Thoughts from men named Maynard

On March 3rd of this year, Transformer Organization hosted a panel discussion which included Wendy Clark from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).  Post discussion, members of the audience inquired about the grants being awarded art organizations by the NEA under The Recovery Act of 2009.  Ms. Clark fielded the question. The audience did not seem pleased with her response. Her answer came almost directly from the NEA's website which states:  

"In recognition of the funding level available, the importance of ensuring that recipients of funds are high-performing organizations (as noted in the Act implementation guidance provided by the Office of Management and Budget), the need to provide funding in a timely manner, and the capacity of the NEA and its staff, eligible organizations will be limited to those who previously received a grant from the NEA starting with fiscal year 2006 and through those approved for 2009 and considered at the NEAís October 2008 meeting of the National Council on the Arts. We estimate that 3,400 individual organizations will be eligible under this program, covering all the disciplines routinely supported by the NEA and every Congressional district."

http://www.nea.gov/recovery/NEA-recovery-agency-plan.html

Section 4. "Eligible Organizations"

emphasis added by The Fifteen Before Fifteen, LLC

The NEA has yet to post to their website the recipiants of said grants.  They have estimated that 3400 individual organizations were eligible to receive grants under The Recovery Act.  This website will notify its viewers which organizations in DC, if any, received grants once that information is published.

Comparisons of this economy to the economy of the 1930s are quite popular, and perhaps then it is worthy to study what became of the arts during that time.  Simply stated, there was movement with the arts in 1930s America.  Artwork from that time is currently on display at The Smithsonian American Art Museum.  Tthe exhibit, entitled "1934: A New Deal for Artists," runs until January 3, 2010.

As the title implies, one cause of the movement is said to be the arts initiatives included in FDR's New Deal programs.  The Works Progress Administration, founded under The New Deal, subsidized artists with a group of projects.  Artists went to work.  Keep in mind that so too did art collectors, and art enthusiasts.

People naturally wonder if  the NEA grants of 2009 will have similar results to the subsidizing of artists in the 1930s.  DC residents especially want to know where those grants are going, hence the grumbling of the crowd at the panel discussion.

The information from and about the NEA above is offered not to invoke criticism, but awareness.  Let's assume that no money is coming to DC and figure out what can be done in spite of that fact.  Let us turn our attention to the other contributing factors of the 1930s art movement, in an attempt to find a way to improve DC arts without waiting on the government.  There are other avenues.  There can be other players.  In the 1930s John Maynard Keynes acted as an individual patron of the arts as well as a lobbyist for the arts and had overwhelming success.

In Justyn Walsh's book, Keynes and the Market ©2008, Walsh discusses the prominent role John Maynard Keynes played in the economy of the 1930s.  Keynes played an equally important role to the arts community.  States Walsh on Page One, Chapter One, "Keynes, a great arts patron, had funded many cultural ventures out of his own pocket."  Finding another Keynes might prove difficult.  Implementing his theories and practices as a group might not.  We're going to focus on three things he did:  participate in intellectual conversation, lobby the government on behalf of the arts, and fund his own projects.

Keynes was a part of The Bloomsbury Group, a collective of intellectuals that was thought to be extremely elitist.  The collective of intellectuals is good.  The elitist part I have trouble with.  Personal reasons aside, there exist two strong reasons why an elitist congregation won't survive in DC.  One, the internet has made keeping a secret a thing of the past.  Two, DC is far too small of a city for a secret group to have enough influence.  By the time the membership grew to an effective number it would no longer be elite.  If we participate in intellectual conversation regarding philosophy, art, and economics a la The Bloomsbury Group it has to be an open conversation, and it has to be done in person.

In the current Featured Gallery article I make mention of the fact that Nevin Kelly is opening the lines of communication.  He is not alone.  There's the previously-mentioned efforts of the Transformer Organization, Hamiltonian Gallery hosted a talk by Sondra Arkin recently, emails from multiple artists and organizations flood my inbox.  The opportunity for involvement has not been made weaker by the advent of the internet.  In fact quite the opposite.  The internet must exist though as a tool for involvement not involvement itself.  This is problematic as updates to a website take time, and people don't always feel the need to attend if they think they can receive the information from an easier source.  We must therefore check our internet dependence - and that is coming from a man who owns a website.  Had The Bloomsbury Group had access to the internet I do not think they would have eliminated the in-person dialogue.  They valued their personal connection quite a bit, on more than one level.  To act as Keynes did then, you must leave the house to converse.   

Keynes founded, funded and ran multiple art organizations --  the Vic-Wells Ballet , the Arts Theatre -- Cambridge, the Arts Council of Great Britain, just to name a few.  He was an avid spokesperson for the arts and his influence was felt in the highest levels of government.  President Obama might not be available for a conversation, but certainly the NEA is.  A representative sat along side members of our art community and contributed to the conversation.  Regardless of what you feel about The Recovery Plan or the NEA's dissemination of funds, the NEA sent someone to talk about it.  If grants are not received by DC institutions you are allowed to ask why -- and should. 

Keynes multi-faceted approach worked in his favor.  Eventually the government funded projects to which Keynes was personally connected.  Selfish perhaps, but effective none the less.  Involvement with government has its rewards.  I wish I had a taste for politics, but I don't.  I do feel it is my responsibility, though, to keep up with what is going on at the national level if I want to be a part of the local DC art scene.  If the government today is truly interested in keeping the arts alive during this recession, then it takes participation from our end.  I really don't want to go to a government meeting -- but if I don't, I have no right to complain when government money is not made available to me. 

Of course waiting for the government is something that I am not prepared to do.  It is time to start doing our own projects, and to include those projects in the local conversation.  Lacking the financial power and established political connections means working harder to fund these ideas.  That's the fun part.  This website is one such project.  It morphs with feedback, and purposely restricts itself so as to not replicate the efforts of other art institutions in DC.  The conversation matters to us.  I think the conversation mattered to Keynes.  We therefore are responsible for creating and continuing the dialogue.

Last week I claimed that there would be a new category added to Journal 15, Letters to the Editor.  The emails we received were not substantive enough in nature.  We appreciate the kind words, but the time has come to discuss the DC art scene and not this company.  This column, Featured Editorial, and Letters to the Editor are designed to amplify a multitude of voices within the DC arts community.  The purpose of this amplification is to inform and also to engage the reader into taking a more active role in the city.  If we are mirroring the 1930s, perhaps we should also study the successful concepts in the art world of that time so that we can implement similar programs and improve upon them. 

We will notify our patrons of the NEA awarded grant recipients in DC, should there be any.  If you are such an organization or aware of one, please consider this an invitation to contribute to these columns.  I would very much like to publicize your efforts.

On to the second Maynard who has something to offer us during these times.  Maynard James Keenan, is an American poet involved in many art projects and progressive capitalist endeavors.  Says he of his colleagues in A Perfect Circle, "We're five people, five individuals who came together to create something, to make music, and to complete each other musically, to form a perfect circle."  Keenan works with people on interesting projects, is not known for being silent publicly, and puts on a very dynamic show.  Both Maynards value collaboration, and both have something interesting to add to the conversation.  They also both motivate the hell out of me.  I'll try to follow both their leads.

Chris