We are in full swing with the 2016 cycle 1 grant reviews which will take place in mid-March. Please check our website – www.danearts.com - for more information. Over 80 applicants requested over $300,000 in support for approximately $110,000 to give. The full commission will meet Wednesday, April 13th at 4:30pm here at the City-County building to review panel scores and determine funding. The review is open to the public.
Dane Arts Mural Arts (DAMA) is working with school students in Sun Prairie, Middleton, and Madison. We are also actively seeking financial support and sponsorships to continue and grow the public art project. Please visit our website at www.daneartsmuralarts.org for more information and current updates. Feel free to contact me with any ideas or suggestions you may have in generating greater support.
The 2016 Poster will be out shortly. Keep your eyes open for the release and reception. We welcome your participation.
Finally, the American for the Arts AEP5 study is in full swing and we hope you can help us. See more in this newsletter on how you can help.
Thank you again for your ongoing support as we are making some changes and adding some new faces to the work we do at Dane County Cultural Affairs - Dane Arts.
Mark Fraire
Director
UW Law & Entrepreneurial Clinic Partnership
After experiencing the allure of Dane County artists at October’s DABL Night Market, project coordinator for UW Law and Entrepreneurial Clinic Eugene Kim decided to partner with local artists in a new venture. He invited them to showcase their work at a new location, @1403 University, which is a subsidiary of UW Research Park.
In collaboration with Absolutely Art, UW Law and Entrepreneurial Clinic put on an exhibition Friday, Feb 5th for exploring continued partnerships with artists at this space. The event featured Alex Connelly, Christian Grooms, Poonam Rao, Rhea Ewing and Tim Sprengelmeyer as premier artists as well as DAMA and SAIL students.
Digital Love at 100 State The forward-thinking collaborative 100 State is proud to be a haven for entrepreneurs and local artists alike. They showcase resident artists as well as rotating exhibits and special events.
Friday, February 12th played host to their exhibit party combo, Digital Love.The event was an after party for the opening of their spring exhibit Intimate Systems and featured local performers and catering from local restaurants. Even if you missed the party, be sure to check out Intimate Systems running now until April 28th.
Upcoming DAMA Database One of our champions of art in the community, DAMA, is compiling an online database of its murals. While many of these can be seen around the county, this project will shed new light upon some of the more elusive murals residing within schools and other limited access venues. Keep your eyes peeled for this digital tour of all that DAMA and its artists have to offer. Photo courtesy of Midwest Story Lab
Dane Arts is joining Americans for the Arts' Arts and Economic Prosperity V study determining how much money is spent within a community by nonprofit cultural organizations like Dane Arts and also by the audience it attracts.
Be sure to seek out our volunteers at one of our events on Friday, March 11th to complete a quick, anonymous questionnaire gauging spending on everything other than admission as a result of attending an event.
Open Grant Reviews
Make sure to catch our Grant Review Panels to see all the different ongoing projects throughout our county. These are open to the public and located in the Dane County building at 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. They are sectioned by discipline as follows: Theater, Dance, and Arts in Education
March 10th, 1pm Room 351 Multidisciplinary, History, and Visual Arts
March 14th, 1pm Room 354 Music
March 16th, 9am Room 351 Photo courtesy of Martin Jenich Photography
Get to Know Your Commissioner
Marcia Miquelon
Elected September 2015 What is your connection to the arts? I am a self-employed performing artist, teacher, and arts event organizer. What are your expectations and goals for the commission? What do you hope to accomplish?
Encourage greater involvement on the part of artists and organizations in rural Dane County, support efforts to increase/broaden our donor base (so more worthy projects can be fully funded), support initiatives that bring the arts to a more diverse audience and makes Dane Arts funding accessible for independent artists and small organizations. Where do you work?
I am the owner and director of the Mazo Movement Arts Center and co-director of the Wild Rumpus Circus. I teach dance, yoga, trapeze, acrobatics, and stilt walking. I direct shows and dance festivals and sometimes parades. I perform on stilts, as a clown, as an aerialist in schools and libraries, at festivals, and sometimes in exotic countries. I also do all of the un-glamorous work, such as keeping the bathrooms clean and the books balanced. What do you do in your spare time?
Spring thru fall, I like to balance out my circus work-whirlwind by planting seeds and pulling weeds. I have a big vegetable garden, lots of flowers, five hens, and dreams of a permaculture homestead. Please share a tip you would give an individual or organization who is applying for a grant from Dane Arts.
Ask Mark to look over your application before you submit it, or talk with him as you are developing your project. It’s an easy way to avoid thoughtless errors and ensure you’re writing a stronger proposal. What is your favorite piece of artwork or art experience in Dane County?
That is a pretty difficult question to answer, here’s a brief list:
-Performing with Cycropia Aerial Dance for over 20 years, in such locations as Turner Hall, the Wisconsin Union Theater, the majestic oak tree at the center of Orton Park, the UW Chazen Museum of Art.
-The amazing wealth of live free, open-air live music that is brought to us via outdoor and neighborhood festivals each summer. World Music Fest, Central Park Sessions, La Fete de Marquette.
-The closing and grand re-opening of the downtown Madison main library.
-Gandy Dancer, Celebrate the Circus, Mazopalooza, and other fantastic music, dance and performance-based events that have taken place right here in my hometown of Mazomanie.
-Kites on Ice!
Wrap up from Joe Parisi It's always important to seek out creative methods for improving our county's well-being. Arts and cultural participation is an easy and fun tool for bringing people together and bolstering economic improvement throughout our county, which is why we are embarking on a nation-wide collaboration with Americans for the Arts.
This economic impact study will assess spending within the community by nonprofit cultural organizations, like Dane Arts and their audiences, in order to move forward in an all-inclusive and empowering way. We hope that you can check out some of the many Dane Arts events in order to fuel our local economy and quench your thirst for artistic entertainment. Enjoy the upcoming Spring season and all of the opportunities that Dane County has to offer!
