August 2008

I am not only an artist, but I am also an arts advocate and patron, especially when it comes to local music and visual art. I take public arts funding very seriously. I have often questioned the legitimacy of public arts funding in Sioux Falls though. On one hand publicly funding arts can have a positive impact on a community by promoting and fostering culture but it also can have a negative effect when the public is left out of that promotion process.

Before a public arts project goes forth a challenging question must be asked; is this project going to culturally enrich everyone in the community? Equality is tantamount when public funds are being spent.

There has been this capitalistic battle with the arts for centuries. Some artists and arts projects are only considered successful if they have an economic impact on a community. Sioux Falls SculptureWalk is a good example of this. Is its purpose to enrich us culturally or is it to promote downtown tourism and business, or both? The same could be said about the Sioux Empire Arts Council, First Fridays and the Washington Pavilion. All organizations receive private and public funding. Do you have to attach profitability to an arts project to see if it has an impact on the community? Is its cultural impact immeasurable?

This is a hard one to answer because the Sioux Falls public has long been blocked out of the decision making process when it comes to public arts projects and organizations. This is due to the complicated private/public funding partnership and bureaucratic city hall.

Many of these organizations set themselves up as a special non-profit organization that keeps them immune from public input, and sometimes even public criticism. This is unfortunate, because dissent is the cornerstone of a free society, and if they are using our tax dollars, even partially, to fund public art I believe we have a right to have input on that project. Even the all volunteer Visual
Arts Commission is questionable because its members are appointed by one person, the mayor, which often makes the appointments more political then practical.

Too often public arts in this community reflect the tastes of a select few who are fortunate enough to sit on the boards of these organizations. So the public has to unwillingly accept what is presented to them even though we paid for it.

Do we continue to allow these partnerships in Sioux Falls where the public is left out of the process? Or do we demand they be privately funded if they cannot comply to a fair and democratic process?

Can we have it both ways in Sioux Falls? I think we can. A partnership has its benefits, especially when it comes to purchasing power. Not to mention board members usually come from the successful business sector of the community, they can and have raised money successfully for these groups. While they may have expertise in the financial mechanics of these projects, they rarely have their pulse on the community’s tastes in culture. Or maybe they do and just ignore them.  How do we remedy this flaw in the process?

It’s simple, let the private sector be responsible for the fund-raising and the business nuts and bolts of the operation, let the public be a part of the commission, judging and selection process. In the end we will all be an integral part of the process. Does that make sense in a democracy? Oh wait.