RACC Blog

Now available: RACC’s 2013 annual report

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PORTLAND, OR — Today the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) released its annual report for 2013. This year’s report, designed entirely as an online experience, is available at www.racc.org/2013annualreport. It includes highlights of RACC’s activities last year in service to artists and arts organizations in Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties.
 
Among the organization’s accomplishments in 2013:
  • RACC advanced its equity and inclusion work by developing new funding opportunities for culturally-specific communities, and providing more equity resources for RACC-funded organizations.
  • RACC raised over $444,000 in earned income and nearly $700,000 in private sector contributions – including corporate donations, foundation grants, and workplace giving contributions.  
  • RACC maintained low management and general expenses, at 11.5%.
  • RACC awarded $3.3 million to artists, arts organizations and schools. Seventy-four citizen volunteers participated in the grant review process last year.
  • The Right Brain Initiative is now serving more than 14,000 students at 49 schools in six districts across the region.
  • RACC completed several large-scale public art projects last year, including Inversion: Plus/Minus and Streetcar Stop for Portland, as well as several smaller projects and four community murals.

RACC will present this report formally to Portland City Council at its annual “State of the Arts” presentation this spring, tentatively scheduled for the afternoon of Wednesday, April 23rd. For more information, contact Jeff Hawthorne at jhawthorne@racc.org; 503-823-5258.

Joseph Kucinski’s installation “The Tenacity of Change” opens at the Portland Building February 18

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PORTLAND, ORE –  Joseph Kucinski’s upcoming installation at the Portland Building is aimed at capturing a moment of wonderment and curious expectation. To accomplish this he looks to his childhood for inspiration: “The world was alive and everything in it could be a new adventure, even the mundane garage had infinite possibilities.”
Kucinski’s exuberance is contagious as he employs the humble garage door as his jumping-off point for a discussion on the wonder the future can hold. The installation, which includes a full scale roll-up garage door built to fit the main wall, positions the viewer inside a mock garage to contemplate a flood of mysterious light leaking in from “outside,” light that beckons those with imagination to explore what lies beyond.
“Even as we lose our innocence with age and saddle growing responsibility, it is more important than ever to keep intact that sense of wonderment and open the door. Enter the light.”
About the Artist:  Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, Joseph Kucinski now calls Portland home.   He has shown his work nationally and internationally and in 2012 was featured in the Dublin Biennial.  Kucinski works in both two and three dimensions, but is best known for his large scale ink and oil paintings that often incorporate unexpected media such as sand, gold leaf and copper.  His work is featured in detail at www.josephkucinski.com where visitors will also find a short documentary about the artist by filmmaker Brandon Reed.
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. 
For more information on the Portland Building Installation Space series, including images, proposals and statements for all the installations since 1994, go to www.racc.org/installationspace.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council seeks proposals to provide arts access for underserved communities

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Portland, Ore – The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) invites nonprofit organizations in the City of Portland to submit proposals for projects that provide arts-related services to communities of color, immigrants, refugees, Disabled and LGTBQ communities. Applications are due by March 14 at 5:00 p.m. In May, RACC will announce grant awards ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 each, for a total of $26,000, through its “Expanding Cultural Access” program.
 
RACC values a community in which everyone can participate in arts and culture. With funding from the city’s new Arts Education and Access Fund, RACC is eager to support organizations whose programs and projects are expanding access to the arts. This round of grants will be targeted toward communities that have historically been underserved in the past; examples of competitive proposals might include:

  • An event or program that gives underserved artists increased outlets to promote and market their work.
  • A technical assistance/learning/training program for artists in underserved cultural communities.
  • A community event that highlights and promotes the art and culture of one particular community or many different communities. 
Organizations that have already received funding through RACC’s Project Grant program or RACC’s General Operating Support program in calendar years 2013 and 2014 are not eligible to apply. 
 
For more information on how to apply, including all criteria, visit www.racc.org/access. 
 
RACC’s outreach specialist, Tonisha Toler, is also available to help organizations with their proposals; Tonisha can be reached by email at ttoler@racc.org or by phone at 503-823-5866.
The RFP is also available in Spanish and other languages upon request, and applicants whose primary fluency is in a language other than English can call 503-823-5071 to receive live, over-the-phone interpreted assistance from RACC. 

RACC announces first wave of Arts Education and Access Fund investments

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44 local arts organizations will receive grants immediately
 
PORTLAND, ORE – The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) today announced it has awarded 44 grants totaling $150,072 to local arts organizations. The announcement comes on the heels of the first round of payments from the City of Portland’s Arts Education and Access Fund (AEAF). In addition to $200,000 directed to RACC, local school districts received a total of $3.3 million from the AEAF to fund arts specialists.
 
“All of us at RACC are eager to help arts organizations provide more public access to the arts,” said Eloise Damrosch, executive director of RACC. “The 44 grant recipients announced today, plus the investment plan for the remainder of the $200,000 will help do just that by supporting arts organizations across the region and with a broad range of programs and constituents.”
 
In addition to $150,072 being distributed immediately, the remaining funds have been allocated as follows:

  • $26,000 will be invested in nonprofit organizations that do not already receive RACC General Operating Support but are working with underserved communities through the arts, including communities of color, the Disabled community, and LGBTQ communities. An RFP will be available online at www.racc.org/accessstarting February 5, 2014. The deadline to apply is March 14 and decisions will be announced in May.
  • $13,000 will fund arts education coordination expenses incurred by RACC during the 2013-14 school year, including 6 hours of professional development training for 26 arts specialists in Portland. This allocation also supports the City of Portland’s participation in “Any Given Child,” an arts education partnership with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.
  • RACC has up to one year to invest the remainder of the AEAF funds ($10,928) with a number of other obligations to fulfill, including a grants cycle for schools and other arts education programs.

 
RACC expects a second (and larger) allocation from the Revenue Bureau in April, but the specific amount will depend on the collection of tax payments that are now overdue. Ultimately, as compliance rates improve, RACC expects to receive annual disbursements of approximately $3 million from the AEAF.
 
These investments are consistent with all legal requirements and intents as set forth in the city code and RACC’scontract with the City of Portland. Specifically:
 

“First, funds shall be used by RACC to fund grants to support non-profit Portland arts organizations that demonstrate artistic excellence, provide service to the community, show administrative and fiscal competence and provide a wide range of high-quality arts programs to the public.” RACC has awarded $150,072 to the followingGeneral Operating Support organizations:

 
Artist Repertory Theatre, $5,700
Blue Sky Gallery, $1,134
Bodyvox, $1,882
Cappella Romana, Inc., $1,071
Chamber Music Northwest, $5,305
Children’s Healing Art Project, $1,008
Do Jump! Extremely Physical Theatre, $2,185
Ethos Music Center, $1,449
Friends of Chamber Music, $1,512
Hollywood Theatre, $1,197
Imago Theatre, $2,235
Independent Publishing Resource Center, $882
Literary Arts, Inc., $4,016
Live Wire!, $1,008
Metropolitan Youth Symphony, $2,586
Miracle Theatre Group, $2,273
Northwest Children’s Theatre, $2,486
Northwest Dance Project, $1,134
NW Documentary Arts & Media, $882
Oregon Ballet Theatre, $8,656
Oregon Children’s Theatre, $5,518
Oregon Repertory Singers, $2,240
Oregon Symphony Association, $16,761
PHAME, $882
Playwrite, Inc., $1,386
Portland Art Museum, $22,138
Portland Baroque Orchestra, $1,639
Portland Center Stage, $9,134
Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra,$1,008
Portland Gay Men’s Chorus, $1,033
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, $2,113
Portland Opera, $15,293
Portland Piano International, $1,008
Portland Taiko, $3,227
Portland Youth Philharmonic, $2,202
Profile Theatre Project, $1,787
Tears of Joy Theatre, $2,129
The Portland Ballet, $1,197
Third Angle New Music Ensemble, $882
Third Rail Repertory Theatre, $1,008
White Bird, $4,755
Wordstock, Inc., $1,008
Write Around Portland, $1,304
Young Audiences of Oregon, $1,819
 

  • “No less than 5% of the funds RACC receives from the Arts Education and Access Fund shall be used by RACC to fund grants and programs to schools and non-profit organizations that will give access to high-quality arts experiences to K-12 students and for grants and programs directed to communities who are underserved by local arts providers.” (5% of RACC’s $200,000 allocation is $10,000; RACC meets this minimum requirement with its investment of $26,000.)
  • RACC shall “coordinate between School Districts and arts organizations to ensure high quality arts education for Portland students; and facilitate the access of Portland students to the programs supported by the Arts Education and Access Fund.” These arts education coordination costs are capped at “a maximum of 3% of Net Revenues.” (Net Revenues to date are approximately $7,550,000, and 3% of Net Revenues equals $226,500. RACC’s investment of $13,000 is 0.17 percent of Net Revenues, well below the 3% cap.)

 
For more information on RACC’s role in investing Arts Education and Access Funds, visit www.racc.org/AEAF.

Paul Clay’s interactive video installation “Leda and the Swan” opens at the Portland Building

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Portland, Ore –  Working in his medium of choice, interactive video, artist Paul Clay will present his interpretation of the classic “Leda and the Swan” story in the lobby of the Portland Building. The project, which draws on the long artistic tradition of interpreting the Greek myth, consists of a real-time digital projection that responds to the audience through the use of body motion sensors installed in space. Visitors first engage with the image of a swan that appears on the wall of the space and reacts to their body movements—feathered wings spread as arms are moved, feet step, the neck sways, etc. Persistent visitors discover that vigorous movements cause the feathers to fall and reveal the figure of a woman, Leda; a return to slower movements transforms Leda back into the swan once again. As the artist describes it, “The cycle continues on as long as there are participants willing to move.”
 
Clay’s works are designed to not only provide a sense of wonder and playfulness, but also to provoke critical thought, about pop culture, gender, and issues of race: “I seek to exploit the absurdities and beauty present in our reactionary pop mainstream and carve out new territory in digital experiences.” The installation, situated in the lobby of the Portland Building, runs through February 7th.
 
About the Artist:  Paul Clay describes himself as a digital creator in 3D and 2D, he received his BA in Visual Arts (concentration in Interactive Media and Computer Science) from Reed College in 2010 and often creates work that draws on his reverence of the natural world and his experiences in and around Hispanic culture.  Clay currently lives and works in Portland, but has also worked and studied in Spain, Mexico, and Chile.

 
Viewing Hours, Location, Meet the Artist: The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland and is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday.  A “Meet the Artist” event will be held on Friday the 24th of January at 4pm in the space.
 

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

RACC awards $661,543 to nonprofit organizations, schools, and individual artists for arts-related projects in 2014

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PORTLAND, ORE. — The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) has awarded $661,543 in project grants for calendar year 2014, including 60 grants to nonprofit organizations and schools, and 88 individual artists in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties. This sum is 10.7% less than RACC awarded for project grants last year, attributable primarily to across-the-board cuts from the City of Portland, RACC’s largest funding source. Clackamas County, Washington County, Multnomah County, Metro, and Work for Art also help fund these project grants.
 
With applications at an all-time high, this year’s grants were especially competitive – only 42% of all requests were fully or partially funded. Even so, many individual artists were successful in securing RACC funds for the first time – 60% of all funded artists and 20% of all funded organizations this cycle are receiving their first RACC project grant.
 
Fifty-eight volunteers served on 14 different panels organized by discipline. Most (93%) served as a RACC panelist for the first time, and 38% identified as non-Caucasian and/or multicultural. Guided by staff during the months of October, November and December, these volunteers evaluated 134 proposals based on artistic merit, audience development and financial accountability, and forwarded their final recommendations to the RACC board of directors, which approved the grants on December 18.
 
A summary of funded grants can be found at www.racc.org/2014projectgrants. Among them:
  • First-time grant recipients David Ornette Cherry, a jazz and world music composer, will integrate storytelling, visual arts installation, and his Organic Nation band into a music performance; Anthony Hudson (aka Carla Rossi) will host a monologue and song-driven cabaret utilizing storytelling, music, dance, video and drag to tell the story of Weimar Germany juxtaposed against contemporary America; and playwright Deborah Rodney will further develop her original musical play for youth, “Bully the Kid,” through a series of community readings.
  • Badass Theatre Company received their first RACC project grant to support an upcoming production ofSans Merci by Johnna Adams. Colored Pencils Art and Culture Council plans to develop a series of events in partnership with Multnomah County libraries to promote local authors and ESL students from diverse communities. The Northwest Animation Festival will use its first award to showcase the breadth of animation for NW audiences, and The Projects Festival will present workshops, panels and performances with experimental artists working in comics.
  • The Art Gym in Clackamas County will feature a major exhibition and publication for Vanessa Renwick, and Christopher Mooney will exhibit his large scale portraits depicting workers on the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Willamette River Bridge.
  • Washington County residents will see a new round of Ten Tiny Dances presented by the Beaverton Arts Commission and new mosaic pavers created by the community with artist Lynn Adamo installed at the Shute Park Library in Hillsboro.
  • In addition, an anonymous donor continues to provide special funding for an annual “Innovation Prize” of $2,500. This year’s award for outstanding, innovative, media-oriented project goes to Laura Heit for a hand drawn animated installation and film titled “Two Ways Down.”
“RACC has been working hard to reach out and collaborate with new artists and new artistic communities in the region, and I believe that this fantastic slate of upcoming projects reflects that commitment,” Eloise Damrosch, executive director of RACC. “We are looking forward to another year of creation and innovation, and we will continue evolving our process and procedures to ensure that we are supporting a diverse array of artists and organizations in our community.”
A complete listing of grants appears below, and summaries of each grant are available atwww.racc.org/2014projectgrants.
Note: (*) denotes Clackamas County applicants, and (**) denotes Washington County based applicants.  All other applicants are based in Multnomah County.
 
Individual Artist
Category/Discipline
Amount
Lynn Adamo **
Community Participation
 $                  3,947
Andrew C. Anderson Furgeson
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,400
Yulia Arakelyan
Dance/Movement
 $                  5,675
David Bee
Media Arts
 $                  4,500
Heather Lee Birdsong
Visual Arts
 $                  3,041
Paul Cavanagh
Literature
 $                  4,973
Meshi Chavez
Dance/Movement
 $                  3,404
David Ornette Cherry
Music
 $                  4,500
Taiga Christie
Community Participation
 $                  3,759
Krista Connerly
Visual Arts
 $                  4,500
Tyler Corbett
Visual Arts
 $                  4,230
Lori Damiano
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,129
Zackery C. Denfeld
Social Practice
 $                  6,000
Steven Doughton
Media Arts
 $                  4,798
Melanie Flood
Visual Arts
 $                  4,421
Jack T. Gabel
Music
 $                  5,870
Jeff Gierer
Community Participation
 $                  5,100
Damien Gilley
Visual Arts
 $                  4,784
Daniel J. Glendening
Visual Arts
 $                  5,320
Cheryl Green
Media Arts
 $                  4,600
Michael Griggs
Theatre
 $                  6,000
Stacey Hallal
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,350
Jo Hamilton
Visual Arts
 $                  4,232
Allie Hankins
Dance/Movement
 $                  4,336
Wayne Harrel
Theatre
 $                  2,194
Jen Harrison
Music
 $                  5,686
Laura Heit
Multi-Discipline
 $                  3,662
Laura Heit
Multi-Discipline
 $                  2,500
Hector Hernandez
Community Participation
 $                  4,309
Justin Hocking
Community Participation
 $                  4,035
Tahni Holt
Dance/Movement
 $                  5,150
Kurtis Hough
Media Arts
 $                  5,100
Anthony Hudson
Multi-Discipline
 $                  2,866
Laura Hughes
Visual Arts
 $                  5,168
Linda Hutchins
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,800
Lawrence Johnson
Media Arts
 $                  5,700
Evan La Londe
Visual Arts
 $                  2,805
Mark LaPierre
Theatre
 $                  3,013
Jeff Leake
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  3,788
Waylon Lenk
Literature
 $                  2,778
Ellen Lesperance
Visual Arts
 $                  2,883
Alain LeTourneau
Media Arts
 $                  5,905
Brian Lindstrom
Community Participation
 $                  4,800
Gabriel Liston
Visual Arts
 $                  1,588
Joaquin Lopez **
Multi-Discipline
 $                  3,216
Dana Lynn Louis
Visual Arts
 $                  5,100
Anna Magruder
Visual Arts
 $                  2,986
Susannah Mars *
Theatre
 $                  4,204
Jim McGinn
Dance/Movement
 $                  5,400
Anita Menon **
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,328
Stephen Miller
Multi-Discipline
 $                  3,071
Renee Mitchell
Community Participation
 $                  5,355
Christopher Mooney *
Visual Arts
 $                  4,500
Emily Myers
Visual Arts
 $                  3,285
Sarah Nagy
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  5,100
Motoya Nakamura
Visual Arts
 $                  5,430
Loren Nelson **
Visual Arts
 $                  4,025
Caroline Oakley
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  5,640
Chris G. Parkhurst
Media Arts
 $                  5,320
Susan E. Peck
Community Participation
 $                  3,998
Roger Peet
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,310
Andrew Phoenix
Theatre
 $                  4,708
Ryan Pierce
Visual Arts
 $                  5,236
Tracy Pitts
Media Arts
 $                  4,309
Melissa Reeser Poulin
Literature
 $                  4,423
Alicia Jo Rabins
Music
 $                  3,400
Wendy Red Star
Visual Arts
 $                  4,313
Vanessa Olivia Renwick
Media Arts
 $                  4,930
Jen Delos Reyes
Literature
 $                  3,881
Dmae Roberts
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,800
Deborah Rodney
Community Participation
 $                  3,990
Danielle Ross
Dance/Movement
 $                  4,654
Paul X. Rutz
Visual Arts
 $                  4,280
Julie Sabatier
Media Arts
 $                  4,304
Tracy Schlapp
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,893
Stephanie Simek
Visual Arts
 $                  4,220
Anne Sorce
Theatre
 $                  5,092
Dao Strom
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,850
Marianna C. Thielen
Music
 $                  4,570
Lorenzo Triburgo
Visual Arts
 $                  5,301
Leslie Tucker
Visual Arts
 $                  2,879
Philip Van Scotter
Media Arts
 $                  4,256
Holcombe Waller
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,500
Shu-Ju Wang
Visual Arts
 $                  4,729
Damaris Webb
Theatre
 $                  4,223
James Westby **
Media Arts
 $                  5,100
Kelly Williams
Community Participation
 $                  5,990
Reeva Wortel
Visual Arts
 $                  5,015
Erin Yanke
Media Arts
 $                  5,038
 
Organization
Category/Discipline
Amount
45th Parallel
Music
 $                  5,132
Badass Theatre Company
Theatre
 $                  4,680
Beaverton Arts Commission **
Presenting
 $                  5,415
Blackfish Gallery
Visual Arts
 $                  3,825
Boom Arts
Theatre
 $                  3,686
Cascadia Composers
Music
 $                  3,000
Colored Pencils Art and Culture Council 
Community Participation
 $                  3,071
Community Alliance of Tenants
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,630
Conduit Dance, Inc.
Dance/Movement
 $                  6,000
Creative Music Guild
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,463
Creative Science School PTA
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  2,588
Curious Comedy Theater
Theatre
 $                  5,520
Disjecta Interdisciplinary Art Center
Visual Arts
 $                  5,700
Estacada Arts Commission *
Community Participation
 $                  5,369
Estacada Together *
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  5,700
Fear No Music
Music
 $                  4,500
George Middle School
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  2,250
Grout Elementary
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  4,400
In Mulieribus
Music
 $                  4,294
India Cultural Association **
Community Participation
 $                  4,350
Irvington School PTA
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  5,100
Jewish Theatre Collaborative
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  2,250
Ko-Falen Cultural Center
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  1,548
Kukatonon
Community Participation
 $                  4,500
Live on Stage
Theatre
 $                  4,391
Los Portenos **
Theatre
 $                  4,503
Media Rites
Media Arts
 $                  4,388
MetroArts, Inc.
Music
 $                  4,229
Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon
(MESO)
Community Participation
 $                  4,500
Museum of Contemporary Craft
Folk Arts
 $                  4,500
My Voice Music
Community Participation
 $                  5,288
National Alliance on Mental Illness
of Clackamas County (NAMI-CC) 
Community Participation
 $                  4,275
New City Initiative (JOIN)
Community Participation
 $                  4,500
Northwest Animation Festival
Presenting
 $                  4,399
Northwest Film Center
Community Participation
 $                  3,720
Open Meadow Alternative Schools
Arts-In-Schools
 $                  4,228
Opera Theater Oregon
Multi-Discipline
 $                  5,945
Oregon Cultural Access (ORCA)
Community Participation
 $                  4,728
Oregon Jewish Museum
Visual Arts
 $                  3,520
Performance Works Northwest
Presenting
 $                  2,388
Portland Children’s Museum
Visual Arts
 $                  5,400
Portland Community College
Foundation
Visual Arts
 $                  3,854
Portland Experimental
Theatre Ensemble (PETE)
Theatre
 $                  6,000
Portland Jazz Festival
Music
 $                  5,690
Portland Oregon Women’s
Film Festival
Media Arts
 $                  5,100
Portland Queer
Documentary Film Festival
Media Arts
 $                  5,850
Portland Vocal Consort **
Music
 $                  3,744
POV Dance
Dance/Movement
 $                  4,487
RASIKA –
India Arts and Culture Council
Music
 $                  4,520
Risk/Reward
Presenting
 $                  5,390
Signal Fire
Literature
 $                  2,800
The Art Gym *
Visual Arts
 $                  5,700
The Circus Project
Community Participation
 $                  3,637
The Library Foundation
Community Participation
 $                  5,400
The Obo Addy Legacy Project
Community Participation
 $                  4,388
The Projects Festival
Community Participation
 $                  5,653
Triangle Productions!
Theatre
 $                  4,418
VOZ Worker’s Rights
Education Project
Community Participation
 $                  4,500
Water in the Desert
Multi-Discipline
 $                  4,489
Well Arts Institute
Community Participation
 $                  1,299

Cambia Health Solutions contributes $50,000 to Work for Art

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PORTLAND, ORE. — Work for Art, an annual campaign to raise money for arts and culture organizations in the Portland tri-county area, has received a $50,000 grant from Cambia Health Solutions. This is the largest corporate contribution in Work for Art’s eight-year history.
 
Angela Hult, the director of corporate philanthropy for Cambia Health Solutions, announced the contribution as a way to support the intersection between arts and health, including the documented effects that art and arts-related services have on wellness, therapy, grief and bereavement, cognitive function, and pain management.  

“Arts and culture play an important role in sustaining healthy individuals, families and communities,” said Hult. “Local arts organizations are doing exceptional work in this area, particularly through art therapy programs that help alleviate grief and bereavement. That is why Cambia Health Solutions is pleased to support Work for Art through employee giving and this corporate gift.” 

 

A full 100% of all donations to Work for Art, including the Cambia contribution, will be distributed to more than 100 local arts and culture organizations, including many who are actively involved in health and wellness programs. For example:

  • The Children’s Healing Art Project (CHAP) brings the healing power of art to children in crisis through a mobile team of teaching artists working in a partnership with hospitals, community organizations and schools. Nearly half of the nation’s health care centers provide arts programming for patients, families, and even staff. 78% of the directors of these centers report that arts programs provide healing benefits to patients: shorter hospital stays, better pain management, and reduced need for medication.  
  • Some say laughter is the best medicine – and the Stand Up for Mental Health Program in Clackamas County helps participants write and share their story of what it is like to live with a mental health challenge – using humor as a communication tool. For those with mental health challenges, these classes provide opportunities to gain confidence, speak in front of groups, and take risks – which in turn help them to lead more independent, productive lives. 
  • Oregon Repertory Singers share the power and inspiration of music through outreach to retirement homes in Multnomah and Washington Counties. Studies show that music can help boost mood, reduce stress and depression, and help with treatment for chronic health issues for seniors, including Alzheimer’s disease.

 “The arts add measurable value to our communities in so many ways, and this partnership with Cambia Health Solutions helps us draw special attention to important health and wellness benefits that some people might not be aware of,” said Eloise Damrosch, executive director of the Regional Arts & Culture Council. “We are tremendously grateful for the support, and we look forward to sharing Cambia’s generosity with arts organizations that are doing important work in this field.”
 
The 2013-14 Work for Art campaign began on July 1, 2013, and dozens of workplace giving campaigns have already taken place over the last several months – including a campaign at Cambia (although those figures are not yet available). This grant from Cambia Health Solutions will be applied to Work for Art’s matching challenge fund, and will be used to help encourage and match contributions from other donors at other companies over the next six months. With this gift, Work for Art is on track to raise a total of $775,000 by June 30, 2014.
 
For more information on Work for Art, including a complete list of participating companies and funded organizations, visit workforart.org.
 
Cambia Health Solutions is a nonprofit total health solutions company based in the Pacific Northwest/Intermountain region, serving consumers and communities for nearly 100 years.  Cambia companies provide a wide range of products and services, including healthcare information technology and software development, retail healthcare, health insurance plans that carry the Blue Cross and Blue Shield brand, life insurance, pharmacy benefit management, consumer engagement and wellness. For more information, please visit cambiahealthsolutions.com. 
 
Work for Art distributes 100% of all donations to more than 100 arts and culture organizations based in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties through a competitive grant application process. Now in its eighth year, the program has raised more than $4.7 million for services that arts and culture groups provide, including community outreach, arts education programs, and hundreds of performances and events. Donations are matched dollar-for-dollar by a Matching Challenge Fund, made possible by public and private partners, including Burgerville, Sunshine Dairy Foods, The Portland Timbers, The City of Portland, Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties, and now, Cambia Health Solutions. Donors who pledge $60 or more receive an Arts Card, which provides 2-for-1 tickets to performances for a full year. Read more at workforart.org.
 
The Regional Arts & Culture Council is the local arts agency for Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington Counties. In addition to administering Work for Art and other advocacy programs, RACC provides grants for artists, schools and nonprofit organizations; presents workshops and other forms of technical assistance; provides printed and web-based resources for artists; and integrates art into public spaces. Read more at racc.org.

“all the art that fits” returns to the Portland Building Installation Space, November 20, 2013 – January 3, 2014

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PORTLAND, ORE. — On Wednesday, November 20th RACC will be opening the 17th annual City of Portland and Multnomah County employee art exhibit, all the art that fits. The “salon style” exhibit takes place in the Portland Building Installation Space and is a yearly favorite for both the artists and regular visitors. All types of 2-dimensional artworks are represented in the unique show, from quirky to thoughtful, from beautiful to amusingly odd.

RACC invites visitors to vote for their favorite artwork as part of the People’s Choice Award. This year’s winner will receive two Main Stage ticket vouchers for the Portland Center Stage, generously donated for this event. The exhibition will run through Friday, January 3rd, and the People’s Choice Award winner will be announced on January 6th.

Only original artwork created by current employees of the City or County is eligible. All the artwork submitted will be installed wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling. For those eligible and interested in participating, submissions must be dropped off Wednesday, November 20th, between 8:00 and 10:00 am, to the Portland Building lobby located at 1120 SW 5th Ave. between SW Main and SW Madison. For further information please see the guidelines.

Viewing Hours & Location: The exhibition is free and open to the public 8 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday. The Portland Building is located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland.

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