local, national, and international arts news
Welcome to Arts News where Americans for the Arts brings you the relevant arts news from around the world.
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For more about national issues for arts leaders looking at the big picture below is our timely scan of news articles from ArtsJournal.com.
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10/08/2008
New Rock Art Rewrites History
An extraordinary collection of rock art recording life in the area for the past 15,000 years, up until 50 years ago has been discovered in the north of Australia. Alongside ancient paintings of thylacines, a mammal long extinct on the mainland, are images documenting modern-day inventions – a car, a bicycle wheel, a biplane and a rifle – as well as portraits of a missionary and a sea captain. Scientists documenting the rock art, spread across at least 100 sites in the remote Wellington Range, say it ranks among the world's finest. It also appears to rewrite Australian history, undermining the widely held assumption that the continent was isolated and largely unvisited until the First Fleet arrived in 1788. The paintings suggest that, on the contrary, the people of northern Australia have been interacting with seafaring visitors from Asia and Europe for hundreds, possibly thousands, of years.
The Independent (UK) 10/05/2008
10/08/2008
Int'l Art Markets send mixed signals
Damien Hirst's 111.5 million-pound ($199 million) record auction in London last month marks the top of the art market in the U.K., for now at least, according to a survey by valuers. At the time that Hirst was grabbing headlines, the collapse in real-estate sales in the U.K. was taking its toll on prices of lower-value art and antiques, said the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. 34 percent more auctioneers and valuers reported prices falling for items estimated at 1,000 pounds and below in the quarterly survey completed last month. By contrast, a balance of 39 percent reported that prices rose for more expensive works of 50,000 pounds and higher as wealthy people snapped up trophy art. Contemporary art registered the strongest growth, with 41 percent more surveyors reporting increased prices.
Bloomberg.com 10/07/2008
10/08/2008
Artist faces jail for defacing own mural
Artist Ed Stross faces a 30-day stint in jail unless the American Civil Liberties Union manages to overturn his conviction for painting the word "love" on his mural in this Detroit suburb. Stross's long-running dispute with local officials is over his addition of the word to his mural in 1997 in memory of Princess Diana. The painting on the building housing his studio is based on Michelangelo's Creation of Man. Roseville, Mich., officials say using letters in the mural violates a sign ordinance. Last week, the Michigan Supreme Court delivered a partial victory to Roseville, saying it could ban the word "love" from the mural. ACLU lawyer Mark Kriger has filed a motion asking the supreme court to hear oral arguments in the case.
Associated Press 10/07/2008
10/03/2008
The ageless audience
It would be nice to be able to say that the aging of the performing arts audience is a false assumption. The numbers, however, say it's not. But most performing arts professionals say there's a lot of gray area -- no pun intended -- in this conversation. Some arts professionals believe journalists who pontificate about the graying audience see more gray hair because they've been comped into the most expensive seats, the ones young adults can't afford. Others believe it's a life-cycle issue. Still, whether there is truth to such speculations, the future audience won't magically appear and many organizations are implementing specific marketing strategies to develop the audience of the future.
The Los Angeles Times 10/05/2008
10/03/2008
Musicians strike in Madison
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra musicians have gone on strike just two days before the orchestra is set to open its 45th season. The orchestra's opening Masterworks concert scheduled for Friday at the Capitol Theatre -- featuring international violin virtuoso Kyoko Takezawa -- might have to be canceled. The orchestra contract expired Aug. 31, but the two sides began negotiating in early March of this year. The musicians said they would strike if the two sides couldn't reach an accord by 4 p.m. today. Both WCO management and its employees were hopeful earlier in the afternoon that a new contract was close at hand. The sides will meet again Thursday morning to attempt a resolution.
The Capital Times 10/02/2008
10/01/2008
The arts get creative in perilous economy
There has been an ongoing urgency to face the new music and dance -- not the old-fashioned waltz but steps unimagined before Necessity called. Dramatic and exciting changes are showing signs of success as companies find new ways to get through to people. Organizations no longer market the arts as something you sit and look at. They're offering a complete experience that begins before the performance even starts and may continue afterward. In other words: an evening, not a show. Organizations are also using 21st century concepts and media to engage audiences in new ways through a rough economic ride.
Los Angeles Tims 09/30/2008
09/21/2008
Arts Groups Fret the Woes Of Big Donors
Theaters and museums have begun to strategize with some worst-case scenarios in mind. Pitches to potential donors are now likely to include a note of urgency that hasn't been heard in a while -- lots of talk about programming and shows that will disappear if they're not underwritten pronto. There might be cheaper tickets, too. But historical analysis shows that philanthropy perseveres through recessions. Some even believe recessions can benefit ticket sales.
The Washington Post 09/18/2008
09/15/2008
S.F. Opera gets record $40 million gift
The San Francisco Opera has received a commitment from board Chairman John A. Gunn and his wife, Cynthia Fry Gunn, for a gift of $40 million. It is the largest single gift by individual donors in the company's history, and is believed to be the largest ever made to any American opera company. The gift will fund a broad range of activities by the company, including several new operas and productions, multimedia projects and outreach efforts, as well as $5 million to fund the general director's chair. Their gift comes just two years after a $35 million unrestricted gift from longtime patron and supporter Jeannik Méquet Littlefield. At the time, that was the largest individual gift in the company's history.
San Francisco Chronicle 09/13/2008
09/12/2008
IRS Completes New Form 990-EZ Form
The IRS has completed a redesign of the Form 990-EZ which will impact all organizations with annual receipts of less than $1,000,000 and assets of less than $2.5 million. The EZ form has not changed as dramatically as the Form 990, but there are several additional schedules to file, depending on an organization’s activities. The thresholds for the Form 990-EZ have been adjusted temporarily to allow more organizations to file the simpler form, providing a gradual transition to the significantly revised Form 990. 501(c)(3) organizations that file the EZ will still be required to complete Schedule C if they engage in political or lobbying activities. Among the provisions explained in the instructions to the Form 990-EZ, the IRS will allow EZ filers to choose between two methods for reporting compensation to officers, directors, trustees and key employees. They may either use the method from the prior Form 990-EZ, or the new method for the Form 990 which requires calendar-year reporting. See the IRS website for more information on the instructions.
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09/03/2008
ArtsVote2008 Hosts Event During RNC
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee along with Robert Lynch, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts moderated a panel of elected officials,  advocates and arts leaders discussing the future of the arts and arts education in America on September 2. Hosted during the Republican National Convention by Americans for the Arts Action Fund and NAMM, the National Association of Music Merchants the forum was part of ArtsVote2008, a national initiative designed to promote the arts during the presidential election.
 The panel included Former Presidential candidate Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee; Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-KS); Tom Cochran, Executive Director and CEO US Conference of Mayors; Debbie Allen Emmy award winning actor, dancer, choreographer, producer, director, and author; Tom Horne Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction; John Rich, acclaimed country music singer, songwriter, and producer; and Missouri Governor Matt Blunt.
ArtsVote2008 has had great success in raising the arts as a vital campaign topic. During the presidential primary season, ArtsVote2008 issued a Pro-Arts Policy Brief addressing how the arts can be a catalyst in arts education, economic development, health care, transportation and other areas, and procured public arts policy statements in support of the arts from an unprecedented six primary candidates. For more information on ArtsVote2008, visit www.ArtsVote.org.
ArtsVote2008 09/03/2008
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