Published: 1 years 185 days ago
Sacramento News and Review: The launch party for Mayor Kevin Johnson’s For Arts’ Sake initiative drew a standing-room-only crowd to the Crocker Art Museum’s new auditorium this past Friday. Many in attendance collaborated on the proposal for more than a year; the event marked the occasion to finally put paint to canvas.
“Once you have an action plan,” the mayor told the audience, “you’ve got to be able to implement it in a really significant way.” But the question remains as to whether Sacramento’s arts scene can grow with a stagnant economy and waning funding.
For Arts’ Sake aims to increase private endowment, improve access to education and invest in local artists. The goals’ execution falls on about a dozen volunteers.
Johnson told SN&R he firmly believes arts can boost economies. “I grew up in Oak Park, an underserved community,” he recalled, “and we opened an art gallery in there in 2003. Everyone said it was crazy … [but] it brought a coffeehouse in, it brought a bookstore in, it brought a theater, it brought a barbershop.”
“It transforms the neighborhood,” interjected Rocco Landesman, National Endowment for the Arts chairman, who was the featured speaker at the event.
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/content?oid=1876698
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