About GCAC
Proud Past, Focused Future
By Ann Bremner
Remember—or imagine—Columbus 25 years ago, when the Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) was first incorporated in 1973. The skyline was certainly very different then—the LeVeque Tower was just about the only skyscraper downtown. The cultural and commercial landscapes have also changed tremendously. There was no Riffe Center, and no City Center. The Southern Hotel was a long way from being a Westin. The campaign to save the Ohio Theatre (launched in 1969) was fresh in the minds of arts enthusiasts, and the Palace Theatre was showing horror flicks. There were exhibitions at the Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts (as the Columbus Museum of Art then known), but not at the King Arts Complex or the Wexner Center for the Arts: neither had been built yet, nor really even dreamed of.
Those 25 years have seen an explosion of the arts in Columbus and surrounding communities. Cultural organizations have proliferated and grown in size and artistic stature. Naturally, there have been disappointments: organizations that boomed and then went bust, ideas that didn't quite work out, things that haven't happened yet. But there's no mistaking the overall changes: the increases in venues and in revenue; the growth and diversification of art audiences; the expanded opportunities to enjoy music of all kinds, to hear writers discuss or read from their works, to view exhibitions by artists from this region and from around the world, to see live theater and dance, both classical or contemporary.
Over the course of those same years, the Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) has done its own share of changing. It's expanded from two basic projects—an arts festival and a community arts calendar—to the varied program areas documented in this booklet. There are community arts education and business arts partnership programs, international and public art initiatives, grants programs for organizations and individuals, and innovative arts stabilization efforts. The GCAC staff has grown from one individual to about fifteen sixteen, and its home has metamorphosed from a single desk in a corner of the Columbus Chamber of Commerce offices to a bustling suite in the Galbreath Pavilion of the Ohio Theatre. Along the way, it's also become one of the most highly regarded local arts councils in the U.S. Nancy R. Sasser, president of the National Arts Stabilization organization, notes that GCAC is " known and admired by arts agencies across the country." Donn F. Vickers, executive director of The Thurber House, puts it this way: "When I'm in New York or Florida or out on the West Coast and Arts Councils are the topic GCAC is always mentioned with no small enthusiasm."
GCAC is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 1998, but its history, or prehistory, goes back even further than its incorporation in 1973. A group of dedicated volunteers and arts enthusiasts joined forces to lay the groundwork in the 1960s, publishing a cooperative calendar of cultural events (beginning in the fall of 1961) and creating and promoting a summer arts festival (first held in 1962). In 1970 a committee of the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce assumed responsibility for these two projects, becoming the direct precursor to the incorporated GCAC.
Both projects eventually became cornerstones of GCAC's early identity. The first issue of the calendar sported the headline, "What's going on in Columbus tonight?" Arts audiences still ask that question—and find the answers in listings developed from the community calendar sponsored by GCAC and now maintained by the shared computer resource service known as CIVIC (Columbus Information Via Computer). The summer arts fair, which moved from the Statehouse lawn to the riverfront in 1983, has grown from early gatherings with crowds of 10,000 to the current Columbus Arts Festival, where annual attendance often surpasses 500,000.
The festival nurtures public awareness about the arts and the arts council; it's still clearly GCAC's most "high-profile" event. Mayor Greg Lashutka is among the festival's many fans: "It combines performing and visual arts and great food to make people happy—which goes to the quality of life that is so good in Columbus." To Ray Hanley, GCAC's president, the festival is a "gateway" activity that can become a starting point for other kinds of participation in the arts. And, he says, "during the festival, the arts saturate the local media. The festival's size and success raise the profile of the arts in the Columbus locally and foster networks of connections regionally, nationally, and internationally."
The Artists-in-Schools program, begun in 1976, also projects GCAC's identity throughout the community and beyond. It's brought thousands, maybe even millions, of Columbus school children into direct contact with working artists in just about any discipline. In its first year, the program involved 37 schools, all at the elementary level. Now it encompasses all grade levels and offers some 800 presentations a year (812 in 1997). Artist and educator Mimi Chenfeld, a participant in the program since its first days, praises the program's inclusive philosophy. "Artists-in-Schools makes the effort to bring in all children," she says.
Franklin County Commissioner Dorothy Teater likes it that "real artists...come right into the classroom" and present lessons that extend back into the participants' own lives. "One of the most important things the artists can give the children," she says, "is the ability to understand that through the arts, they can express themselves in different ways." Early on, many Artists-in-Schools presentations were one-time appearances at assemblies. More recently, longer-term residencies have gained prominence, along with projects that integrate the arts into the general curriculum. Presentations have also moved out of the original school settings to reach young people and adults in libraries and in health care and correctional facilities.
In the 1990s, the Children of the Future program has created another innovative model of arts programming for young people. The program targets at-risk youth, offering arts activities and interactions with supportive, caring artists at drop-in sites around the city. Bringing together cultural and social service issues and agencies, Children of the Future exemplifies the kinds of new collaborations that involve the arts in addressing the challenges of contemporary life.
While shepherding the Artists-in-Schools program through its formative phase in the 1970s, GCAC was also refining another crucial responsibility: administering grants to arts organizations with funds allocated by the City of Columbus. As with the arts festival, there's some prehistory to note here. Before GCAC was incorporated, the city was already providing very limited funding to three "major" arts organizations: Columbus Museum of Art, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, and the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA). By 1973, Columbus was ready to expand the grant funding idea, and the city "hired" the newly incorporated GCAC to develop, organize, and administer the grants program. Since 1978, funds for the grants have come from the city's hotel/motel bed tax.
The grants generally contribute only a small portion of any organization's budget, but they are nonetheless highly valued. "Very simply, we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for these guys," Ray Eubanks, leader of the Columbus Jazz Orchestra says. "A major impact grant from GCAC in the mid-1980s allowed us to set up our administrative staff and was the one vital step we needed to take to become the institution we are today." Staff members at the King Arts Complex appreciate the ways GCAC grants have helped them serve young people: "In the Near East Side, arts programs for youth are limited. Meaningful experiences, such as viewing an exhibit, meeting a musician, or acting on stage are not readily available. GCAC's general operating and program support has assisted us in bringing the arts to our immediate community." BalletMet's support from GCAC "sets financial and artistic standards which, when met, validate an arts organization's operations to other funders and the broader community," comments David Nixon, the organization's artistic director/producer.
A few "signpost" statistics are revealing: $50,000 was available for grants in 1973 and $125,000 in 1978; these days the figures run to more than $2,000,000 a year awarded to some 70 organizations. Grants are available for specific projects—such as a particular concert, performance, exhibition, or education initiative—and as general operating support for organizations that meet specific criteria. (For years only organizations with annual budgets of more than $100,000 could apply for operating support. That restriction was removed in 1998, but organizations must meet other standards in their administrative and business practices.) Since 1986 funding has also been available to individual artists through the Individual Artist Fellowship (IAF) program. Based on the merits of a body of work, not a project proposal, the IAF grants are awarded to artists in such disciplines as visual arts, literary arts, and music composition on a rotating basis. GCAC is one of the very few local arts agencies to provide such support to individual artists.
The council's international programs have also provided new opportunities for organizations and individual artists in recent years. GCAC has facilitated tours to such countries as Spain and Denmark for Columbus-based ensembles including BalletMet and the Columbus Jazz Orchestra. Individual artists have participated in residencies and exchanges in Spain, Germany, and Denmark—and artists from abroad have come to work and exhibit in Columbus.
Another aspect of GCAC's endeavors has been its longstanding and eloquent advocacy for partnerships among arts groups and Columbus' business community, recognizing the symbiotic relationship between the cultural climate and the business environment. Beth Bubis, vice president of community relations for Bank One, NA, clearly articulates this sentiment: "The arts play a key role in the economic vitality of the community. The better the arts, the better the business environment." Ty Stroh, president of the Greater Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau, adds, "the healthy arts community is a major asset of the Columbus tourism industry." The Business Arts Partnership program, initiated in 1984, recognizes and celebrates such mutually beneficial connections, awarding supportive businesses with original works by Columbus artists. Barbara R. Nicholson, executive director of the Kings Arts Complex, and Larry H. James, president of the King Arts Complex board, and laud the skill of GCAC's Ray Hanley in cultivating such partnerships. "Ray has built a strong bridge between businesses and arts organizations," they note. "He recognizes the arts as industry and the economic impact this has citywide." Irvin M. Lippman, executive director of the Columbus Museum of Art, also praises "Ray's talent in bringing together local public and private entities in support of the arts."
Early in this essay, I found myself using forms of the word "grow" a lot—or else struggling to find comfortable synonyms. And growth certainly was a dominant theme in GCAC's development through the 1970s and 1980s, just as it was the dominant theme in the city's arts community and in Columbus as a whole. But things have slowed down some in the arts during the 1990s—and taken a bit of a different direction. Where once it seemed as if possibilities were limitless—and abundant funding would be always readily available—now arts groups realize how tenuous both growth and support can be. It's a time to consolidate, cooperate, and focus on addressing challenges creatively.
I suspect this is where GCAC's 25th anniversary theme of "proud past, focused future" comes into play. A perfect example is the Columbus Arts Stabilization project (for larger organizations) and the parallel Fund for Working Capital Reserves (for smaller organizations). These programs, which combine technical assistance and funding, encourage arts groups to implement sound business and administrative practices throughout their operations. The premise is that such well-run organizations are more able to realize their own aims and to attract support from other funders. "Our theory is that an organization in a strong position financially and managerially can be in a better position to fulfill its artistic mission," says Nancy Sasser of National Arts Stabilization. The 1998 ArtsMarket Report commissioned by GCAC also reflects the organization's current efforts to help local arts groups focus their ideas and plans for the future.
Ray Hanley believes that Columbus's arts organizations are now poised for another kind of growth that goes beyond size and numbers. "Now our leading organizations are positioned to compete on a national, even an international, level. We've established our credentials and are finding our creative voices," he says. "GCAC's role is both to reinforce the credibility of our organizations as worthy civic investments and to support and encourage those organizations in taking artistic risks."
Although the specifics of GCAC's programs have evolved over the years, their basic premises have remained remarkably consistent. According to Michael Coleman, Columbus City Council president, "Art addresses the issue of our values. It is very important to our culture, our neighborhoods, our children, our quality of life in this Columbus community, and GCAC plays a major role in that regard." From the beginning, GCAC has been dedicated to bringing the arts and people—audiences, volunteers, artists, politicians, business leaders—together; to finding and supporting all the ways that "the arts give life to the city." That catch phrase, a GCAC motto and mantra in recent years, is perhaps the best umbrella description of all the agency's activities and endeavors—throughout its history and into the future.
Initial research for the 25th Anniversary publication was provided by Shannon Kapp. Quotations in this essay have been drawn from Kapp's research and from correspondence and news clippings in the GCAC files.
