December 10, 2008
Balancing Act: Contemporary Arts in Princeton
Jeff Nathanson
Executive Director, Arts Council of Princeton
Minutes of the 12th Meeting of the 67th Year
At 10:15 AM, President George Hansen called to order at the Friend Center the 12th meeting of the Old Guard's 67th year. Don Edwards led the invocation. Joan Fleming introduced her guest, not a nominee. Lee Neuworth presented the minutes for the previous week's program, ''The New Cosmology'' (Prof. David Spergel of Princeton).
Claire Jacobus introduced the speaker, Jeff Nathanson, Exec. Director of the Arts Council of Princeton. His subject was ''Balancing Act: Contemporary Arts in Princeton," and he then explained that title by saying that Princeton is dynamic, exciting, worldly, important on the world map, Nassau Hall representing the grounded history, and the new Gehry-designed Lewis Science Library representing a new esthete taking hold of the town. How to find the balance of these ideas? Noting that the mission of non-profit arts management is to positively impact society, that art is controversial, and can change the world, our speaker offered his thoughts on the state of art in the local community and of the Princeton Art council's challenges in that regard.
Beginning in 1967 as an advisory group, the council gained its first permanent home in 1982 on Witherspoon and what is now Robeson Place, and its current new building at the same address in 2008. The new building is named ''The Robeson Center,'' of course, for the man who grew up just a few feet from the back door of the building. Michael Graves was initially hired to design a much larger building. It is half the size of the original plan.
Since its beginning the Council has always sponsored and promoted community participation and involvement of community children and adults in the understanding of the visual and performing arts, arts education, along with working with other arts organizations in developing community programs. These have included 1) weekly summer concerts at the Princeton Shopping Center with a full range of global music, 2) K12 kids annual artwork anthology, receiving 2000 applications when only 80 get in, 3) Kids at Work, where kids come together, study a museum artist, then learn the meaning and techniques and make their own artwork from that inspiration, Mr. Nathanson noted his intentions to add to these programs of participatory art, modeled for example after Quark Park where scientists and artists work together, plus Writers' Block where architects and writers work together, or the unique wall at the Princeton Public library where thousands of people have contributed artwork to the huge, colorful ad masterpiece.
It was interesting to hear that attendance for the annual Communiversity program, with its outdoor dance, music and art grograms, has grown from 10,000 to 35,000 since its beginning. (That won't be surprizing to anyone who has tried to drive into downtown Princeton on the day of that event!!) Mr. Nathanson noted that Princeton has less public art than other communities. He offered information on the 600lb marching headless figures at the University as an example of the impact of contemporary public art. He was the curator for that project when it was installed.
In the Q & A session, a question on photography brought out some additional information.
Not long before the realization that digits photography was to virtually obsolete the traditional form, the Arts Council had invested in a state of the art dark room lab and facility which was liberally used by community constituents. The rapid growth of digital has now necessitated the building of a digital lab. So the Council has decided to keep and maintain both, for now anyway.
Respectfully submitted,
J. H. Johnson
Claire Jacobus introduced the speaker, Jeff Nathanson, Exec. Director of the Arts Council of Princeton. His subject was ''Balancing Act: Contemporary Arts in Princeton," and he then explained that title by saying that Princeton is dynamic, exciting, worldly, important on the world map, Nassau Hall representing the grounded history, and the new Gehry-designed Lewis Science Library representing a new esthete taking hold of the town. How to find the balance of these ideas? Noting that the mission of non-profit arts management is to positively impact society, that art is controversial, and can change the world, our speaker offered his thoughts on the state of art in the local community and of the Princeton Art council's challenges in that regard.
Beginning in 1967 as an advisory group, the council gained its first permanent home in 1982 on Witherspoon and what is now Robeson Place, and its current new building at the same address in 2008. The new building is named ''The Robeson Center,'' of course, for the man who grew up just a few feet from the back door of the building. Michael Graves was initially hired to design a much larger building. It is half the size of the original plan.
Since its beginning the Council has always sponsored and promoted community participation and involvement of community children and adults in the understanding of the visual and performing arts, arts education, along with working with other arts organizations in developing community programs. These have included 1) weekly summer concerts at the Princeton Shopping Center with a full range of global music, 2) K12 kids annual artwork anthology, receiving 2000 applications when only 80 get in, 3) Kids at Work, where kids come together, study a museum artist, then learn the meaning and techniques and make their own artwork from that inspiration, Mr. Nathanson noted his intentions to add to these programs of participatory art, modeled for example after Quark Park where scientists and artists work together, plus Writers' Block where architects and writers work together, or the unique wall at the Princeton Public library where thousands of people have contributed artwork to the huge, colorful ad masterpiece.
It was interesting to hear that attendance for the annual Communiversity program, with its outdoor dance, music and art grograms, has grown from 10,000 to 35,000 since its beginning. (That won't be surprizing to anyone who has tried to drive into downtown Princeton on the day of that event!!) Mr. Nathanson noted that Princeton has less public art than other communities. He offered information on the 600lb marching headless figures at the University as an example of the impact of contemporary public art. He was the curator for that project when it was installed.
In the Q & A session, a question on photography brought out some additional information.
Not long before the realization that digits photography was to virtually obsolete the traditional form, the Arts Council had invested in a state of the art dark room lab and facility which was liberally used by community constituents. The rapid growth of digital has now necessitated the building of a digital lab. So the Council has decided to keep and maintain both, for now anyway.
Respectfully submitted,
J. H. Johnson