ATLANTA OFFICE OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS 2013 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS DIRECTOR CONTENTS Camille Russell Love MANAGEMENT LEADERSHIP Lena Carstens, Program Manager, Arts in Education 2 Mayor’s Letter, Commissioner’s Letter Alex Delotch Davis, Grants Development Officer 3 Director’s Letter, City Council Members Eddie Granderson, Program Manager, Public Art 4 Vision. Mission. Goals Nnena Nchege, Festival Manager, Atlanta Jazz Festival 2013 HIGHLIGHTS ADMINISTRATION 5 Program Highlights Morgan Garriss, Management Analyst Cheryl Sullivan, Accounting Specialist EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7 Development Focus STAFF ARTSCooL & Cultural Experience Project DEPARTMENT AREAS Jessica Gaines, Project Supervisor 14 Arts in Education 15 Cultural Experience Project Contracts for Arts Services 17 ARTSCooL Selena Harper, Project Supervisor 19 Culture Club 20 Arts Funding Public Art Program 21 Contracts for Arts Services Courtney Hammond, Project Supervisor, 25 power2give.org Outreach & Education 31 Public Art Robert Witherspoon, Project Supervisor, 32 Public Art Collection Collections Management 33 Collections Management 34 Elevate Culture Club 36 Atlanta Jazz Festival Tiffani Bryant, Facility Administrator 40 Cultural Facilities Ina Williams, Project Coordinator 41 Chastain Arts Center C. Ray Anderson, Operations Assistant 42 Atlanta Cyclorama and Civil War Museum Gerald Jackson, Operations Assistant 43 Gilbert House, South Bend Center for Art and Culture, JD Sims Center Cassandra Sistrunk, Operations Assistant Chastain Arts Center FINANCIALS Karen Comer Lowe, Facility Administrator 44 Budget and Funding John Roberts, Project Coordinator Adiellah Bates , Data Analyst THANK YOU Megan Murdie, Administrative Assistant 45 Sponsors and Partners Atlanta Cyclorama Monica D. Prothro, Facility Administrator Patricia Jackson, Customer Service GET IN TOUCH 233 Peachtree St NE Yakingma Robinson, Marketing Assistant Harris Tower Suite 1700 Beverly Williams, Bookstore Manager Atlanta, GA 30303 (404) 546-6788 ocaatlanta.com PAGE 1 MESSAGE FROM MESSAGE FROM THE THE MAYOR COMMISIONER Greetings, There is no question that the leading cities of the world invest significantly in arts and culture, and I am proud to present the Office of Atlanta is no different. Public art, art programs, Cultural Affairs Annual Report. There’s theaters, galleries and other artistic venues stand as a vital component to the health of our city. They no question that art stands as a vital draw business and enterprise, as well as new visitors. component of the health of any great Most importantly, they contribute to the positive city. development of our children. With a mission to promote rich and diverse cultural experiences in the As Mayor, I am proud of the City of Atlanta, while preserving and protecting the accomplishments of the Office of city’s cultural heritage, the Office of Cultural Affairs Cultural Affairs over the past year. has committed resources to improving art initiatives This past fall, we launched power2give.org, an online fundraising for residents, families, and visitors alike. tool which makes it easy for every citizen to support art programs and initiatives and doubles the impact of each dollar raised through Under the leadership of Mayor Kasim Reed, the Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs was able to reopen all 33 of the city’s recreation centers matching funds. In addition, we granted over $700,000 to local and began to transform them into Centers of Hope, which serve as safe-havens artists and arts organizations through our Contracts for Arts Services of learning and Arts In Education. Through the Public Art Program, Parks and program. We provided cultural experiences for our youth through Recreation facilities around the city received new works of art from local and the Cultural Experience Project and our ARTSCooL program for national artists, as well as international artists like Yvonne Demenge, who teens was recognized by President Barack Obama’s Committee on designed the artworks – Tree of Life and Kan -- recently unveiled at Freedom the Arts and the Humanities as an exceptional youth program. Park. Through collaboration with the city’s Department of Public Works, the Cascade community received a working sundial by artist Ayokunle Odeleye as The arts are an integral part of Atlanta’s cultural fabric. Our city part of the Streetscape Improvement project. Thomasville Community Center, remains a world-class city because of the many contributions of art Hardy Ivy Park, Riverside Community Fire Station and downtown’s South Broad patrons, leaders, businesses and organizations, and artists that keep Street district are all sites of new artworks that are changing the landscape of this great city. our community moving forward. These combined efforts are what make Atlanta an inspiring place to live, work and visit. We also continue to encourage arts as a valuable element of educational development. Cultural Experience Project, in partnership with Atlanta Public Schools and Culture Club, provides programming at our recreational facilities that introduces children to the world of art and music. The 36th Annual Jazz Festival once again drew crowds of music lovers from all over the world, and our Cyclorama and Civil War Museum continues its four-year Sincerely, long national commemoration of the American Civil War. Kasim Reed, Mayor This year, the Office of Cultural Affairs will transition from the Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs to the Mayor’s Office. The move will increase the Office’s profile and ability to impact arts and culture throughout the City, and it will not impact our commitment to integrating arts and culture into our public spaces and programs. We will maintain our strong partnership to provide residents exceptional spaces and memorable experiences. Thanks to Mayor Reed, the Atlanta City Council and local community partners, we have had an outstanding year in arts and culture. Sincerely, George A. Dusenbury, Commissioner Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs PAGE 2 AtLANTA CITY COUNCIL MESSAGE FROM Kasim Reed, Mayor Ceasar Mitchell, President THE DIRECTOR DISTRICT LEADERS Hon. Carla Smith, District 1 2013 was a benchmark year for the Office of Cultural Affairs. Cultural Experience Hon. Kwanza Hall, District 2 Project reached a milestone of 250,000 student admissions to cultural venues around the city. We successfully installed four new pieces of public art including Hon. Ivory Lee Young, District 3 one piece acquired through a partnership with Chicago’s Millennium Park. Hon. Cleta Winslow, District 4 ARTSCooL was recognized by the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Hon. Natalyn Archibong, District 5 Humanities as an exceptional youth program and the 36th Annual Atlanta Jazz Festival presented Generation Next, a celebration of young jazz talent from Hon. Alex Wan, District 6 Atlanta and around the world. Hon. Howard Shook, District 7 Hon. Yolanda Adrean, District 8 The Mayor’s office generously increased funding for the arts by $530,000 in FY 2013. With those funds we were able to launch power2give.org, a crowdsourced Hon. Felicia Moore, District 9 funding platform which enables organizations to raise funds for specific projects Hon. C.T. Martin, District 10 through a dedicated website. Through power2give.org, we were able to leverage Hon. Keisha Lance Bottoms, District 11 the increase in funding by matching, dollar for dollar, the donations our arts Hon. Joyce Sheperd, District 12 organizations raised through this website. power2give.org galvanized the community around the arts, where every dollar was doubled and the impact was immediate. POST LEADERS Hon. Michael Bond, Post 1 As we move into the new fiscal year, we are excited to build upon our successes in service of our mission to promote rich and diverse cultural experiences. Hon. Aaron Watson, Post 2 As you read through our annual report, you will see our many programs and Hon. H. Lamar Willis, Post 3 initiatives that serve several constituencies: • Youth • Educators • Artists • Arts Organizations • Tourists • Citizens In FY 2014 we expect to expand our capabilities to provide additional support to Atlanta’s business community as well as agencies throughout the city administration. The Office of Cultural Affairs will transition to the Mayor’s Office where we will be able to increase the value of arts and culture to support the cultural economic development of Atlanta’s in a time of significant growth. Thanks to the hard work of our staff, the support of our Mayor and the generous contributions of our many supporters, we are honored to be a champion for the value of arts and culture in Atlanta’s communities. Yours in Art & Culture, Camille Russell Love, Director, Office of Cultural Affairs THE OFFICE OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS IS COMMITTED TO SUPPORTING THE GROWTH OF ATLANTa’s arTS ECONOMY, ARTISTS AND AUDIENCES WHICH MAKE THE CITY A VIBRANT PLACE TO LIVE, WORK AND VISIT PAGE 3 MISSION To promote the rich and diverse cultural experiences in the City of Atlanta while preserving and protecting the city’s cultural heritage VISION To enhance the quality of life through cultural experiences that will expand Atlanta’s international reputation GOALS MAINTAIN the highest quality of services GAIN international recognition of programs UNIFY Atlanta’s cultural community through programs EDUCATE Atlanta about Cultural Development CREATE Cultural experiences that can serve as an international model USE cultural experiences to enhance the quality of life PROVIDE