Voices from the Field

As an arts administrator, I am very proud of the accomplishments the Monmouth Museum has made over the past 10 years in providing accessible arts and cultural experiences to special need populations. This year, I am both thrilled and humbled to say the Cultural Access Network Project (CAN), a program of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance and NJ State Council on the Arts, is honoring the Monmouth...

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the groundbreaking Cold War Glassboro Summit between then Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin and President Lyndon B. Johnson, the Rowan University Department of Theatre and Dance has been commissioned to create a live, family-friendly public performance on June 24, 2017. The event will occur in front of the Hollybush Mansion on Rowan’s main campus in Glassboro, where...

At The Center for Contemporary Art (“The Center”) in Bedminster, we proudly declare on our website that we, “recognize the diversity of our community’s abilities and needs and are committed to enabling all people to experience the benefits of arts education.” We offer seven year-round programs that provide an outlet for creative expression in a safe, supportive setting for children with Autism...

What You Can Do NOW to Protect NEA Funding Thank you if you’ve already signed a petition to support federal funding for the arts, but make sure you sign THIS Arts Action Fund petition now and invite friends to do the same. This action helps arts advocates organize, and Americans for the Arts CEO Bob Lynch plans to present this Arts Action Fund petition to the President. If you do not currently...

By now, you have probably read that the President’s budget may include elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts. ArtPride New Jersey is aware of the situation, and we are in the process of receiving confirmations and updates from our national partners, Americans for the Arts (AFTA) and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA). In the meantime, while this is bad news, it is...

I’d be lying if I said just being nominated was enough. We love winning a People’s Choice award. Sure, our egos puff up for a few minutes, there may be a couple of high-fives, and some congratulatory emails from our esteemed board members—and that all feels good. Really good. But the truth is, there’s tremendous personal satisfaction across the organization when we are recognized by the voting...

In 1860, Florence Nightingale recognized the profound effect “beautiful objects” have on sickness and recovery. “Little as we know about the way in which we are affected by form, by color and light, we do know this – that they have an actual physical effect,” Nightingale wrote. Studies have confirmed Nightingale’s instinct. Infusing a patient’s experience with artwork can improve recovery and...

Would you rather spend your remaining days in a hospital bed or jumping out of an airplane with Jack Nicholson? That is the premise behind the film The Bucket List , when two terminally ill cancer patients receive news that they have just a year to live. Ed (Jack Nicholson) and Carter (Morgan Freeman) become friends during their respective cancer treatments and embark on a journey to complete...

The arts have brought of herd of painted oxen to the fields of Hopewell Valley, a mural to the wall of a city garden in New Brunswick, and Monet to Toms River -- actually, a very realistic sculpture of the artist. Throughout the Garden State, artists and the arts community have been welcomed by municipalities for their skills, the lessons they can share, and the beauty they bring to the streets,...

One of my many jobs when I was the Executive Director of the New Jersey Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts was to work as “crisis manager” for the very many arts nonprofits that would call with issues on a daily basis. Since the main job of an arts organization executive director is handling day-to-day matters and putting out their own crisis ‘fires,’ I’d often get calls when all hell broke loose on a...