Are the fundamentals in place for creative capital to flourish?
The
points you identify about the context for developing creative capital are the
crux of the issue: pathways, complementary opportunities and supportive
infrastructure. But I would say that the fundamentals are not there. You
overestimate the number of systems that have even the most rudimentary
opportunities. Where I live in Providence, many of the public elementary
schools have itinerant art teachers who travel to two or three schools each week.
Without consistent arts teaching in the elementary and middle schools, there is
no way that kids will even know that there are pathways.
I think another part of the problem is that funding sources focus on
supporting individual programs rather than systemic change. So it's possible to
get a grant from a foundation for your individual program at a school, but it's
hard to convince policy makers - like the superintendent or mayor to increase
the requirements (and funding) for arts instruction so that every child gets
arts instruction twice per week until they graduate. Likewise, there
isn't a systemic approach that aligns after-school arts programming with the
"downsized" in-school arts.
Nancy
Safian, Manager, Project Open Door, Rhode Island School of Design
Nancy, Thanks for your post. I agree that you can't build a system on a nonexistent foundation. To me, Creative Capital can be used as a framework for re-shaping cultural policy, not just as a way of thinking about how to build a stronger arts education system. One of the reasons for low political support of arts and culture (and esp. arts education) is that policymakers lack a generally accepted framework for creative vitality - one that integrates both economic activity and creativity in a lived sense. My greatest hope is that we can help communities generate a shared vision of Creative Capital that includes arts education along with creative workforce, visible signs of creativity in the community, policies that attract creative businesses, etc. I'm starting to see a lot of energy build around creativity at the municipal policy level in the U.K. and in Canada, so maybe there's hope. Thanks for writing.
Alan Brown
Alan - are there particular elements in what you are seeing abroad that you think would adapt well to the American landscape?
Marc
