Patricia by Patricia

Patricia by Patricia
Patricia by Patricia

Saturday, November 25, 2023

Legacy


Legacy  is the long-lasting impact you leave on the world. For those of us in the arts community that might mean art works, accomplishment in art advocacy, discoveries of new techniques.

We are remembered by those who know us and live after, but how is it preserved in other more concrete ways? I am going to concentrate on the visual arts and a body of art works.  

Archiving your 2 and 3-D art means documentation and that is a constant challenge of changing technology. An inventory systems used to mean means photos, transparencies and slides then digital on floppies, cd, flash drives and now stored in the cloud.  It is an enormous amount of work to capture true images and adding size, medium, year, location, owner. I might just wait until the is a voice recognition AI system. A catalogue raisonnĂ© is never complete until you are no longer making new work.

But just recording label details does not give a context for the work. The relevant history might include what was happening in the news at the time of creation, who did you know personally that encourage your career, or how the community and your location affected the art could be just as important.  Saving books, catalogues, invitation cards, price list, sales invoice, and audio and video recordings could add to the story.

Part of a final legacy could be a retrospective exhibition. The right time for that could vary from person to person and depending on your reputation. A curator could help an audience see older work is a new perspective.  Borrowing work from client has advantages and disadvantage. Your collector might feel that it increases the prestige of their collection to have work they owned included. The work might have to be cleaned, crated, shipped and insured, all very expensive operations.

One of the biggest hurdles of a legacy is what happens to unsold work. Who inherits the work and will they value it. Giving art away to individuals means you have to find out what they want instead of deciding for them. Arts Institution that have permanent collections and want your work are not so easy to find unless you are famous or can provide finances for storage in perpetuity.

If you have the money, one solution is to form an Artist’s Foundation or leave money in your will for this to happen with an appointed administrator. This could be a family member or an art professional. Besides climate controlled storage, the foundation has to be funded for promotion, preservation, restoration, and curation.

Besides my art work, I have other forms of legacy to consider:  my role in restarting of the County of SD Commission of Culture, founder and coordinator of San Diego Visual Arts Network, years and years of blogs and art reporting, and presenter of the prestigious SD Art Prize

What is your legacy? Are you an Art Activist or one that bears witness to truths? Are you an Artist Philanthropist when you give your art to worthy causes.  Or maybe you are a be here now sort of person, who is happy to let the cards fall where they may.

 

Thursday, October 19, 2023

ADVOCACY ISSUES for the region of San Diego

 by Patricia Frischer



This month  I have decided to focus on advocacy issues that effect the region of San Diego, but knowing this is quite dry material, I have added photos from a recent visit to The Broad Museum in Los Angeles where we saw the exhibition of Keith Haring. The show has finished but this is a reminder for those who saw it and a taste for those who did not.

 The biggest news is the release of the country wide economic report on the arts. There is a link to the whole report and you can also read my summary report including info about San Diego County. 

National Release of Americans for the Arts’ Arts and Economic Prosperity 6 Study: Read the SDVAN summary report:  Not a Nicety, a Necessity: The Arts & Economic Prosperity Report AEP6 by Patricia Frischer

 

On September 21, AB 812 (Boerner) Housing development approvals: reserving affordable units in or near a cultural district for artists was enrolled and presented to the Governor. AND he signed it!!!


The Hillcrest Community Plan includes the creation of the LGBTQ+ Cultural District which enshrines Hillcrest as the heart San Diego's LGBTQ+ community. The plan includes the creation of interpretive elements throughout the neighborhood that tell the story of the community; a certification program to protect and support cultural institutions and businesses; the formalization of the Hillcrest Entertainment District (to make sure new residents aren't surprised when they move in next to a popular drag night); and a creative walking tour throughout the neighborhood.



 The 2023 nationwide Nonprofit Workforce Survey highlights that the non-profit workforce shortage is a growing and critical issue: 74.6% of nonprofits reported job vacancies and 51.7% reporting that they have more vacancies now than before the COVID-19 pandemic . We need more qualified people to fill these jobs.



 The board of California Arts Advocates (CAA) just voted that a priority for our 2024-25 legislative session will be to lobby for a $20 million local assistance funding increase to CAC.  Sign up here  for their action alerts. 



 SMU DataArts, the National Center for Arts Research, proudly released the Arts Vibrancy Index Report in its seventh iteration, celebrating arts-vibrant communities across the United States even as they grapple with the ongoing realities of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

October is National Arts and Humanities Month but AB 1382 (Quirk Silva) State-designated cultural districts did not move forward and so is dead. What a pity.



If you live in District 4 don’t forget to research and vote for your County Supervisor Candidate on Nov. 7 special election, San Diego City Councilwoman Monica Montgomery Steppe, a Democrat, and community activist Amy Reichert, a Republican, are both on the ballot. 


The California Arts Council (CAC)  Programs Policy Committee has made their recommendations public in the CAC packet published  in advance of the virtual council meeting on October 25. To read just the committee report, please download here. An important component is restricting grants to organizations with budgets less than $3 million. You can make a public comment on this by visiting this page or to learn how to make a public comment during the meeting.

 Here are a few more of my favorites art works...just because!













Thursday, September 21, 2023

Our Hats are Off to our Volunteers and Supporters!

(Top) Patricia Frischer, Naomi Nussbaum, Irene de Watteville, Kathryn Schmiedebreg 
(Bottom) Naimeh Woodward, Janice Davis, Mireille des Rosiers


We present here a few of the photographs from our Hats ON: 20th Anniversary Celebration for San Diego Synergy Arts Network. We thank the many documenters that sent us images to share with you including:

Tera Gardner, Jerri Nachman, Jim Bliesner, Marjorie Pezzoli, Marti Krane, Claire Slattery, Blanca Lucia Bergman.


Our deep gratitude to all of your who came, ate, danced, bid, volunteered and made this a night to remember. 

San Diego Synergy Arts Network Volunteers!
Just a few of the more than 45 volunteers that helped put on our Celebration/ Remember we are a 100% volunteer organization








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Entertainment

 

Thanks to Jerri Nachman for the above video featuring BambolĂ©o.
More video by Jerri Nachman for Hats On: Entertainer

 

 

Holes for Faces






Our MC Jefferson Jay















Silent Auction Items









Sage's Tent



Selection of Hats for All


Dan Adams Memorial Exhibition

Proclamation




 

PROCLAMATION by Terra Lawson-Remer

Board of Supervisors, County of San Diego, State of California

* * * * * * * * * * 

Honoring the 20th Anniversary of San Diego Synergy Arts Network

This proclamation would designate San Diego Synergy Arts Network DBA San Diego Visual Arts Network and DBA Synergy Arts Foundation as worthy of acknowledgment.  

WHEREAS, Synergy Arts Foundation supports and nurtures local artists and arts organizations of all disciplines by offering emergency financial grants in times of crisis  working to heal and build community, and

WHEREAS, San Diego Visual Arts Network Arts is an impressive resource as a directory and events calendar which aids economic development through promotional exposure and improves the clarity, accuracy and sophistication of discourse about San Diego's artistic and cultural life and

WHEREAS, Synergy Arts Foundation and San Diego Visual Arts Network are tremendous advocate for the arts in the entire county of San Diego and

WHEREAS, Both organizations are 100% volunteer organization rallying donations from corporate, private foundations and individual contributors and

WHEREAS, San Diego Visual Arts Network mission is dedicated to the idea that the Visual Arts are a vital part of the health of our county when we build the confidence of those involved in the arts, and disseminate information throughout San Diego, thus raising the bar on the writing, production and appreciation of the visual arts in our region and

WHEREAS, Synergy Arts Foundation pioneer programs in arts education for under-served, at-risk populations, including arts for healing, community arts, and specific international and national art projects recovering from disasters and

WHEREAS, both organizations believe in the transformational quality of the arts and its ability to widen our vision of the world around us by facilitating countless opportunities for inspiration and collaboration on arts and culture projects and

WHEREAS, In a state as diverse as California, the arts serve to give voice to our many communities, spark individual creativity, foster empathy and understanding, spur civic engagement and serve as a continual source of personal enrichment, inspiration and growth; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the County of San Diego concurring, That this is a significant time to recognize and celebrate San Diego Synergy Arts Network on their 20th Anniversary as a 501 (c) 3 organization.

Be it proclaimed, on this 16 day of Sept 2023, Chairwomen Nora Vargas and the Board of Supervisors, County San Diego, State of California hereby proclaims San Diego Synergy Arts Network  as recognized as a benefit to our county and that this day is officially San Diego Synergy Arts Network day.   


Includes Signatures of County Supervisor Elected Officials:  Terra Lawson-Remer, Nora Vargas, Joel Anderson and Jim Desmond

We love your fascinator, Mr. Vargas. It matches your shoes!

Food


























Time Line video by Sidney Wildesmith


Guests - just a sampling...so many wonderful guest!