If you have something you want to say to the Arkansas Arts Council, now’s your chance. The Arts Council is holding four public hearings across Arkansas to get input from artists and others on programming, arts and the economy and the future of arts in Arkansas. The first public meeting is at 2 p.m. Tuesday, July 13, at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center. That will be followed by meetings at TRAHC in Texarkana (July 15), the Delta Cultural Center in Helena (July 27) and the Compton Gardens and Conference Center in Bentonville (one that will no doubt talk about the impact that Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will have on that ‘burb).
UPDATE: You can take the Arts Council’s online survey on what sorts of programs you’ve gone to, what keeps you from going, what you’d like to see, etc., here.
The economy picture is something the Arts Council has been putting together for several years, with the support of the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. Four reports have been put out that take note of arts organizations in Arkansas, their intersection with other disciplines and other feel-good info, studies that will bring about … what? We’ll see.
You can find out more about the “Arkansas Creative Economy Project” on the Arts Council’s website.