Antje's Reflections

Antje Helfrich, LT'23, Avalara

Arts and Culture Possibility Day started with some sobering statistics shared by Brian Carter, LT'18, Executive Director of 4Culture. He shared data about the staggering inequities in philanthropic funding for Arts and Culture organizations, including that art foundations only give 4 percent of their funding to communities of color. Brian emphasized the roles that all players in the arts and culture ecosystem (audiences, artists, boards, organizations, private and public funders, and donors) have in the work toward racial equity. As an audience member who loves to experience readings, plays, performances, music, and arts, I got lots of new food for thought and felt productively challenged throughout the day. How can I be more intentional of where and how I spend my arts and culture dollars? And how do I become a true accomplice for people of color in the arts?

It was a treat to listen to Elisheba Johnson from Wa Na Wari and Priya Frank, LT'15, from Seattle Art Museum (SAM) talk about their respective organizations. Both emphasized that art is about creating space for people to be celebrated (not just tolerated), and the role of art in making us whole. Elisheba talked about how people who don't have access to art are missing out on key aspects of their personhood. Wa Na Wari is an innovative way for Black people to build community and belonging through art, historic preservation, and connection on a hyper-local level in a historically redlined neighborhood. Priya’s discussion of SAM’s efforts to diversify both their collections and staff at all levels of the museum added to the theme of representation, why it matters, and how to make progress on that front. 

Later in the day, our table group discussion focused on our observation that many performances and events in Seattle and Tacoma, including those with people of color in primary roles onstage or backstage, draw mostly white middle-aged affluent audiences. We talked about barriers of access (including structural factors around money, time, location, language) and the need to bring donors and boards along, who make up and influence a large portion of audiences. There is a lot of work to do to bring about a vision of a diverse landscape of antiracist arts and culture organizations in the Puget Sound area. I am optimistic that we – members of LT’23 – can help lead change in our various roles as audience members, artists, and members of arts and culture organizations.

Rut's Reflections

Rut Perez-Studer, LT'23, Port of Seattle

What’s sticking with you today?

In this moment, I am most curious about the presentation by Brian Carter, LT'18, and the slide he presented about Washington State’s Creative Economy with the “Top 10 Creative Jobs.” The list of jobs continues to stick with me. Being mindful of our program goals to better understand regional challenges, the list kindles more questions 😊. Who is defining “creative” for this slide or 4Culture? Why are tech jobs in this list? And I ask because I am curious to know if this dilutes the statistics around the actual economy of “artists and creators” who are not in Tech? Furthermore, the information Brian shared about the impact of COVID for different groups clarified opportunities for me to specifically support sectors of my community.

How might you apply what you’ve learned in the future? 

The Arts Leadership Studio conversation with Elisheba Johnson, explaining more about her organization sparked motivation for me. The perseverance and vision represented steps taken by community to ensure there was a creative space in their community. The creative strategy by the family to preserve that space and find the possibility was a good reminder of what can be done. I am researching more on how I can do the same in my communities.

Do you have any reflections on how LT’s values showed up today in yourself, your classmates, or the speakers? 

My mind keeps coming back to when our classmate asked Priya Frank, LT'15, from the Arts Leadership Studio, about Indigenous artifacts in museums and what reparations where being made? Her questions hit on asking for regional/local answers to institutional accountability, belonging, collective leadership, and community stewardship. As the “Arts & Culture” day I thought a lot about museums and their histories around “cultural artifacts.” You can see photos of public art I've compiled here.