsorships are available at http://bit.ly/1RUiQUV.

LINK: REGISTER
 
Issued by RACC on 2/1/16 
 

RACC celebrates Portland Winter Light Festival on First Thursday with Night Lights: Bodies in Motion, Bodies at Rest

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WHO: Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), Hollywood Theatre, Portland Winter Light Festival

WHAT: Bodies in Motion, Bodies at Rest, part of the Night Lights video projection series

WHEN: Thursday February 4 from 5:00 to 9:00 pm

WHERE: RACC, 411 NW Park Avenue, Portland, OR 97209. Video projected on the North wall, facing NW Glisan Street

Since September of 2015 RACC and Hollywood Theatre have been collaborating on a First Thursday projection series in the Pearl District called Night Lights. February’s projection is a special collaboration with the Portland Winter Light Festival. Portland artist Fernanda D’Agostino has curated seven Oregon video artists to explore “bodies in motion and bodies at rest” from a wide range of sensibilities.

  • Fernanda D’Agostino investigates both the psychology and science of movement.
  • Penda Diakite analyzes the body as a source of cultural identity and expression.
  • Dancer/Artist Kelly Rauer creates a landscape of movement with her own body as the subject.
  • Julie Perini and Stephen Slappe study the strangeness of everyday experience and how the mundane details of life can take on a sense of mystery.
  • Mack McFarland investigates in his videos the visceral aesthetics and engages viewers in an examination of the nature of perception.
  • Ying Tan’s bodies in motion are sometimes bodies of water or the bodies of other creatures and invite reflection and contemplation.

Their large-scale video projections will be displayed on the large outside wall at RACC and can be viewed from the parking lot.

LINK: PORTLAND WINTER LIGHT FESTIVAL
Issued by RACC on 1/26/16

RACC unveils new “Arts Equity” grant opportunity; letters of interest due February 24

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PORTLAND, ORE — With funding from Multnomah County and the City of Portland’s voter-approved Arts Education and Access Fund, the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) will invest a total of $100,000 in nonprofit organizations that are providing arts and culture programs and services for marginalized communities, including geographically underserved neighborhoods; communities of color, immigrants, and refugees; persons with disabilities; LGBTQ  communities; and other under-represented populations.

Nonprofit organizations that are based in Portland and/or Multnomah County are encouraged to submit proposals for artistic programs and projects occurring between July 1, 2016 and June 30, 2017. To begin the application process, organizations should submit a Letter of Interest (LOI) online at racc.culturegrants.org by February 24 at 5:00 p.m. Applicants whose LOIs best meet the objectives of this grant program will be invited to submit a full application in March.

Grant awards will be announced in May, and will range from $1,000 to $7,000 each. The types of activities that RACC intends to fund include, but are not limited to:

  • Community events that highlight and promote the art and culture of a particular community
  • Events or programs that give underserved artists increased outlets to promote and market their work
  • Programs that provide technical assistance and other learning opportunities for artists in culturally specific communities
  • Arts programming within underrepresented communities

“In terms of audience and impact, these new Arts Equity Grants are similar to the Expanding Cultural Access grants that RACC has funded for the last three years,” said RACC grants officer Helen Daltoso. “After piloting these grants for the last three years, we’ve formalized the program, doubled the budget and improved the online application process,” Daltoso explained. All guidelines and application materials are available online atracc.culturegrants.org.

RACC provides one-on-one assistance to applicants as needed, including feedback on draft applications and letters of interest; contact Quinn MacNichol at 503- 823-2928 or qmacnichol@racc.org for more information.

RACC will also host three free information sessions to help community members learn more about the Arts Equity Grant and how to apply:

  • Thursday, January 28, 3-5pm at RACC’s offices, 411 NW Park Ave, Suite 101, Portland
  • Thursday, February 4, 3-5pm at Gresham City Hall Council Chambers, 1333 Eastman Parkway, Gresham
  • An additional information session in East Portland is being scheduled and information will be posted atracc.culturegrants.org as soon as it is available.

To RSVP for an information session, contact Quinn MacNichol at qmacnichol@racc.org. For more information about the Arts Equity Grant, and a summary of other grant programs and deadlines, visit racc.culturegrants.org.

Key deadline: February 24, 2016 at 5:00 pm – LOI due online at racc.culturegrants.org.

How Arts Equity Grants are funded:

  • $50,000 is funded by Multnomah County, which increased its general fund investment to RACC in FY16 for the purpose of expanding arts access and support for East County and other underserved populations.
  • $50,000 is funded by The Arts Education and Access Fund (AEAF), approved by Portland voters in November, 2012. The AEAF funds at least one art or music teacher in every public elementary school in Portland, and funds RACC to bring arts, culture and creativity to life for every Portland resident. For more information, visit www.racc.org/aeaf.

About RACC: The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) was established in 1995 and is funded by public and private partners to serve artists, arts organizations, schools and residents throughout Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties. RACC provides grants for artists, nonprofit organizations and schools; manages an internationally acclaimed public art program; raises money and awareness for the arts through workplace giving and other programs; convenes forums, networking events and other community gatherings; provides workshops and other forms of technical assistance for artists; and integrates the arts into K-8 curriculum through The Right Brain Initiative. Online at www.racc.org.

Guestwork’s “Accounting for Public Interest” unfolds at the Portland Building January 11th – February 6th

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PORTLAND, ORE – Accounting for Public Interest, a playful interactive poll by artists Travis Neel and Erin Charpentier (a.k.a. Guestwork), opens at the Portland Building January 11th. The project examines the relationship between Portland residents and their ideal city and engages visitors in a game of critical thinking that guides participants through a series of exercises that compare and contrast a Portland of the past, present, and future. At designated hours throughout the duration of the exhibition Guestwork will perform as pollsters and conduct their survey in person, but the installation will also include voting booths, ballots, questionnaires and signage to be interacted with when the artists are not present. In the final week of the exhibition, a series of graphics with the results of the survey will be installed.

“The questionnaire will contain a series of predetermined binary questions such as ‘Would you rather have a city of private property or a city of commonwealth?’ and ‘Would you rather have a revolutionary city or a city of consistency?’ After voting, participants will cast their questionnaire into a ballot box. The votes will be counted, compiled and displayed as infographics.” — Guestwork

Using the familiar mechanism of voting Accounting for Public Interest works to thoughtfully and whimsically examine the way Portland functions as a civic body; through the exploration of civic language, affects, and gestures, the game facilitates a critical examination of the relationship of the citizen to private ownership, public authority, and the commons.

Viewing Hours & Location: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in down-town Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. Accounting for Public Interest runs from January 11th through February 5th, 2016.

For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space, including images, proposals, and statements for all projects dating back to 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.