Friday, January 28, 2011

ARTSERVE: Federal Action Alerts + Cultural Data Project = MI Orgs Needed

ArtServe Michigan
Federal Action Alerts and Cultural Data Project – Organizational Participation Needed

Two Federal Action Alerts Need Your Attention!!!!

Earlier this week, 165 conservative members of Congress representing the Republican Study Committee called for termination of the National Endowment for the Arts and key arts education programs at the U.S. Department of Education.

Please take two minutes to take action and send a message to your member of Congress in support of the National Endowment for the Arts AND arts education at the U.S. Department of Education.

Each link will take you to a draft email that requires nothing but your approval of the content and your address. Your help in ensuring that the Michigan Congressional delegation knows of the importance of the NEA and arts education programs within the U.S. Department of Education is greatly appreciated!

Cultural Data Project – Organizational Participation Needed

In the fall of 2008, ArtServe, the Pew Charitable Trust and the other members of the Michigan CDP Task Force began the information discovery process that would lead to the arrival of the Cultural Data Project in Michigan.

If you are not aware, the CDP is a powerful online management tool designed to strengthen arts and cultural organizations. It began in Pennsylvania in 2004 and will be operating in 11 states and Washington DC by the end of 2011. Arts and cultural organizations enter financial, programmatic and operational data into a standardized online form and can then use the CDP several different ways.
The abridged version of what CDP will provide organizations is:
  • After entering your historical financial and operational data, you can rely on technology to reformat the data to match the needs of different funders.
  • Tools to easily track trends in performance and benchmark against the more than 10,000 organizations in the system nationally
  • Reports that will help you make your case for support to funders, board members and policymakers.
Just as important as the value it brings organizations is the aggregated statistical data that it will offer to make the case about the impact of the arts in Michigan. If you have been paying attention to any of the discussions in Lansing regarding the budget, you’ll know that data and value for money is very important to Governor Snyder. The more organizations that participate, the bigger the impact we will be able to demonstrate when we testify in front of the Senate and House General Government Appropriations Subcommittee in March.

I’ll be honest with you – the steps to find the correct information and enter the data are demanding and may take some time. However, YOU’RE NOT ALONE. The Michigan CDP Help Desk is offered as a FREE service to assist you along every step of the way. If you require the assistance of an accountant, you will be put in touch with a specialist that will help you for FREE. If you have questions of which figure goes where, the Help Desk will stay on the phone until you get it right – for FREE.

While many organizations have already taken the lead by beginning to enter their data or completing their entry to receive “Gold Star” status (information is verified and ready for research), unfortunately there are still many who have not. Some organizations have commented that they do not have the capacity or time to take on such a project.

I can certainly sympathize with the workload each organization is currently taking on and can assure you that, as nonprofits, we are all under the same amount of stress - juggling increased programs with smaller staffs...and definitely not enough hours in the day. Those who refuse to participate will miss out on not only an opportunity to possess a new organizational management tool designed to strengthen their organization, but they will miss out on contributing to the advocacy efforts of ArtServe Michigan.

Currently, ten Michigan’s arts, culture and arts education funders either require or recommend the use of CDP. This means that, for those that require it, organizations will have to submit a funder report to the grantmaker through CDP in order to be eligible to receive a grant. Click here to view the growing list of funders requiring or recommending the use of CDP.

In the end, it is up to each organization to participate and be counted. While resources are low, this is the one tool that provides the free support you need to participate and brings more value with it than the time it takes to participate.

As organizations continue to enter their data and consider whether or not they should participate I offer myself, Mike Latvis, and Jennifer Hill as resources for any questions or comments you may have.

How to Generate a Funder Report

There have been some questions raised as to how to generate a funder report through the CDP. Click here to download or view step-by-step instructions.

As always, if you have any questions or comments please email or call Mike Latvis at 248-379-5897.

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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

ARTSERVE: 2011 MCACA grant recipient? MICDP made easy step-by-step

Congratulations on receiving a FY 2011 MCACA POPS award.

You are required to send MCACA an MCACA funder report (two years) that is generated through
the Michigan CDP. The steps to generate a Funder Report in CDP are:

1. Read the New User Orientation on the website
2. Watch the training videos, which range from a short general overview to a 20 minute
presentation with specific instructions
If you attended a training workshop or webinar, steps 1 & 2 cover much of the same
material. You can sign up for free 90-minute New User Orientation webinars offered the first
Wednesday of every month at 10am and 2pm.

3. Gather information about your group’s last two completed fiscal years, see the Data
Profile Instructions for list of what will be needed.
4. Type in your data from the fiscal year completed two years ago first. Once it is done,
then you should enter the most recently completed fiscal year. You do the work in this
order because the prior year will autofill into the more recent year, allowing to see both
years at the same time as you enter data.
5. Once a fiscal year is entered, you hit the submit button and an error check is run for math
errors. Correct any errors.
6. Go to the Reports section, where you will see the list of Michigan funders requiring or
recommending the CDP Funder Report. Click on the funder you want and follow the
instructions.

The MCACA Funder Report is due, via email as a PDF or hard copy, when you return your grant
agreement. The MCACA is working on getting those grant agreements out as soon as possible
but can’t give an exact date at this time. The MCACA will not release your first payment until the
funder report is received. You will receive your grant – but when you receive it depends on when
you send back the Funder Report to the MCACA.

Please note that an additional new requirement this year is to provide the MCACA with a
copy of notification of your award to legislators. This should also be returned with your grant
acknowledgement requirements.

ADVOCACY and the CDP – DEMONSTRATING IMPACT
The steps above are essential for the role that CDP plays in grant making. The CDP collects
the financial and programmatic activities of an arts or cultural group in one place and allows that
group to send the information easily to a funders that participate in the system using PDFs that
have been tailored to each funder’s needs. In other words, it uses the Internet and sophisticated
databases to eliminate the need to reformate the same information for different funders.


$4,750 in Cash Prizes: New Mackinac Art Museum Holds Contemporary Art & Photography Exhibition Contests

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 26, 2011


Contact: Jolene Priest, 231-436-4100

Mackinac State Historic Parks, an agency within the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment


$4,750 in Cash Prizes: New Mackinac Art Museum Holds Contemporary Art & Photography Exhibition Contests

Mackinaw City, MI — Professional and amateur artists and photographers, here’s your chance to shine Mackinac-style! Mackinac State Historic Parks (MSHP) announces two juried exhibition contests for The Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum, offering a total of $4,750 in cash prizes, plus the opportunity to have your work displayed in special contemporary art and photography exhibitions within this state-of-the-art, Mackinac Island museum. All material must be Mackinac-related, complementing the historic Mackinac fine and decorative art already on display.


For artists who have a special talent for painting, drawing, sketching and other two-dimensional work, excluding photography, consider entering the juried Contemporary Art Exhibition. Esteemed juror Robert J. Wilbert, professor emeritus in the Department of Art & Art History at Wayne State University, will choose the finest pieces for inclusion in the Contemporary Art Exhibition at the new art museum. Wilbert has work in the permanent collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts and was commissioned by the United States Postal Service to design a U.S. postage stamp. He will also choose the second annual “Gold Medal” winner, who will receive $2,500 cash, generously donated by the Mackinac Arts Council, a gold medal, and his or her name on the gold medal plaque. There will also be second and third place winners, with cash awards of $750 and $500 respectively. Entries must be postmarked by May 16, 2011. The exhibition runs from July 15-October 9, 2011.


Photographers also have a unique opportunity to showcase their best work to visitors from around to world. Announcing MSHP’s first Mackinac Island Photography Exhibition, aimed at sharing Mackinac moments captured on “film.” Photographers can share their vision of Mackinac through various forms, including digital or analog, color, monochrome, or any alternative photographic process. Juried by talented S. Kay Young, a Native American Detroit-based artist and teacher at Oakland Community College, Farmington Hills Heritage Park Art Program, this photography contest offers a first place cash prize of $500, second place of $350, and third place of $150. Young will select an array of inspirational photographs to appear in the art museum’s Mackinac Island Photography Exhibition, open August 1-October 9, 2011. Entries must be postmarked by June 1, 2011.


Guidelines, entry forms, and more information for both contests can be downloaded at www.MackinacParks.com/mackinac-art-museum by clicking on the “Art & Photo Contests” photo feature at the bottom right of the website, or by visiting the site and clicking on “Plan Your Visit” and then “Highlights/Art Contest Call for Entries.”


From Native American baskets to present-day paintings of the island, The Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum showcases treasures in MSHP’s collection and inspires creativity in others. The art museum, generously funded by the Richard and Jane Manoogian Foundation, brings together Mackinac art created over the centuries. Through the use of audiovisual and hands-on techniques and special programs, visitors become fully immersed in art. The art museum, located in the Indian Dormitory, reopens May 13, 2011. General admission to the art museum is $5.00 adult, $3.50 youth ages 5-17, and free for children 4 and under and Mackinac Associates members. Also included with admission is The Kids’ Art Studio, located within the museum and open during certain dates.


Guidelines, entry forms, and more information: http://www.mackinacparks.com/mackinac-art-museum/index.aspx?l=0,1,10,746,865


Mackinac State Historic Parks, a family of living history museums and parks in northern Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac, is an agency within the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment. Its sites—which are accredited by the American Association of Museums—include Fort Mackinac, Mackinac Island State Park, Historic Downtown, and The Richard & Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City. Mackinac State Historic Parks is governed by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, established in 1895 to protect, preserve and present the parks’ rich historic and natural resources for the education and recreation of future generations. Visitor information is available at 231-436-4100 or on the web at www.MackinacParks.com.



Friday, January 21, 2011

ARTSERVE: MCACA Grant Awards

ArtServe Michigan
MCACA Grant Awards

MCACA Grant Awards
This afternoon, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) approved grants to 220 organizations, located in 41 counties, totaling $2,271,650 in awards. These grants represented awards in the Program for Operational and Projects Support, the Regional Regranting program and the Services to the Field program.
The Program for Operational and Project Support received 190 grant applications requesting $1,624,566. Of the 190 requests, the MCACA funded 176 grants totaling $1,450,650 in funding support. The Regional Regranting Program was awarded $500,000 in administrative and grant funding, allowing the state’s 19 regional regranters to distribute the council’s support throughout each region of the state. Finally, the council awarded 6 applications within the Services to the Field program for a total of $321,000.

Click here or go to MCACA's website at http://www.themedc.org/Arts/ to view a complete list of the Fiscal Year 2011 grant recipients.

CROSS THE MICDP FINISH LINE! Enter your data corrections to reach "Gold Star" status

FINISH CDP NOW!
WHY?
TO BE INCLUDED IN FIRST REPORT NEXT MONTH - AND - TO GET FIRST MCACA GRANT PAYMENT

We want YOU to get your funding and be in the first group to prove the value of investing in Michigan arts and culture!

If you applied to the MCACA for a 2011 Program and Operating Support Grant, you will find out today on Friday, January 21 if you received an award. We hope all are funded! There's a new requirement this year - to receive your first check, you must submit a Funder Report generated through the Michigan Cultural Data Project by Tuesday, January 25.

Once your data are in the CDP system, it can be used to demonstrate your impact in your community. In February, ArtServe Michigan will create a report on the impact of the MCACA grantees to use in testifying to the state legislature on the new state budget. We want to include your organization!

How can you be included? Get a Gold Star! You will receive a list of corrections and comments from the CDP Help Desk once you have submitted your data. YOU MUST ENTER THOSE CORRECTIONS TO BE INCLUDED IN RESEARCH. When you have entered them, your data profile will be marked "Review Complete" and the Gold Star icon will appear next to your data.

At this critical time, as the new Governor and administration are considering sweeping changes in Michigan policy, we must be able to demonstrate what we provide, using stories and numbers. With the CDP, we have new powerful numbers we never have had before.

If you have any questions, contact the Michigan CDP Help Desk
Toll Free: 877-MICDP-01 or 877-642-3701
Email: help@miculturaldata.org
The Michigan CDP Help Desk is open from 9:00am - 5:00pm local time, Monday - Friday

Don't miss out on the opportunity to make your good work part of the story we tell about the value of Michigan arts and culture. Cross the finish line - enter your data corrections in the Michigan Cultural Data Project - help us make a difference in future funding!


Jennifer M. Hill
Director of Special Projects
ArtServe Michigan
T: 248-912-0760 x3#
jhill@artservemichigan.org



Thursday, January 6, 2011

1/15: Op for Detroit Artists from CAID/Whitdel Arts

Assistant Dean of College for Creative Studies and internationally renowned artist offer unique opportunity for Detroit area artists.

Detroit area artists will have an opportunity to have their work critiqued during a studio visit by artist Charles McGee and notable arts and culture critic Rebecca Mazzei. Beginning on January 15th, Whitdel Arts, a new contemporary art gallery in Southwest Detroit, will allow artists working in all mediums to install their work for an open call exhibition. Once the exhibition opens to the public on February 5th, McGee and Mazzei will select two to three artists each who they will visit in their studio to discuss and critique their work. “This is a great opportunity for artists to gain some valuable feedback on their work by two highly respected individuals in the Detroit art community”, says Whitdel Arts co-director Lauren Montgomery.

Charles McGee, who is the founder of the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit (CAID), has paintings, assemblages and sculptures in prestigious national and international collections, and on permanent display at the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Rebecca Mazzei is currently the Assistant Dean at the College for Creative Studies and former Arts and Culture Editor of the Metro Times.

Whitdel Arts invites artists working in all mediums (drawing, painting, printmaking, photo, sculpture, installation, video, etc.) to install their own work during the drop off dates listed below. Whitdel Arts Co-Directors will be available to offer help and advice on installation, as well as lighting advice and other exhibition preparation.

Artwork must be dropped off in person at Whitdel Arts on the specified drop off dates. Each artist may submit not more than 5 pieces. Accepted work will be on a “first come, first serve” basis, as a limited amount of space is available for this exhibition. Whitdel Arts reserves the right to omit any artwork if the artist submits more than 5 pieces. No entry fee is required to participate, and ⅓ percentage of any sales during the exhibition will go towards the gallery.

Exhibition drop off and installation dates:

  • Saturday, January 15 from noon-3pm
  • Tuesday, January 18 from noon- 5pm
  • Saturday, January 22 from noon-3pm


The exhibition will open to the public on Saturday, February 5 from 6pm to 9pm. The exhibition will run through February 26th, 2011.

A division of CAID, Whitdel Arts is an 1800 sq. ft. professional exhibition space that showcases the work of local and international established and emerging artists. Whitdel Arts is located at 1250 Hubbard Street, Suite B1, Detroit MI 48209. Whitdel Arts is also located on the web at www.whitdelarts.com For more information e-mailinfo@whitdelarts.com