AAGA Arts Auction | March 5, 2010!!!!

The 7th Annaul Art Auction presented by the Arts Administration Graduate Association will be on Friday March 5, 2010 in the Bossone Research Center Lobby & Atrium from 7-10pm!! Find yourself there!! For more information: aagaaction.wordpress.com

The New Responsible Look of ArtsLine!!

As the new Graduate Assistant, I’d like to welcome you to the new GREEN issues of ArtsLine!

This 1st issue will focus on the idea of Agility and Ability! Articles and interviews will spotlight these skills in leading change across the art and culture sector. As the topic of a possible art tax opened our fall quarter, students attended a Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance meeting involving executives representing organizations from across the city and learned what needs to happen in order to maintain survival. It was evident that organizations have to think outside the box. Recruitment, involvement and interest in untouched communities, programming, and outreach are all great ideas to consider. However, the idea of being open to practice those concepts means that people involved behind the scenes of these organizations have to be open and ready to change themselves.

Agility and ability are skills I feel will jumpstart this wave of new thinking and the articles throughout this issue reflect possible examples in how organizations can evolve.  As the art and culture sector continues to grow everyday with new people involved and organizations that come into existence. It’s important for fresh ideas and practices to be shared so that survival is collective amongst the sector in order to maintain and create more options for the audiences we serve.

ArtsLine takes a look at different organizations and how they are approaching evolution within their organizations. This is only the beginning, so continue to update yourself with content on the blog as a new issue appears every quarter!

Enjoy the new look and feel of ArtsLine.

Thanks!

Simone Banks

Editor

simone@drexel.edu

A Statement of Organizational Restructuring by James Undercofler

It’s quite clear that a extraordinary number of not for profits (NFP) in the arts and culture sector will be forced to restructure, remap or perish.  From my vantage point this restructuring will have two faces:  organizational and programmatic redesign.

Organizational redesign will include a range of possibilities from mergers to cooperative ventures to graceful (and not so) graceful endings.  Some have suggested that a certain Darwinism will prevail, meaning that the weaker organizations will fail and the stronger ones survive, but this thought begs so many questions that cast doubt on its possible validity.  Does weaker mean weaker organizationally, or weaker artistically.  Sadly I believe it means the former.  Regardless, under the current stresses of diminished resources and classical audience participation, many organizations will consider options once alien to their internal discussions.  Already there are signs of cooperation that include partial mergers (various aspects of the organizations except for the artistic output), cooperatives (sharing all services and coming together around an artistic concept), the creation of virtual artistic worlds, and what appears to be an emerging concept of combinations between NFP’s and commercial entities.

Programmatic redesign will be demonstrated through increased emphasis on artistic collaboration, closer relationships within communities and expanded education programming. Necessity, as well as genuine altruism will drive these changes; changes that will enrich both the organizations as well as their communities.  Artistic collaborations may appear to be initiated by artistic expedience, but are more likely to be the result of artists’ creativity being awakened by a financially stressed situation.  Closer relationships to the community will result from a (much-delayed) recognition that only with these deep relationships can organizations discover its inner artistic voice.  And last, education programs will expand as an outgrowth of community relationships, as well as increased emphases on arts education coming from institutional funders.

To be involved in organizational change that results from severe economic and societal changes is both exhilarating and pure hell.  Visionary and skilled leadership, both artistic and administrative, during these times is vital: to guide organizations to a productive and central place in their communities, but also to offer the ever-so-important contributions the arts make to the world itself.

Professor James Undercofler is a professor in the Arts Administration Department at Drexel University

First Friday’s in Philadelphia!

Every first Friday of the month is a great time to invest in Philadelphia’s rich art and culture scene.  The Old City neighborhood in Philadelphia holds the spirit of Philly’s visual art and culture scene.  Some compare it to SoHo in NYC, however, Old City definitely has flavor of its own. With over 40 galleries in a 3 block radius, most found between Front and 3^rd streets and Market and Vine streets, including boutiques, restaurants and more.  This is where culture is found. You can find almost anything in this neighborhood; unique fashions, handmade goods, diverse galleries, restaurants from many different countries, historical tours and much more.

First Friday’s started in 1991 by a group of galleries as a collaborative open house evening, it later grew into one of Philly’s most essential, signature cultural events.  With the addition of many more galleries since 1991, a diverse variety of people and artwork is provided. Galleries open their doors from 5-9pm and many provide refreshments for the large crowds that flood their venues all night.

This is where art enthusiasts go to network, view art, eat, drink and socialize among other fellow art lovers.   There is no limit to what type of artist you’ll encounter. Students and indie artists that may not have affiliation with professional galleries also make the Old City sidewalks their temporary home to sell handmade goods. In being consistent with the neighborhood, artists bring their most unique crafts to sell and musicians aren’t far from the scene either. A funnel of sight and sound is created for the entire 4 hours while hundreds of guests walk from one gallery to the other. You already know that Philadelphia is one of the leading cities in art and culture. With so many organizations and talented people, there is an assortment of artistic culture in many different forms. Particularly in Old City you can find the best of specialty galleries that focus on different type of artistic expressions unlike anywhere else.  Below you can find a blueprint layout of galleries and other spots of interest in Old City.  Next First Friday is January 1, 2010…see you there! (click map for a more detailed view and information)

Interview with James Haskins, Managing Director of The Wilma Theater

The Wilma Theater’s Managing Director, James Haskins and ArtsLine sat down to discuss the assessment and development of the Wilma and how the recession has offered generous ideas in ways they approach patron loyalty and their identity as a great theater company.

AL: What are the duties of a managing director?

JH: In a performing arts organization the Executive Director position is split between the roles of the Artistic Director who oversees everything artistic and the Managing Director who oversees the management of the organization.  In terms of looking at aspects of the organization that reports directly to me, we’re talking about the business office, marketing department, development, aspects of production and the Education Director. Overseeing all the aspects of the organization as well as managing and communicating with the board of directors. With this organization there are three of us in the roles of executive leadership, but I tend to take the primary role in board communications and board stewardship.

AL: What makes the Wilma Theater different from other theaters in the area?

JH:Sometimes I leave that to the people who attend to tell us how they perceive it as different. But I’ll tell you what I perceive to be the unique piece of the Wilma Theater.  Last night I went to see The Rabbit Hole at the Arden Theater and though it’s a wonderful play, but I could immediately identify that that type of play would never be produced at the Wilma Theater. It’s more of a domestic drama. At The Wilma Theater, we tend to do very texted based plays that have an international influence that deal with contemporary issues. But I would say, for me what seemed to be distinguishing about the Wilma before I came here, is that there is a real marriage of the written word between the performing art form and the visual art form.  I think the collaboration of that coming together to make an artistic whole is, with the text as the center of the work, makes us a bit unique. Also because, the Artistic Directors are from the former Czechoslovakia, there is a sense of European influence on the work although when they go back to Prague they are told they are very American.  But, the rehearsal process, the time devoted to technical rehearsal is very extensive and I think that’s part of what distinguishes the physical aspect of our productions.

AL: How important is it to establish an identity for your audience to relate to and recognize?

JH: It’s an interesting question because I think identity tends to relate to subscription models that people will subscribe to an organization because of the identity of the organization itself. Subscriptions are declining and people respond more to the individual productions, then they do to the identity of the organization. Right now we are challenged in that regard on whether people are responding to identity or whether people are responding to the plays we select.  Obviously the plays we select are influenced by our identity or vision, but more and more people are responding more to play selection than organizational identity. In addition to that though, as a non-profit organization when we rely on significant amounts of contributed income, I think identity plays a very signification role. I think we receive individual contributions, we receive grants from foundations and government agencies and corporations because of who we are and the identity of the organization. So I think that does become very important and plays a key role in particularly contributed revenue.

AL: Which theater is your biggest competitor?

JH: We actually have the most cross over audience with the Arden Theater, which is a surprise to some people.

AL: So, if an audience member has the option between the Arden and the Wilma Theater, what is the perception of the play selection at the Wilma?

JH: I think there is a perception of progressive or provocative or even cutting edge, some people have even used avant-garde, which I don’t think is the right description for the work that we do. But I do think that we do look at the theater not simply for its entertainment value, but for work that is intellectually stimulating and socially relevant. We are producing all four of our plays this year that have been written in the past three years although they are all very different, but certainly dealing with a lot of contemporary issues.

AL: How many subscribers does the Wilma currently have?

JH: We have 4600 subscribers, though we offer all sorts of different packages for people to purchase. Flexed, fixed, student, senior and we even did a co-subscription with Philadelphia Theater Company where you can pick two from them and two from here.

AL: How would you say Wilma creates patron loyalty?

JH: Well, I’ve been here for 3 ½ years and I think for quite some time, patron loyalty simply came because people were very interested in the work that the Wilma produced. We have two Artistic Directors who have this unique story of escaping Communist Czechoslovakia to come here and start a theater company that produced provocative work and that inspired people to attend and that created loyalty. The theater was over on Sansom Street which is now the Adrian Theater and moved here in 1996.

Anytime you move an organization to a larger space, people are going to have negative and positive feedback in regards to that move and programming and all of that. So, I think there was a shift of that point in time in patron loyalty factor. Even though now we believe that the work we produce on stage is a risk, the risk we take is a little bit more common place. That the fact that we take a risk and state that it is a risk, it no longer becomes a risk if that makes sense. So, I think that almost at times we are in a stagnant period. We are interested in rejuvenating and revitalizing the Wilma and looking at different models, because we tend to produce intellectual work and work that people may feel is a bit dense or inaccessible.

There has been more of a perception that there is a certain level of elitism to the Wilma, that without changing the programming, it’s a perception that I’ve worked very hard to counteract. Certainly a lot of that has to do with the customer service we provide in the box office and the other source of interaction that we engage in with our audience. We use a phrase that we use a lot when speaking about the Wilma; the conversation will linger long after the curtain falls. That is something we want to engender with our patrons where they will have an experience here that they will want to talk about. You may not like the play, but you’ll certainly talk about it. We often have talk backs to create that dialogue. Those are some of the ways. I’ve made an effort to create a different spirit to the point where I give almost all of the opening speeches so that I am a physical presence with our audience as opposed to having an intern that would change every show to give curtain speeches and welcome them to the show. Right now our patron loyalty is more focused on the experience they have around the production.

AL: What are some of the ways you would measure a patron’s loyalty?

JH: We measure by subscription renewals and contribution; both the amount and the number of contributions. Someone who gives a $10 contribution suggests that they have a level of loyalty that goes beyond just subscribing, even if it’s just a $10 contribution. We have people that give $10,000 contributions that probably attend less productions and that’s a different kind of loyalty and a different kind of measure. Looking at actual attendance numbers, we have a system that scans the tickets after each show so we know who used the tickets and who didn’t. So, if subscribers do not use their tickets, we’ll send them a message saying, hey we noticed you missed our show the other night, is there a reason, and would you like to pick another show. That is a measure of looking at the amount of people that come versus the number that do not come and how they respond to follow up.  Also, each night our house manager collects comments from a hand full of patrons to get reactions to the productions. I think also that seeing a collection of all those comments help us access and monitor loyalty.

AL: Have you changed prices on subscriptions/tickets in order to stay with the competition in the theater sector?

JH: Yes, we look at all of that. People have lots of opinions on what pricing should be. When you choose prices, you are also stating how you value the work that you produce. There is one aspect that because we are on the Avenue of the Arts, people are looking at us not just with the other theater companies but also the Kimmel Center, that serves the opera, ballet and orchestra.  The idea has been that we should set up pricing that corresponds with their pricing. But others feel as though that’s not our direct competition, but rather we should look at other theater companies. We’ve experimented with a lot of different pricing models, this year we went for a different approach with an easy pricing model so that people can exchange. There are upgrade fees involved with the exchanges so we minimized that because it becomes a big inconvenience, I think.  So, we changed the way we priced so that we are more consistent across the board, except for Saturday nights. But, yes, we do look not only at our peers here but we also have resources to look at pricing nationally with theaters of our size and then try to take economic circumstances into consideration, but it’s tough right now.

AL: The GPCA released a survey in October stating that while attendance remains strong, the lag effect of the economy takes its toll on other forms of government, foundation, and corporate support. Is the Wilma experiencing any form of decreased monetary support?

JH: We are. I would say in government funding. I actually feel very fortunate in how the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts decision played out. There was a time that they were talking about eliminating it all together. We actually saw a 15% decrease in last year’s grant which was pretty good considering what we were expecting. Our National Endowment for the Arts grant decreased from $30,000 last year to $20,000 this year. That was really an issue where we had a conversation with the NEA to find out why. There was a situation where there were more applications as opposed to us having a weak application. We did not receive a Stimulus grant that we had hoped to receive. Corporate support is up in the air. We still have a number of asks that are out and we do not know what to expect as a response. Foundation support is very strong right now, but they are on a three year rolling average, which means that probably when we are going to be hit is next year or the following year as opposed to this year.

AL: Have you done any of the following examples in response to the economy change?

• Reduce staff/hours: I have reduced staff. Mostly mid-level staff, the managers.
• Decrease programming: Not to speak of. We’ve altered our studio school which is a component of the education department.
• Producing programs with lower budget: We have done some budget cutting. It’s something that we are exploring right now. The two biggest expense items are the size of the cast and the expense of the set. We have a very wide and deep theater space. Sometimes it can be very difficult to do a minimal set, because it just looks very odd. So that’s a challenge and we are looking right now as we plan for next season the cast and size. That, if we have a large casted show that we think is going to make us a lot of money would that net be the same as a smaller cast show like Coming Home that would net a modest amount. So we are weighing right now to determine the decisions for the future.
• Reducing marketing budgets: That’s hard. We have reduced some. Whenever you reduce your marketing budget, you’re reducing your ability to generate income. Although the other side of marketing is that it only takes you so far. After the show opens, reviews and word of mouth is what really sells tickets. Marketing really pushes the pre-sale before the actual opening. Then it’s word of mouth. Particularity now because everyone is texting and tweeting someone about their show experiences.  It’s a juggling act with marketing, but if you cut marketing budget too much, you’re compromising your ability to sell tickets and that goes hand and hand with the income you generate.

AL: What are some of the goals the Wilma Theater would like to put into action over the next five years?

JH: We are looking at a couple things. One is in addition to a year to year season planning, we are thinking about doing projects that need more than one year to plan and produce. We are also looking to do more collaborative work with theaters around the country and other disciplines, so that we can incorporate more original music or incorporate dance or find unique ways to collaborate with other artistic disciplines. We are probably going to embark on a two year long research project and look at patron loyalty and programming and see if we need to shift how it is that we produce work. Right now we produce four plays that each run for 5 weeks. Two are directed by Artistic Director Jiri Zizka and the other two, by Artistic Director Blanka Zizka and that’s what we do. It may be time that we shake up that model and realize that this is a world premiere and something we believe in artistically that we need to produce that because its unfamiliar should we reduce the run of the show because people may not come and see it.

AL: As far as board development, how reflective is your board against the community that you serve and programming?

JH: No, I wouldn’t say so. We have board members that have been with the organization for 10-20 years. Also, some new comers, but what tends to happen is that people on the board will bring other like minded people that serve on other boards with them. Right now we have a per ponderous of board members from the Chestnut Hill area. We lack diversity in terms of race, age and its gets hard when you talk about economic status because they are expected to make a contribution, so members are expected to have a certain economic status. But I think it does limit in terms of the other aspects that are brought to the board. It’s an ongoing challenge that we face in board development than other organizations do. The nominating committee is aware of it and always attempts to seek out new members that would bring different influences to the board, but it is an ongoing challenge.

AL: Do you feel as though the board and the organization are open to broadening the perception of the theater?

JH: Yes, but it’s a challenge. We are very actively engaged in the program that we are calling Building the Audiences of Tomorrow.  It’s towards college level students and inner city high schools. The impact of that has been pretty profound in that Coming Home was a very successful show in terms of getting students involved. We bring theater to their classrooms and get them prepared by giving them study and teaching guides before they come to the Wilma. What we want to see eventually is that they come back on their own and experience theater, because they want to, not because they are told to.  We’ve discovered that students feel more comfortable with what they know. So that has a lot to do with the loyalty towards the Wilma and that’s the approach we are taking. Unfortunately this specific population is not ready to step up and be board members.  So, there is a gap of people in their 20s that are interested in theater, but when they reach their 30s and 40s, there tends to be a dip in their participation and then they come back once their children are older. But, overall we are becoming more and more successful in diversifying our audience base, but I don’t think the board is reflective of that audience base.

For more information about their current and upcoming performances, visit here.

Funding Sources: A Profile of The Leeway Foundation

“Art carries us
Into daily struggles
Large and small
And allows us
To envision a new world
Based on our hearts
And not just our heads

The intersection between art
And justice
Is where revolution
Is birthed.
How you make art
Is not only as important
As the art you make,
It is part
Of the art you make.”

(Excerpt from Leeway Vision Statement)

As the recession continues to cause organizations to restructure and reorganize, funding sources are also adjusting grant programs and limiting the number of recipients.  This can make the culture of getting a project funded much more competitive. The Leeway Foundation, one of many funding sources in Philadelphia will be no stranger to the increased culture of having less money which means fewer grants distributed. Maori Holmes, the Communications Director at Leeway speaks with ArtsLine about the status of Leeway and the state of competition for future applicants.

Unlike many other private foundations, Leeway has focused their efforts in funding projects from underserved communities. “Leeway’s commitment to funding women and transgendered artists creating social change through their art is the result of diligent work of the foundation to find new ways to more fully live out its mission.  Leeway began in 1993 as a foundation dedicated to supporting women artists in the Philadelphia area.  It was funded by an initial gift from Philadelphia-based artist Linda Lee Alter.  In the late 1990’s, Leeway’s leadership grew its commitment to art as a means of helping achieve social change.  Inspiration for this commitment came from organizations and activist groups devoted to connecting art and social change, as well as from individuals in the Leeway community who believed in the powerful potential of this link.” (Excerpt from Leeway.org)

While connecting art and social change, Leeway has been very successful in spreading that process throughout the Philadelphia community and surrounding areas. By defining their presence in the community as advocates for change, Leeway states their raison d’être as the following:

• Committed to examining and illuminating the relationship between art and social change.
• Invested in art that has extraordinary vision, as well as art that expands the notion of art and the artist’s place and connection to communities.
• Committed to expanding the notion of art beyond the traditional canons.
• Dedicated to exploring the role of the artist and how their participation and investment in community advances the kind of world we want to see.
• Devoted to building strong relationships with an international community of artists, curators, presenters, and producers who are working at the nexus of art, culture, and social change. (excerpt from Leeway.org)

The two grants The Leeway Foundation distributes are the Art and Change Grant and the Leeway Transformation Award. The Art and Change Grant is a project-based art and change grant providing up to $2,500 to fund art for social change projects and opportunities.  The Leeway Transformation Award is a $15,000 award offered annually to artists who have demonstrated a commitment to creating art for social change for five years or more. The vivacity of being funded by The Leeway Foundation is the amount of post-exposure and resources that are provided. Doors are opened in the areas of additional funding opportunities, mentors, collaborators, space and many other types of support. There were 62 artists funded in 2009 for the Art and Change grant and five for the Leeway Transformation Award.

Quick Q & A with Maori Holmes

• AL: What is your position a Leeway and what are you duties?

MH: I am the Communications Director at Leeway chiefly responsible for all external and internal communications including web and print materials as well as special events, media relations, and social networking.

• AL: Please describe what Leeway offers/provides artists.

MH: Leeway offers two grant programs–the $2,500 Art and Change Grant for art and social change projects and the $15,000 Leeway Transformation Award for artists who have been engaged in art and social change practice for more than five years. All artists must live in the Delaware Valley Region (Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties), identify as a woman or transgender, and explicitly create artwork that promotes social change in their community. We also offer artist development workshops and artist showcases and exhibits, which are open to the broader public.

AL: How has the recession affected Leeway and your funding opportunities?

MH: Our assets have gone down by nearly 40% which will affect our funding in 2010. We will have to cut our grant making in 2010 down by about 15% in the number of grants awarded. The grant amounts will remain the same.

AL: How many artists apply every application quarter?

MH: The average number of applications received for each cycle of the Art & Change Grant and Transformation Award is 100.

AL: Has there been an increase or decrease in applications over the past two years?

MH: Our applications have increased over the past two years.

For more information regarding The Leeway Foundation, visit here.

Welcome!

Welcome to the new website of Artsline, featuring the latest issues: Spring 2009, Winter 2009 and Fall 2008! Take a look around, leave comments and check out the new design. If you have any questions, please contact the Artsline Editor at dj89@drexel.edu. Enjoy!

Spring 2009 Issue: Becoming an Arts Advocate

By Amy Scheidegger

On Arts Advocacy Day 2009, along with fellow students from Drexel University’s Arts Administration Graduate Program, I marched on Capitol Hill to support funding for the arts in America. Advocacy means arguing in favor of something and is a simple skill we use to make choices every day of our lives. When arriving at our designated representatives’ offices, I found that I was not sitting in front of intimidating politicians trying to convince them of something that was foreign to me, as I thought I would be.

Instead, I was sitting in front of people my own age (the legislative aides) advocating for the importance of the field that I have lived with and loved my entire life. In doing so, I had to supplement my argument with facts and figures (politicians need numbers). What I noticed was that in these arts advocacy meetings, we, the students, museum employees, orchestra staff, were perceived as the experts on what is needed to aid the arts. Lawmakers were looking to us for the reasons to vote in favor of the arts. The blending of personal experiences with proven figures will result in successful advocating.

As we were told during our full day of Lobbying 101 – a training session hosted by the Americans for the Arts as part of the preparation activities for Arts Advocacy Day – the most effective case with which one can approach officials is economic impact. Keeping this in mind, all advocates were armed with a collective theme: Art = Jobs. We learned a very comprehensive set of statistics to share with our politicians from a study called Arts & Economic Prosperity III: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts and Culture Organizations and Their Audiences. This study describes the undeniable role played by nonprofit arts in contributing to our national revenue. It reveals that the nonprofit arts and culture industry generates $166.2 billion in economic activity every year. In addition to this revenue, the creative industry also provides 5.7 million full-time equivalent jobs – a figure greater than the number of retail jobs in the country! Numbers such as these, however, have to be paired with human experiences to become truly memorable to politicians or their staff members.

Since I am fairly new to the Philadelphia region (I moved here in August 2008 from North Carolina) I could only share the story of how my father and I visited the Academy of Natural Sciences, and the sense of awe that came over us while walking down Benjamin Franklin Parkway. As an arts professional, it seemed Philadelphia had all the arts and culture that anyone like me could hope for. To cut arts funding for a city so rich in culture would be detrimental not just to the entire city but also the state of Pennsylvania. Politics are fluid and changing constantly, but then again, so are the arts. In this way non-profits are well suited for the world of politics, and it’s my belief that arts advocacy will one day be an integral part of all of our daily organizational missions.

5 things to remember when advocating:

1) Know the voting record of the official you are meeting with.

2) Know the top 3 issues you want to address.

3) Be trustworthy, respectful and honest. Your success depends on how the key decision maker views you.

4) Make the Ask: Be clear about what you want and what you want your representative to do.

5) Always follow up and thank your Representative for their time and support, even if they don’t support your agenda.

Amy Scheidegger is a painter/illustrator/ graphic designer originally from North Carolina. She is a graduate student of the Arts Administration Program at Drexel University and is the newly elected Advocacy Coordinator on the 2009-2010 AAGA Board.

Spring 2009 Issue: Drexel hosts the AAAE Annual Conference

This year, from April 2nd to 5th, 2009, the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design, Drexel University, hosted the Annual Association of Arts Administration Educators Conference. More than 90 educators and practitioners representing ten different countries participated in this conference whose central theme was research – in classrooms, the curriculum, and in the evolving work of arts and cultural managers in the field. Presented at the conference were major research initiatives shaping cultural management best practices, scholarly research and discussions on how to increase student, alumni and staff engagement and critical synergies. Several of our Arts Administration program’s students volunteered for the event and provided core support for its planning, organization and successful execution.

Sources: http://www.artsadministration.org and the AAAE Member News

Spring 2009 Issue: Letter from the Editor

By Divya Janardhan

Summer is here and so is the end of yet another eventful academic year. This issue of Artsline is all about the many exciting events and conferences our students and faculty participated in or helped to organize this academic year. Our Arts Administration program’s marked presence in all of these events reaffirms our status as one of the best programs in our league! Artsline also extends congratulations and good wishes to new AAGA Board (2009-10) and a big thank you to the outgoing AAGA Board. It is also time for me to wrap up a successful term as the Editor of Artsline. I cannot help but feel thrilled on what an exciting year this has been!

Special thanks to my writers – students, faculty, alumni and arts professionals – for your enthusiasm and support. My heartfelt thanks to the Artsline design team – Amy Scheidegger and Ying Le – for executing the vision we had to take the newsletter’s design standards and web presence to a new level altogether. Words cannot express my gratitude to our Director of Programs – Cecelia Fitzgibbon and our Research Director – Ximena Varela for their undivided attention and efforts towards the successful production of each issue of Artsline. And, finally, my congratulations and best wishes to the incoming Editor of Artsline who will be taking my place this Fall. Have a wonderful summer everyone!

Divya Janardhan