Also, for Art Home ticket holders a free lecture will be held Saturday, November 19^th at 11am. Come listen to Jonathan Ferrara, Dorian Bennett, Marcel Wiznia and others discuss how they began collecting and why they continue to purchase art.

Art Home New Orleans introduces participants to the depth and quality of art collectors in New Orleans. On November 19^th and 20^th from 12 to 5.30pm, selected homes will open up to the public to exhibit their local collections. Art Home’s true mission is to have art collectors educate participants on the individuality of art collections and encourage them to go one step beyond appreciation, to the actual purchase of art.

Don’t forget to buy your tickets here: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1059321459

Also, check out our Facebook and Twitter pages:

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/pages/Creative-Alliance-of-New-Orleans/108225029289265

https://twitter.com/#!/CANONOLA

Thank you to the City of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana for their support.

Art Home New Orleans is part of the 3^nd annual arts+gardens+new orleans fall festival. arts+gardens+new orleans is a four-month long festival of events that highlights parks, gardens, and cultural venues, performances and exhibitions all over town, including major museums, theater groups, musical venues, neighborhood cultural venues and sites.

Tickets are $15/day and $25/weekend and can be purchased online at cano-la.org or at Eventbrite or by calling 504.218.4807. Tickets can also be purchased on the day of at the House on Bayou Road at 2275 Bayou Road.

The Creative Alliance of New Orleans aims to increase investment in the creative sector of the New Orleans economy, promote the creative products and presentations of New Orleans visual, performing, design, media and culinary artists, and help New Orleans become internationally  renowned as the important international cultural center that we know it is. Thanks to the City of New Orleans for their support and to our partner, the New Orleans Museum of Art.



Creative Alliance of New Orleans and Moving Stories Dance Project will be presenting Creative Capital’s Core Curriculum Workshop 5:30-8:45pm Friday, March 9th, 8:30am-5pm Saturday, March 10th, and 8:30am-5pm Sunday March 11th. This one of a kind opportunity has been described as a “crash course in self-management, strategic planning, fundraising and promotion” for artists of all creative genres. The Creative Capital Workshop takes artists on a two and one-half day retreat led by nationally renowned arts professionals. The experience is limited to 24 artists from Louisiana. Applications will be reviewed by a selection committee with the goal of assembling a very diverse group of artists from varied artistic genres and cultural backgrounds. Applicants must create original works. We encourage visual artists, composers, filmmakers, choreographers and all other mediums to apply. This is the first time that Creative Capital’s workshop will be held in New Orleans. While many different forms of art are flourishing in New Orleans, it is still tough for local artists to create a sustainable income for themselves. The Creative Capital Workshop intends to change this situation.

Some of the skills that will be taught are:·

·financial planning basics, including choosing financial partners, best practices for savings and retirement planning, options for reducing debt and acquiring property.
·the essentials for operating your art as a small, independently run business, including employment, contracts, negotiation, decision-making, budgeting and cash flow
·strategies for funding your work and revenue-generating, including improving your fundraising materials; working in partnership with venues, donors and funders, building a base of individual contributors; and knowing the real cost of your work so you can communicate it to funders, presenters and other partners
·how to consider promoting your work as an integral, natural part of the creative process
·the best practices for artist websites, blogs, social media and communications
·how to identify and reach new audiences for your work

The Creative Alliance and Moving Stories believe that this program presents an opportunity for Louisiana artists to learn new methods in improving their professional careers in the arts. This program is able to be presented thanks to the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Creative Capital, National Performance Network and in kind support from the Joan Mitchell Center. Thank you!

• Improve their quality of life.
• Encourage creative activity.
• Create community identity and a sense of place.
• Revitalize local economies.

With support from its Our Town grant, the City of New Orleans will create the Claiborne Corridor Cultural Collaborative Plan (C4 Plan). The C4 Plan will be developed as a cohesive cultural plan that integrates arts and culture into the ongoing revitalization of New Orleans’s historic and major thoroughfare, Claiborne Boulevard. The C4 Plan will serve as a model for creative place-based planning by guiding the strategic integration of arts and culture into the corridor’s infrastructure, streetscapes, transportation, housing, and community facilities planning. The City of New Orleans and Arts Council of New Orleans will lead the development of the C4 Plan in collaboration with Creative Alliance of New Orleans, Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard Merchants and Business Association, Sankofu Community Development Corporation, Xavier University, and Artspace Projects, Inc. The C4 Plan will benefit 70,000 residents that live in underserved New Orleans neighborhoods with higher than average poverty, blight, and vacancy rates.

Visit the New Orleans page on the NEA website here.

By Molly Reid, The Times-Picayune

January 20, 2010

Photo by nola.com

Each of the 12 New Orleans mayoral and City Council candidates at the Contemporary Arts Center news conference expressed support for the Cultural Election Coalition for New Orleans’ 21-point platform.

A coalition of more than 60 local arts and culture organizations announced a platform Wednesday for developing the city’s cultural economy, which supporters say could not only spur economic growth but also reduce crime and improve the city’s quality of life.

Though celebrated, New Orleans’ culture has been underserved and underfunded by city government, coalition representatives said, resulting in inadequate housing and health care for artists and musicians, a dearth of in-school and after-school arts programs and a failure to restore and capitalize on many of the city’s cultural landmarks.

While “study after study” has identified the creative industries as a top priority for economic development, New Orleans, “the mecca of indigenous, original culture in America … really has not picked that up as it should,” said Jeanne Nathan with the Creative Alliance of New Orleans.

Twelve New Orleans mayoral and City Council candidates attended a noon news conference at the Contemporary Arts Center, and each expressed support for the Cultural Election Coalition for New Orleans’ 21-point platform in remarks following the presentation.

Mayoral candidate John Georges, who attended alongside fellow contenders Rob Couhig and Nadine Ramsey, praised the group’s agenda, saying the city’s culture has “been viewed as a hospitality tool for too long” and “needs to be an economic engine tool.”

The coalition proposes the creation of a city office or agency dedicated to “cultural and creative affairs and economy.” The agency would buttress the efforts of the Arts Council of New Orleans, a nonprofit that serves as the city’s arts agency, as well as dozens of other arts and culture nonprofits.

In addition, the arts groups want the city to identify a dedicated financial source for cultural programming, marketing and organizations, which now must compete for dollars from the general fund, said Gene Meneray, director of arts business programs for the Arts Council.

To view the coalition’s platform, visit www.cano-la.org or www.artscouncilofneworleans.org .

Molly Reid can be reached at mreid@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3448.

For Immediate Release

January 20, 2009

Contact:

Jeanne Nathan: 504 218 4807

Rashida Ferdinand: 504 975 5168

City-wide and Neighborhood-based Cultural Organizations

Aim for Greater Investment in Cultural Development

Candidates speak about priorities outlined in the Joint Platform

NEW ORLEANS JAN 20–In an unprecedented show of unity, over 60 organizations contributed to or endorsed a platform of actions for the new mayor and council. They recommend such measures as a new city agency for the arts, cultural centers in neighborhoods, dedicated and expanded funding, and a focus on education, career development and work force training, all aimed to improve the earning ability of creative producers of all disciplines in the city, and to improve the city’s overall economic prospects.

Click here to download and read the Joint Platform (PDF)

The Contemporary Arts Center today hosted various members of the gathering of cultural economy

Luther Grey, contributor to the platform, speaks to the power of art and performances in public places

organizations, local artists along with key cultural leaders to present the platform which aims to expand and support the economic opportunities available to the visual and performing artists, designers and producers, architects, landscape and interior designers, apparel and jewelry designers, furniture makers, building and preservation arts professionals, and culinary artists who have created the cultural fabric of our city.

“We have made much progress in support of our culture bearers and producers in the last quarter of the 20th century, and in the first decade of the 21st. But we are still not “at the table” of policy makers in the public, non-profit and private sectors in a way that reflects the importance of our creative output to the city’s economy, culture, and quality of life,” said Rasheda Ferdinand of the Contemporary Visual Arts Association of New Orleans.

Cultural leaders and organizations representing all of the creative disciplines throughout the city came together to develop a united platform representing what they see as priorities for new administration in city hall, and the council so we can continue to stimulate cultural change through music, visual and media arts, and design.

“Arts are catalytic, it’s the rising tide that lifts all boats,” said Carol Bebelle Executive Director of the Ashe cultural center. After Ms. Bebelle and several other supporters of New Orleans’ arts scene spoke the candidates for mayor and city council spoke of their experiences in the arts and how they intend to address the concerns of our citizens.

All the candidates in attendance endorsed the platform and also had some ideas of their own such as the creation of an agency to support the arts, dedication of city funding to the local cultural economy and placing a greater focus on the arts as an engine for economic development to benefit New Orleans. In attendance were Virginia Blanque, Rob Couhig, John Georges, Cynthia Willard-Lewis, Stacey Head, Denis Holden, Nadine Ramsey, Jackie Clarkson, Jerrelda Drummer-Sanders, Nolan Marshall and Joe Butler, representing Kristin Palmer.

]]> http://cano-la.org/2010/01/press-release-tremendous-show-of-support-at-cecno-platform-release/feed/ 0 http://cano-la.org/2010/01/eternal-vigilance-by-clancy-dubose-in-gambit-weekly-11810/ http://cano-la.org/2010/01/eternal-vigilance-by-clancy-dubose-in-gambit-weekly-11810/#comments Tue, 19 Jan 2010 17:55:32 +0000 katherine http://cano-la.org/?p=479 Eternal Vigilance

By Clancy Dubos, January 18, 2010

If the price of freedom is eternal vigilance, the people of New Orleans need to pay up. Many of us, myself included, have paid a great deal of attention to the “insider” aspects of the citywide elections, less so to the issues and policy points that will define the direction our city takes in the next four years.

With less than three weeks to go before the Feb. 6 primary, it’s time to take a close look at where candidates stand on the issues and ascertain what their policies might be.

Thanks to the Internet, vigilance is a lot easier to achieve (and sustain) today than it was when Thomas Jefferson reportedly uttered his famous admonition more than 200 years ago.

In this election, several citizen-led initiatives have framed issues and suggested policies important to their constituencies and asked candidates to say “yes” or “no” to them. The results are available online.

Two that come to mind will be in the news this week: Forward New Orleans (FNO) and the Creative Alliance of New Orleans (CANO). Forward New Orleans is a bi-racial coalition of more than 30 business, civic and professional groups that came together to put forth a platform of seven “principles of reform.” Its Web site is www.forwardneworleans.com.

Forward New Orleans’ reform principles concentrate on issues that affect everyone: crime, blight, city finances, economic development, city services and infrastructure, city contracting and education. The coalition’s platform was given to all candidates for mayor and City Council, and council candidates already have responded. There’s a “scorecard” for council candidates online at www.forwardneworleans.com/files/candidate_scorecard.pdf.

Now here’s the hard part: Don’t go right to the scorecard. First, go to the FNO home page and read the details of the coalition’s platform — some of which you might not agree with — and then go see how the candidates responded. A spokesperson for FNO says the mayoral candidates’ responses should be ready for posting on line by the end of this week (Jan. 22).

On a similar track but on a different front, the Creative Alliance brought together cultural organizations and individuals who are anchors of the local “cultural economy” to focus candidates’ attention on that aspect of economic development — which, by the way, was noticeably absent from FNO’s economic development platform. I say that not to knock FNO’s effort, but rather to underscore the value of many voices being part of this citizen-led choir for reform and accountability.

CANO will formally announce its joint platform at noon Wednesday (Jan. 20) at the Contemporary Arts Center. Mayoral and council candidates are invited to attend — and all should read and respond to CANO’s platform and questionnaire. The results will be posted on two Web sites, www.artscouncilofneworleans.org and www.cano-la.org.

I’ve seen an advance copy of the CANO joint platform, and it’s impressive that a coalition of creative people could agree on so many “political” points. Everyone who appreciates our city’s unique culture should read and embrace it.

Equally important, CANO recognizes that City Hall is strapped for cash. This is not another plea for more money in the name of “culture.” It’s a real-world appeal for a smarter approach to capitalizing economically on our culture.

“We are asking all council candidates and mayoral candidates to tell us which 10 elements of the platform they will prioritize for implementation when they take office,” the platform states. “Realistically we know that in these difficult times, not all elements can be implemented immediately. That is why we leave it up to the candidates not to sign on to all elements, but to choose those they realistically feel they can achieve in the near term.

“We further encourage all supporters of the city’s culture and cultural economy to become involved in the election, in the transition after the election, and in the first hundred days, year and ultimately terms of office of the new administration and council. Promises are important. Accountability going forward is equally important.”

That’s where CANO and FNO share common ground: the need for accountability after the election. That’s why vigilance must be eternal — not just at election time.

Eliot Kamenitz / The Times Picayune

Colton Middle School thrives as arts center

by Darran Simon, The Times-Picayune

Monday March 09, 2009

At one point, Dennis Oatis argued with a leader of his school’s hip-hop dance team about what songs to perform. Hours later, Oatis, a Joseph S. Clark High senior, twirled his partner around and swing-danced away his afternoon.

“It’s like your day goes from average to extraordinary, ” said Oatis, 17, as he scurried onto a bus headed back to Clark from the site of the dance classes, the former Colton Middle School on St. Claude Avenue. “It clears your mind a little bit.”

Several times a week, more than 150 students, mostly high schoolers from the Recovery School District, spend time at the Studio at Colton — a fledgling arts center where an idle campus has been transformed into work space for dozens of artists.

Students visiting the Faubourg Marigny building explore print-making, fashion design and jazz music. They also broadcast shows on a low-frequency radio station.

Overseen by the Creative Alliance of New Orleans, a group still seeking its nonprofit tax-exempt status, the arts center is a work in progress, where artists and students embrace various disciplines.

Within days, a furniture artist will begin teaching a “Pimp My Ride” upholstery workshop that takes its name from the MTV show — and meshes upholstering with pop culture and cars.

“Kids are not interested in grandma’s wingback, ” said Annie Ezelyn, one of more than 70 artists and groups that are part of the educational venture.

The artists have agreed to teach their craft to children and adults in return for rent-free space at Colton, which hasn’t reopened as a school since Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. There is a small shop on the school’s first floor where artists can sell their works.

The center is founded on the idea of using community resources — a vacant building and a pool of local artists — to establish a new creative hub and replenish the city’s cultural economy. Jeanne Nathan, a public relations professional and former television journalist, is spearheading the project with the help of her husband, Bob Tannen, an artist and urban planning consultant.

While it has drawn positive notice, the program must raise more support if it is to survive, advocates say. The studio operates on a meager budget and has just one paid staff member, who juggles grant-writing with other duties.

And it’s uncertain how long artists can continue their work at Colton, which the Creative Alliance leases from the school district at no cost.

Colton is scheduled to be renovated and reopened as a school in the future under the first phase of a master plan for school facilities. District officials said design work on the project will begin this summer. Construction could start in the 2009-10 school year. The arts center could face a temporary or permanent move when the renovations begin.

District Superintendent Paul Vallas said he supports the studio project and wants to ensure it has a home, whether it is in the refurbished Colton or at another site.

Awaiting tax approval

Foundations have been reluctant to give money to the Studio at Colton project because it hasn’t secured a permanent home, said New Orleans native Sarah Hess, program manager of the Creative Alliance and the only paid staffer.

Hess, 30, recently worked in Sydney, Australia, in a program supporting indigenous artists.

Desperately needing money for supplies, the arts center has attracted roughly $60,000 in donations, including a $35,000 check left by an individual after a tour of Colton. The donor’s identity wasn’t disclosed.

That donation covers Hess’ annual salary and helped complete modest building renovations in time for the center’s opening in November.

“This is a bootstrap organization, ” Hess said.

Hundreds of volunteers helped open the arts studio and now keep it afloat. An electrician, whose daughter attends art classes at Colton, provides free work. A security company donates the services of a guard. A plumbing company recently fixed a major water leak.

There weren’t enough volunteers to keep the first-floor gift store open, so Hess moved her office into the space — ensuring it is open at least part of the time.

“We’re all a little bit taxed at this point, ” Hess said. “Everybody is putting in as much as they can.”

There may be hope of financial sustenance for artists at the center once the Creative Alliance secures federal nonprofit tax status because the designation will make it easier to apply for grants.

Classes for general public

Despite such challenges, Hess and artists are encouraged by the studio program’s progress, with the offering of free arts classes to public school students now supplemented by evening and weekend classes for the general public, in which students pay modest fees.

Supporters say public school students need the sort of interaction with artists that the Colton program offers.

“They started something that’s not going to just stop, ” said Ezelyn, who also plans to teach an adult upholstery class.

The Studio at Colton so far has brought together students from Clark, Carver and Rabouin high schools, with more than 35 artists now teaching classes in ceramics, ballet, tap dance and many other specialties. Last week, Oatis and his Clark classmates, all new to square dancing, laughed and high-fived after they picked up the steps.

On another day, in a second-floor studio, Angelamia Bachemin, a former professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston, taught her students how to play hand percussion instruments.

Bachemin and her young charges sang George Gershwin’s jazz standard, “Summertime, ” over an Afro-Cuban beat in Bachemin’s Jazz Hip-Hop Orchestra class.

In an old band room converted into a makeshift radio studio, students broadcast programs like “Ya Heard Me” on the 89.5 FM channel. That class is led by David Weinberg, an independent radio producer and reporter.

With a drum machine, microphone and a four-track recorder, Weinberg is teaching basic recording techniques. He also plans to teach students how to report, write and edit a radio story.