In thinking about what I love about the Arts Council, their many exciting online initiatives and why you should love them too; I’ve mostly been thinking about why I love New Orleans art and how art is so fundamental to our culture. Mayor Moon Landrieu understood that when he appointed the Cultural Resources Committee which later became the Arts Council as we know it today. This blog is about technology and I am going to get to that but its also about our love for New Orleans so I will start there.
First, for the purposes of the arts council and me and this article, art includes: architecture, culinary, dance, film, literature, music, theater, and visual arts (as listed on the very cool artsneworleans.org site by the Arts Council to be discussed in more depth later). Many people hear the term art and think painting, drawing, sculpture but as Joseph Beuys said, “Every human being is an artist…” and I feel strongly that web designers, programmers, and other technology geeks are artists too. Many years ago, I was one and I can distinctly remember creating a program that was a thing of beauty.
There is not nearly as much information online about the history of art in New Orleans as I would like but its no secret that we have amazing food, costumes, architecture, and on... What I find is a bit of a secret is that those things are in no way confined to just the restaurants, stores, and tourist spots. The food created on a random Sunday night in many a New Orleans home is infinitely better than most restaurants throughout the country. The costumes created by laypeople in New Orleans throughout the year, not just Mardi Gras, rival those professionally designed for theater. We have a certain freedom to create. And we should exercise that right every day in every way to be New Orleanians and continue our legacy by supporting local artists.
As mentioned before, the Arts Council began as the Cultural Resources Committee in 1970. There’s more information about the history on their site but what I found fascinating is that their presentations to artists on important subjects like how to manage finances, incorporate your business, or copyright your work were traditionally done in person. However, space considerations and the inability to reach artists post-Katrina brought them to the web, creating what has become an awesome resource for artists locally and around the world. Arts Council of New Orleans webinars can viewed by artists live and an archive remains to be viewed and re-viewed as needed. Not to mention paused and rewound as I typically watch them while working.
That's me watching Protecting Your Art Online Webinar
If you haven’t seen ArtsNewOrleans.org, go immediately. It is a super fun website to browse around. Check out their guides - if you’re feeling really inspired, there’s one on places to take art classes in New Orleans. I’ve been sick in bed but New Orleans has been right here while I watch The New Generation Jam in Congo Square, an interview of burlesque artists Trixie Minx and Wild Cherry, and G-Easy’s “Run Around Sue” in the multimedia section. Not to mention the artist profiles! If you know an artist (Remember - architecture, culinary, dance, film, literature, music, theater, and visual art) encourage them to create a profile on ArtsNewOrleans.org. It’s a fantastic feature for New Orleans artists to promote and share their work with the world. Not to mention, a great way to be reminded that these people are your neighbors and friends because you live in a city where everyone is an artist.
ArtsNewOrleans.org screenshot
