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The Arts
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Why public funding of the arts is importantCatherine de' Medici
Guest
Posted: Tue Mar 31, 2009 4:23 pm Post subject:
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Historically the arts have never supported themselves. They have always needed patrons, whether it be the church, a wealthy philanthropist, art commune, government or corporate sponsor. In every case the patron always had an influence upon the art produced. It is a relationship as old as mankind.
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| Quote: | | In every case the patron always had an influence upon the art produced. |
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For about 25 years our country has been dismantling the public funding of the arts and I think it is a mistake. The National Endowment For The Arts used to be a government entity that funded artists, musicians, writers and other endeavors related to The Arts and it enriched our cultural heritage immeasurably. The Arts were recognized as vital to the fabric of our life and since this philosophy has been thrown under the bus we, as a people, have been diminished as well.
During this "dark ages" we have watched music and art classes disappear from our school curriculum's, depriving our young people of the exposure to and education in these subjects during the very time in their developmental stages when they are most able to learn them. We have eliminated foreign language study when their young minds are most malleable and able to learn other languages with ease.
Art for art's sake, art created by artists owing to no one but an artists own artistic intuition used to be cherished and nurtured and funded by the National Endowment because we recognised that doing so freed the artist and enriched our culture benefiting every citizen.
The only remnant of that lost cultural perspective seems to be our free libraries (thank you Ben Franklin!)
I believe we need to rethink public funding of the arts and art education in our schools. Art shouldn't be left to go whoring exclusively to private enterprise. We the people, need art, uninfluenced by the almighty dollar. It helps us understand who we are. It tells the world that we value more than merely money. It enriches our cultural diversity as well as our souls.
I realise President Obama has a lot to do but I hope public funding of the arts is reestablished in this country so that everyone, rich or poor has access to it's beauty and it's meaning.
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Piano Man
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You ever tried to get a grant from The National Endowment For The Arts ? Oh yeah, there are strings attached, lots of them. They do a lot of good but don't fool yourself into believing that theNEA is an artists eutopia.
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The Arts
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Have YOU ever tried???Seriously, Piano Man. Have YOU ever tried to get funding, personally, or is this third party information or are you just pretending to know what you are talking about?
I don't need to know who I'm talking to but I do need to know what I'm talking to.
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Guest
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Re: Why public funding of the arts is important | The Arts wrote: | | We the people, need art, uninfluenced by the almighty dollar. It helps us understand who we are. It tells the world that we value more than merely money. It enriches our cultural diversity as well as our souls. |
This is where hard decisions and personal conviction come in. This is never an easy choice, especially when done in plain view, and under the guise of public stewardship. Public process suxs.
Personally, I would much rather my tax dollars go to the uninhibited expression of art. And if I didn’t like some of what I paid for it wouldn’t be art. Art must offend as often as it titillates, that is how it stimulates. Art is of the soul and most often comes of people not assimilated into the common culture of our communities. Art is. And art must be.
Spend my tax dollars on art and not unemployment benefits or health care reforms and in the long run we will be better for it. Arts create better people, social welfare creates dependant people. The financial backbone of our country, our culture, is currently made up of less-than better people. We need better people. We need art.
Can Obama do this for us? Can any head of state do this? NO! They pander to the common culture of our communities. The commoners vote and the commoners want big houses and shinny cars. When was the last time you spent time with an artist who voted, had a mortgage or a car that actually had paint on it? Monarchs could better fund art because they weren’t accountable to the masses. Democracy and the arts don’t mix. We’ve seen what happens when art comes head-to-head with budgetary decision making.
It is up to each one of us, not Mr. Obama, to support art. To put that on his shoulders simply wouldn’t be fair, until and unless the masses come on board first. Classic catch-22. Without the arts you loose the masses. Without the masses you loose the art. Support the arts! Contributions to charitable causes are tax deductable. Divert your money away from the government and toward the arts. It’s kind of patriotic if you think about. At the very least it is legal.
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Guest
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Not all art donations are going to be tax deductable. And not all art projects will be a 501c3 organization. They are complicated and costly to do, and many artists are the typical starving artists.
If you have the opportunity to support an artist or an art project, but can't take a tax credit for it, please don't assume that it is not worthwhile.
AND PLEASE ! Let's not turn this particular thread into a war between participants. One of the later posts sounds like someone is getting snippy. This is a good thread. Please let us keep it productive.
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Piano Man
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Bottom line, art is communication. Whether it offends or inspires. Not all communications are crafted well or need to be. If the artist (communicator) is skilled and wants to sell his craft to the highest bidder, then more power to him. Likewise if a skilled artist decides not to "prostitute" them self, more power to them, just don't sit around and complain that you do not have an audience. Go out and find that audience but, be informed that audiences are not cheap or easy to find.
Yes, I am an artist. In my experience? Commercial marketing of my work was always much less compromising than the public funding method.
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