Squaring Off on New Models in the Arts
Submitted by Steve on August 17, 2012
From Kim Cook, Nonprofit Finance Fund, for #artsmgtchat:
In a recent Huffington Post exchange, Michael Kaiser, President of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and Adam Huttler, Executive Director of Fractured Atlas squared off on the topic of new business models in the arts. As a colleague (and I hope friend) of both, I thought I might navigate the “both are true” spaces between their arguments. While Adam is careful to say that he does agree on some points with Michael, they diverge when it comes to thinking about institutions.
Put simply:
In his first post, Michael Kaiser questions whether artists will be creating individual projects and then disbanding and thus losing the benefits that accrue from organizational support systems. Adam Huttler counters that building and maintaining organizations can cause us to lose sight of the fact that institutions are delivery systems for art rather than entities that deserve preservation.