U.S. Multi-State Deadline: January 9, 2023 – An art exhibition for all community college, college, and university students within Tennessee, Southern Kentucky, and Northern Alabama. Open to all media. Top jury…
In a rather unsurprising turn of events, two members of Just Stop Oil—the climate activist group that has been making headlines alongside its peer organizations through acts of protest targeting art institutions—have been found guilty of the destruction of property. Emily Brocklebank and Louis McKechnie are some of the first noted individuals of these movements to receive charges in the wake of their (some may say misguided) demonstrations.
Emily Brocklebank, 24, has been given a 21-day sentence (suspended for six months) and Louis McKechnie has been jailed for three weeks, all due to the approximately $2,300 of damage done to the frame of van Gogh’s Peach Trees in Blossom at the Courtauld Institute. The pair glued their hands to the frame in June in an effort to raise awareness of the ongoing climate crisis. McKechnie stated at the event, as noted in the group’s YouTube video:
“It is immoral for cultural institutions to stand by and watch whilst our society descends into collapse. Galleries should close. Directors of art institutions should be calling on the government to stop all new oil and gas projects immediately.”
This stated motivation is one of the many reasons that critics of the movement, including active climate activists, point to Just Stop Oil as not being a well-thought endeavour. While the group, alongside others such as Extinction Rebellion and Stop Fracking Around, has been certainly grabbing headlines this past year, it has done little to garner support or make an impact in sectors that matter. The odd correlation they place between arts institutions and environmental degradation seems to have mostly provoked mockery, and their historical signalling to the suffragettes slashing paintings is not equivalent in practice or power.
It is unfortunate to see civil disobedience punished, especially given the importance of convincing politicians to finally take our climate disaster seriously. But Brocklebank and McKechnie did make the active choice to harm the gallery’s property, so while it is not desirable, it is also not surprising. As misplaced as Just Stop Oil’s actions may be now, one might harken back to the early years of hacktivist group Anonymous, which was once little more than trolls and online abusers. There is a high chance for this group to grow into something more and really make a difference for the better—once they find their way.
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 23, 2022
From The Art Newspaper: “In the wake of a global pandemic and concurrent worldwide reckoning with institutional racism, two illuminating studies on the state of cultural heritage at large have just been released. The Mellon Foundation’s latest “Art Museum Staff Demographic Survey” and the Black Trustee Alliance for Art Museums’ “2022 Art Museum Trustee Survey” both itemise and quantify the experiences of art museum workers and board members, painting a picture of a sector slowly bouncing back from significant Covid-19 job losses with a renewed focus on diversity.”
Slowly diversifying
While diversity has increased across the field overall, so far only 20% of the workforce at US museums is non-white. Still, the Mellon Foundation’s survey found that 40% of new hires and staff members under 35 are people of colour. The largest demographic increases have been in Latinx, Asian and multiracial populations; the number of Black staff has not increased in the aggregate, but the number of Black staff members in museum leadership positions has more than doubled since 2018. Employees of colour are more frequently relegated to “public-facing” roles; 20% of museum leadership and conservation staff are people of colour compared to the 47% of building and operations staff, for instance.
Directors prioritise DEAI
In their responses to the Mellon survey, museum directors reported that DEAI is now a central consideration at twice the rate they did in 2020. Directors at institutions with above-average staff diversity emphasised the importance of DEAI at a slightly higher percentage than those leading museums with below-average staff diversity.
Retention rates are still a problem
While museum directors have identified diversity, inclusion, and pay equity as priorities, the museum roles with the most diverse populations at museums are consistently those with the lowest retention rates, especially since most “public-facing” museum roles are lower-paid, part-time and paid on an hourly (rather than salaried) basis.
A new generation of trustees
The Black Trustee Alliance for Art Museums survey shines a light on the backgrounds and experiences of Black trustees in North American art institutions. Black trustees tend to be younger, more educated and less likely to benefit from intergenerational wealth than white board members. They are less likely to have family on art museum boards than their white counterparts, but a third have family members on other non-profit boards. Black art museum trustees, while they mostly report positive experiences in the boardroom, are more likely to report a “negative climate”.
What We’re Reading: Will Philly Art Museum Workers’ Strike Victory Push Others To ‘Stay The Course’?
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 23, 2022
“On Oct. 14, unionized employees at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) achieved a monumental contract victory with museum management, ending a 19-day strike,” said Vanessa Taylor for Prism. “The tentative agreement, which runs through June 30, 2025, raised the hourly minimum wage, reduced health care plan costs, provided across-the-board wage increases and paid parental leave, and instituted the museum’s first ever longevity raises. Following this victory, union members are hopeful that their efforts may help reshape the museum industry as a whole.”
“The union first formed in 2020, when PMA employees voted overwhelmingly to join the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. Shakerra Grays, the Interactive Project Manager for PMA, said that employees unionized ‘in response to physical, verbal, and sexual harassment that went ignored by museum leadership.’ One such case included that of a male manager’s harassment of several women on staff.”
“Though the PMA union is one of the country’s largest museum unions, management failed to respect it at first, trapping the union in negotiations for two years. This came to a head on Aug. 26, when union leadership filed eight Unfair Labor Practice charges against museum management, accusing the PMA of repeatedly engaging in union-busting activity during contract negotiations. A few weeks later on Sept. 16, union leadership launched their initial warning strike, demanding more reasonable health care costs, parental leave, a minimum wage pay increase to $16.75 an hour, incremental raises, and longevity increases for staff over five years.”
“Although the strike is over, union workers want others in the industry to see it as inspiration. ‘I hope this strike sends a message to all arts workers that they matter,’ Grays said. ‘That they deserve to do what they love and be fairly compensated for it … I hope that we’ve shown that no one ever had to settle for less. And no one should do so ever again.’ Workers also hope that this victory will pave the way to advocating for systemic change that extends beyond performative diversity and equity initiatives or awkward, out-of-touch ice cream socials.”
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 24, 2022
From Mellon Foundation: “Master carvers are working with the Sealaska Heritage Institute to create the Totem Pole Trail—ten sculptures celebrating Indigenous tribes who had been historically excluded from Juneau’s monuments. In a sense, it was a controversial statue of William Seward that kickstarted Kootéeya Deiyí, the Totem Pole Trail in Juneau, Alaska.”
“Seward was the United States Secretary of State who brokered the purchase of the Alaska territory in 1867, nearly a century before it became a state. His bronze likeness in the capital city gave Rosita Worl, a member of the Tlingit tribe, a big idea.”
“Under [Worl’s] stewardship, Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) embarked on the Totem Pole Trail. This Mellon Foundation-funded initiative has enlisted nine Indigenous master carvers and their apprentices to initially create ten original totem poles that will be raised throughout the city in 2023. Most of the master carvers are located outside of Juneau, in areas accessible only by boat and with scant economic opportunity; by design, the pole-carving project offers an infusion of capital into local economies, and pays the master carvers and their apprentices a wage.”
“Each master carver is partnered with a tribal clan and SHI to develop the themes and stories depicted on the poles. The master carvers make 3-foot miniature models of their pole for review by clan representatives before starting on the final product. Eventually, SHI plans to install 30 such poles in Juneau and along its waterfront; indeed, waterfronts are where totem poles traditionally stand.”
“Ricardo Worl adds that such learning opportunities are not only meant for tourists and non-native people. He says that as SHI has met with clan elders to develop pole themes, it became “clear that not all of them knew the stories behind their crests or designs. That’s part of the colonization aspect. Stories were lost. Language was lost. And so [we are] working with them to help research and restructure elements of their clan history.”
In a shocking move from one of Canada’s keystone art institutions, the National Gallery of Canada has laid off four of its senior members abruptly. The gallery states that this shift is related to a “restructuring” of the institution, but as is the case with any such matters, there is a major side unaddressed by official statements. One of the outgoing members, Audain senior curator of Indigenous art Greg Hill, states his layoff is due to his disagreeing with colonial practices and sentiments within the NGC.
Greg Hill, who has been with the gallery for over two decades and was the first Indigenous curator at the gallery, took to Instagram the second the news broke:
“I want to put this out there before it is spun into meaningless platitudes. The truth is, I’m being fired because I don’t agree with and am deeply disturbed by the colonial and anti-Indigenous ways the Department of Indigenous Ways and Decolonization is being run.”
This especially comes as a surprise given the recent direction that the NGC has taken in regard to decolonizing the way the gallery presents itself and endeavours relating to the inclusion of Indigenous voices in both the content of the gallery as well as how its runs. Interim director and CEO Angela Cassie states that this move will help “better align the gallery’s leadership team with the organization’s new strategic plans.”
Hill isn’t the only individual affected, with deputy director and chief Kitty Scott also being let go after three years as the gallery’s sole woman to hold this position permanently. Alongside Scott and Hill are the director of conservation and technical research Stephen Gritt and the senior manager of communications Denise Siele.
Without a doubt a sudden and major change to the National Gallery of Canada, we have no way to confirm what truly fuelled this action. But if Greg Hill is to be believed in this whiplash severance of key members who marked historical moments of inclusion for Canada’s largest gallery, there is something deeply worrying about the gallery’s future—especially given its gestures of their decolonized future.
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 22, 2022
Join Flannel & Blade and Catnip Comms in an expert panel discussion and open conversation, as we unpack these big and important questions. Our teams are keeping our ears to the ground, reading not only national news outlets, but also the comment sections on TikTok and diving into different subreddits. We’re seeing how Twitter users who have taken flight are enjoying their migration to Mastodon to see what we can learn.
More importantly, we’re having these big conversations to understand the impact of how you can reach and nurture an online community, during and beyond this chaotic period. We’ll discuss the various challenges that we’re noticing and ways to approach what appears to be a new era of social communications.
Registration is free—please share the link with your colleagues, friends, and networks. In the spirit of stepping away from the messiness of social media this season, we encourage you to use more personal forms of outreach, like an email or message board.
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 22, 2022
From Filantropía Puerto Rico: Este próximo Giving Tuesday, 29 de noviembre, no te pierdas el primer episodio de nuestro podcast EN VIVO: Somos Filantropía Podcast. En este episodio, Mary Ann Gabino, Vicepresidenta Senior de la Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico, conversará con Glenisse Pagán, Directora Ejecutiva de Filantropía Puerto Rico, para hablar sobre el rol y la importancia del ecosistema filantrópico de nuestra isla.
Translation: This coming Giving Tuesday, November 29, don’t miss the first episode of our LIVE podcast: We Are Philanthropy Podcast. In this episode, Mary Ann Gabino, Senior Vice President of the Puerto Rico Community Foundation, will talk with Glenisse Pagán, Executive Director of Filantropía Puerto Rico, to talk about the role and importance of the philanthropic ecosystem of our island.
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 21, 2022
“The official podcast of ESII – we dive deeply into the life, practice and experimentation of a person or group who we see as living embodiments of emergent strategy. Hosts are Sage Crump, Mia Herndon and adrienne maree brown.”
“Vicki Meek is an artist, curator, arts administrator, and cultural critic whose career spans decades. This week, Vicki joins Sage to talk about Elizabeth’s Catlett’s influence, collaborating with artists from different disciplines, and reimagining the Black archive.”
Submitted by Jaime Sharp on November 17, 2022
“Bloomberg Philanthropies today announced the launch of the 2022 Public Art Challenge, which invites mayors of U.S. cities with 30,000 residents or more to apply for up to $1 million in funding to create temporary public art projects that address important civic issues. Submissions for dynamic works of art across all disciplines will be considered, and proposed projects will be evaluated on their ability to generate public-private collaborations, celebrate creativity and urban identity, and strengthen local economies. The Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge encourages mayors to partner with artists, elevating the value of including the creative sector when developing solutions to significant urban problems.”
“‘The Public Art Challenge provides a creative way for cities to bring residents together, form strong civic partnerships, and make public spaces more inspiring and accessible,’ said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York City. ‘As cities emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, public art has the power to help revitalize communities. We know cities will have great ideas for this year’s competition, and we look forward to helping their visions come to life.’”
“Up to 10 winners will be chosen in 2023 to execute their projects – which may include multiple installations in a single city – over 24 months. Bloomberg Philanthropies grants will cover project-related expenditures including development, execution, and marketing. The application for the 2022 Public Art Challenge, as well as more information on criteria, and process, can be found here. The deadline to apply is February 15, 2023.”
“The second round of Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge cities selected in 2018 included projects by Anchorage, Alaska; Camden, New Jersey; Coral Springs and Parkland, Florida; Jackson, Mississippi; and Tulsa, Oklahoma. The five winning projects addressed issues such as climate change, neighborhood blight, healing after gun violence, and commemorating the centennial of Greenwood’s 1921 Black Wall Street Massacre. Many of the cities in the 2018 Public Art Challenge were able to catalyze local investment, stimulate new forms of partnership within their cities, improve community wellbeing, and create inclusive spaces to discuss complex social issues.”