Author: Arian, Edward

Publication Year: 1974

Media Type: Report

Summary:

Presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Public Administration, Chicago, Illinois, April 1-4, 1975. This article makes no judgements concerning the relative merits of the various arguments about art and who should get public money. There are no villains or heroes in this type of situation. All of the contestants are sincerely convinced that their cause truly represents the public interest. Therefore, in a pluralistic democratic society the best we can do is insure that conflicting interests compete under fair rules of the game. The point of this article has been that the rules of competition for public arts subsidies favor the cultural establishment.

Abstract:

Presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Public Administration, Chicago, Illinois, April 1-4, 1975.

This article makes no judgements concerning the relative merits of the various arguments about art and who should get public money. There are no villains or heroes in this type of situation. All of the contestants are sincerely convinced that their cause truly represents the public interest. Therefore, in a pluralistic democratic society the best we can do is insure that conflicting interests compete under fair rules of the game. The point of this article has been that the rules of competition for public arts subsidies favor the cultural establishment.

The recommendations which follow are by no means seen as panaceas, but are merely offered as tentative suggestions for discussion. Moreover, they admittedly reflect the author's own value preferences.

First, the concept of affirmative action applicable to boards of directors and audiences already exists in federal directives. Its implementation could result in changes in institutional policies and speed the delivery of arts services to many more people.

Second, geographical and per capita mandates may have problems of implementation , but they offer possibilities for achieving more equity in allocations.

Third, arts councils and panels must be made more representative of all segments of the population at the expense of expertise.

Fourth, special programs and panels, such as the NEA's Expansion Arts which addresses itself to disadvantaged contestants, should become more widespread and receive more funding.

Fifth, smaller groups must organize and learn how to utilize some of the levers of the political system to get what they want.

Sixth, councils must give more attention to seeking out applicants instead of passively receiving proposals.

Seventh, more reliance in decision making must be placed upon the professional staff. In my experience, many government arts administrators are dedicated to social equity and offer one of the best hopes for achieving it in this area.

Arts & Intersections:

Categories: Funding