The worlds of art, and particularly the careers of artists, are often seen as unstructured and disorganized and therefore difficult to analyze. The author uses the case of contemporary poetry to put forward an analytical grid for these apparently labile universes. He identifies two forces that impose a structure on the universe of poetry: socio-economic constraints, and artists competencies and the aesthetic frontline. Poets careers steer a course between these beacons, which the author suggests could be called a tennis tournament, where progressive and structured selection operates.

The author sets out to measure the strategic equilibrium between differentiation and isomorphism through an analysis of mission statements presented by art museums in the United States. The mission statements are compared with one another, with the mission statements of other samples and with institutional definitions of museum. The results show that museums tend to take a position of strategic balance between differentiation and isomorphism. The museums converge with regard to their program of activities, absence of any mention of employees, definition of quality when referring to professional standards, and the search for qualitative objectives in the reach for visitors.

This article introduces the concept of appetitive strategies to describe the introduction of an ancillary product that allows arts patrons to consume part of the cultural experience in advance, such as by releasing a cast album prior to the opening of a musical theatre production. The authors argue that the appetitive value of such promotions lies in the enjoyment of consuming the product item per se (e.g., listening to a cast album) as well as the heightened anticipation of consuming the central product (e.g., attending the theatre performance).

2nd KUFSTEIN SUMMER SCHOOL 2011

May 01-07 2011 | Palea Epidavros | Greece

In the context of an increasingly globalised world, issues of cultural leadership, deve- loping global cities and regional identity, public space and arts development have become increasingly important within the field of arts management.

The 2nd Kufstein Summer School in Greece will tackle academic attempts to create a new perspective on the significance of cultural identity of global cities and regions, seeing their economic and creative potential for sustainable events. International experts in the field will discuss current projects. Target groups are graduate students of arts management, cultural studies, event management and heritage management; interested students of other fields are welcome.

Accessing the arts online is becoming the norm for cultural consumers, though arts organisations may struggle to come up with financially viable digital strategies.

Digital access to the arts and culture is extending, rather than replacing, the live experience of the arts, and the Internet is now playing a much broader role in arts engagement than simply acting as a marketing channel. A significant minority use it not only to consume and share artistic content, but also to create it; and over half use social networking sites regularly. These latest findings from a major survey of 2,000 adult Internet users appear to confirm that engaging with the arts through digital media is now a mainstream activity.

TAP is a new way for visitors to experience the Museum using an iPod Touch or iPhone. IMA staff developed the software, which provides visitors to major exhibitions the opportunity to immerse themselves in the exhibition through an engaging and thought-provoking multimedia experience that costs just $5.

Most recently, IMA staff debuted for Sacred Spain, incorporating expert interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, on-location shoots, musical selections, x-ray imagery and other surprises. iPod Touch devices were available for rent onsite.

We know it happens. We have seen art save lives, cultural practices bring people together, cultural activism mobilize people, and artists activate the social imagination to make something new possible. While the potency of the arts as a catalyst for civic and social change is widely observed, cultural and community leaders struggle to measure it and make the case for the value of arts in civic engagement. Whose standards should apply? What evidence should be tracked and documented? How can hard-to-measure civic outcomes be substantiated? And, can they be attributed to our arts-based civic engagement efforts exclusive of other factors?

The Kennedy Centers Summer International Fellowship Program, part of the DeVos Institute of Arts Management, offers international not-for-profit arts managers an immersive program of study in arts management strategy. For four weeks each summer, for three consecutive years, international fellows undertake academic coursework, a rotation of workplace assignments under the direction of senior Kennedy Center staff, and a structured series of professional development seminars. The curriculum includes seminars and coursework in strategic planning, board development, fundraising, marketing, and artistic planning.

This afternoons highly-anticipated Spending Review announcement has reiterated that the government will maintain free entrance to museums and galleries, and confirmed that funding extensions for the Tate and British Museum will still go ahead valued at almost £350m. Arts Council England (ACE), however, has been hit with a 29.6 % budget cut, amounting to a real-term reduction of £100m from £450m to £350m by 2014. Local government also faces funding cuts of 7% year-on-year, reducing cash by 28 % by 2015. The double whammy of grim news is likely to hit the arts hard, as provision of cultural services is not a statutory duty for local authorities and ACE has already declared itself to be operating at its most streamlined.

Overall, the DCMS will lose almost 25% of its funding over four years. Chancellor George Osborne has ordered that 41% of this budget cut is to be shouldered by a reduction in the departments administrative costs. The DCMS currently receives £1.6bn grant-in-aid, which will be slashed to £1.1bn by 2014/15. Osborne also declared that front-line arts services and specific projects are to be cut by not more than 15%, with the remainder of the savings to come from admin costs. ACE has been told to cut 50% of its own administrative budget in order to protect front-line services.

Walk into a crowded museum, and what do you see? People with cameras or cellphones snapping pictures of people looking at objects. The artwork, document or fossil is a tourist site; the photograph is our souvenir. And the looking for which museums were created becomes a memory before it has even begun.

Now something else is in play that may distance the museum experience even further though it intends to do just the opposite. During the last week I have walked through galleries, half-looking at objects and half-consulting an iPhone screen.

Back in April 2008 we took a close look at the developments in human resource management, and now, two and a half years later, we would like to return back to this theme. Human resource management plays an important role in the cultural sector as it is focused squarely on individuals and how they, through their abilities, creativity, and ability to innovate, play an eminent part in organizations as a whole. The cultural sector is currently being subjected to fundamental changes, and therefore it is all the more necessary to find and hold onto the right people for the job, as well as to offer them the chance to continue their training.

For this issue of the Arts Management Newsletter we were able to get in contact with several experts in the field of human resource management, like William J. Byrnes (Utah Center for Arts Administration), Susan Annis, director of the Cultural Human Resources Council (CHRC) in Canada, as well as Lisa Watts, CEO of ArtsHub Australia.

Strategy. One word. Multiple meanings. Some organisations direct their strategy at playing the existing game better. Some others decide to play new games. Only few decide to redefine how an existing game is being played. Avenso Projects redefined the rules in the contemporary photography market and created a new space for art photography. A sound strategy seems also crucial in the art business. The following paper will firstly describe how the strategic position of Lumas, Avensos first business unit, came about.

The Australia Council for the Arts has become one of the worlds first funding agencies to tackle the issue of how to measure the artistic vibrancy of the companies it funds.The council has developed a set of resources to encourage arts organisations to measure their artistic achievement through audience surveys and internal assessments.

The councils Executive Director of Arts Organisations, Tony Grybowski, says the new program marks an important enhancement of councils priorities and those of its funded companies.

Sustainability has been a strong focus for Australias major organisations, particularly through the global financial crisis, says Tony Grybowski.

Thats clearly still important, but if our industry leaders are to continue to develop and champion their artforms and artists, its time for a new conversation about artistic vibrancy, he said.

October 7-9, 2010, Brussels/Belgium - The Culture Action Europe conference has a long established tradition as the key focal point for cultural operators, civil society, experts and policy makers to come together and debate key issues at stake for Europes cultural life.

The conference will inspire, argue and debate what choices we make now and how they will alter the landscape of future EU policies for culture. It will try to embrace two interconnected visions: first, the contributions of arts and cultural sector to the vision of Europe in the future; second, the recognition and support for these contributions within the range of programmes and policies that the EU has to offer.

The programme for the conference is concentrated and focused on in-depth debate, allow space for extensive audience participation and interaction between speakers and delegates.

Arts Council England (ACE) has suspended adverts for unpaid jobs on its Arts Jobs website, due to the high volume of placements that contravene minimum wage legislation. A statement on the site declares that this suspension is only temporary, but covers all unpaid work, work experience, voluntary roles and internships. In line with its commitment to ensure that artists and arts professionals are appropriately remunerated for the work they do, ACE has emphasised that it recognises the value of genuine volunteering opportunities, but states that these must be of mutual benefit not just a way of attempting to circumvent paying a proper wage.

A review on the Regional Studies Associations 16th Annual International Conference 2010

With about 600 delegates from 50 countries this years International Annual Conference took place from May, 24th till 26th. The conference was hosted in the European Capital of Culture 2010 Pécs, Southern Hungary.

The Regional Studies Association (RSA) is an international learned society concerned with the analysis of regional and urban issues. The organisation represents an authoritative voice and research network for academics, students, practitioners and policy makers. It organises events and conference, publishes journals, a newsletter and a book series and funds related research networks.

The discussion of the conferences main topic »Regional Responses and Global Shifts: Actors, Institutions and Organisations« aimed at a better understanding of the complex array of those actors involved in todays regional development agendas.

Between 11 and 16 July the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy (ICD) in cooperation with the European Cultural Parliament gathered more than 30 participants at its European headquarters in central Berlin. Some participants had come from as far as Mexico, the US, Canada and Swaziland to meet with like-minded graduates and post graduates as well as young professionals in order to learn more about cultural diplomacy by following a week-long intensive programme while experiencing the summer heat in buzzing Berlin. Berlin, having become an international melting pot with an outstanding cultural offer and a compelling history and a place which is sought after by many as a conference and meetings location, did certainly further underline the case for the arts and cultural diplomacy.