Art imitating life

It’s an emotional time for America. The nation is simultaneously shadowed by economic uncertainty and reaching for new possibilities. We’re frightened and tired, and tired of being frightened. Looking for more secure shelter in the midst of an unpredictable storm, Obama’s election is indicative of a collective shift in perception that is deliberately calling for change. The hope is that this change will translate into cultural arenas beyond politics, including the arts. The fear is that newborn perspectives are tenuous and, like cautious turtles, have the potential for sudden retraction. For arts managers in America, the task at hand is actively to foster and reaffirm the goodness of change (read: progress). Through insightful and relevant work, artists across the globe have been purposefully doing this for centuries; however, it is a particularly poignant time for American artists consciously to use their work to reassure a relatively young nation that growing up is inevitable and with maturity comes the benefit of wisdom. If we can elect an African-American president, America might just be ready to invent a different world where we embrace transformation as a national value. And because this is already an inherent aspect of the arts, savvy arts administrators will see this as an opportune time to compel the American public to place the arts squarely in the foreground of our national culture.

Change for the better
With this in mind, we must seriously reconsider our approach to marketing the arts in a new America that’s eagerly embracing the concept of change. Most arts administrators are accustomed to filling seats, securing new donors and selling work by implementing product-specific marketing that – fingers crossed – compels the public to take the bait. But if we are a community that cares about its cultural future, marketing the arts must consistently include short-term strategies that sell products and visionary plans that respond to an evolving American consciousness. Consequently, arts managers must see their work through both zoom and wide lenses, simultaneously keeping their attention focused on the authentic details of art, while transparently demonstrating the work’s relationship to maturing community ideals. Those who make a point of practising this approach will undoubtedly contribute to a second-chance American Renaissance that will breathe new life into the arts. By adjusting marketing plans to emphasise education, funding, production and outreach initiatives that align with amplified public perceptions, we can better demonstrate the fundamental value of the arts by packaging them in the language of the day. If community consciousness is focused on social change (as it is in America), then arts marketers must respond with this ideology in mind. Following the path of least resistance, we can deliver vitamins in a spoonful of ice cream and teach a nation what we already know: the arts are not superfluous to society; they are an underestimated force that is driving it forward. And as public appreciation for the arts increases, we will certainly experience greater support for our own artistic agendas.

Building up
In this new America, a comprehensive arts marketing plan should include diverse gateways and multiple opportunities for audiences to understand more deeply a specific artistic discipline (using the zoom lens) while highlighting the holistic relevance of the arts to community goals (using the wide lens). If we are to achieve long-term investments in the arts, any and all contact with the public must be viewed as both an opportunity to self-promote and a responsibility to educate. So, whether we schedule post-show dialogues with performers or launch a new funding campaign, we must first have a plan for linking these efforts to what’s important in the minds of the people. With this concept in hand, we can proactively cultivate audiences that support us, our industry and our cultural future. As it stands, the arts in America are in a critical state of emergency, somewhere between life and death, and, as a result, the foundation for progress is crumbling at our feet. If we want to place the arts on solid ground, we must first convince America to set aside outdated perceptions that position the arts as decorative ‘extras’ with little relevance beyond aesthetics. This isn’t easy work. Many, including our political leaders, have been misled into believing that there’s not much more to the arts than a beautiful melody, a good use of colour or a stellar performance. This is evidenced by the fact that hundreds of arts organisations across the nation face dwindling audiences, reduced funding and, sadly, closed doors.

Renaissance and reinvention
But now the nation, like a desiccated sponge, is eager to absorb newness. With Obama’s election, America is prepared to relinquish obsolete ideologies that no longer actualise social and cultural progress, and arts marketers must know how to ride the wave of change strategically if they wish to garner wide-scale support for their work. Now more than ever, we must view arts marketing as we would a living organism that is capable of bending, stretching and evolving. The first rule to controlling the beast is listening to what it wants, and providing it. The public isn’t shy about revealing its desires – read any newspaper and you’ll see them there. In America, now is an ideal time to present work related to African-American history. It’s also smart to lace funding initiatives with words such as change, hope, and progress, so we may increase the odds of getting more horses to drink from the trough. From Galileo to van Gogh, from Darwin to Dunham, all pioneers have understood the personal responsibility required to initiate great change. In each of their stories we see how they intuitively kept one eye focused on details and used the other to keep the big picture in sight. If we hope to alter the public perception of the arts, we too must adopt the same pioneering responsibility and master the same insightful skills. By panoramically attaching the arts to the ambitions already embedded in American hearts, we will attract people back to the real source of change – their inherent creativity. And by restoring a community’s faith in creativity, we empower a nation to invent itself anew.