From the Executive Director
Fame and Fortune Are NOT Joined at the Hip

Many of you reading this may know that The Drawing Studio recently won the 2010 Governor’s Art Award in the category of “Community,” which focuses on the impact an organization’s work has on the community at large. The award especially recognizes our Art of Summer/Youth Program and OATS Senior Program for their work in serving people young and old who otherwise would have no access to studio art practice. The Drawing Studio was the only organization in southern Arizona to win one of the Governor’s Awards, from a field that included 13 nominees.

The week prior to this award, we were awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for our Art of Summer Youth Program. This is our third such award in five years—a demonstration of The Drawing Studio’s ability not just to develop innovative quality programming, but to sustain it. Last year we also received a Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant from NEA—one of only four awarded in Arizona—to help support the Youth and Senior Program Directors’ positions.

In the same week as the NEA award—it was a good week—I found out I was one of 20 arts leaders nationwide selected to participate in a leadership institute in Oregon this summer, underwritten by the Andy Warhol Foundation. In part, my selection hinged on The Drawing Studio’s commitment to opening up the realm of studio art practice to everyone. And finally, it was only four months ago that TDS Founder and Education Director Andy Rush received the prestigious Buffalo Exchange Arts Award for his longstanding contributions to (surprise!) arts in the community.

What do these awards have in common? They all recognize our work in taking art practice out beyond the “gated community” (as Andy calls it), beyond the traditional specialists called “artists,” beyond the moneyed, the educated, the leisured, the people “expected” to be involved in art. These awards acknowledge what TDS has been proclaiming and living for years: that the visual thinking skills developed through studio art practice have immeasurable value for everyone in the 21st century, and everyone should have access to them.

What else do these awards have in common? They WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE without the support of individuals like you making gifts through the annual fund, the gala, and the other special events The Drawing Studio hosts throughout the year. It is true that innovative program development was a necessary pre-condition to the awards, but lots of good ideas never see the light of day. It takes a source person building relationships in the community, training teachers, developing curriculum, providing quality art materials and engaging experiences—all over time. Modest grants and earned income have helped fund these kinds of expenses, but only a portion. Our ability to target underserved people and offer tuition and materials scholarships –that is, to actually serve the youth, adults, and seniors who most need us—and to sustain these efforts over time is directly the result of individual giving.

Amid the congratulations that have come our way, I have heard some comments along the lines of “well, you can’t be hurting too badly [financially], you’re winning all these awards.” In the moment I was puzzled about how to respond (especially since only one—the NEA grant—involved actual money to TDS). It is true we’re not “hurting” in the sense of “we’re in danger of closing our doors.” AND it’s also true that we will be flat-out unable to do the kind of work that’s winning awards without your robust support of the annual fund.

I am just as susceptible as anyone to the thinking “well, I haven’t contributed to [name of org] in the past, and they seem to be doing fine, so they don’t really need my contribution.” In addition to making the basic Statistics 101 error of confusing association with causality, this statement also (literally) passes the buck: the success and impact of the organization’s work is not my responsibility. “Somebody else” will take care of it.

Here’s an antidote to that kind of thinking. Last week a mother and her teenage daughter came into the Studio. They had seen the Art of Summer banner hanging out front and were curious. They had never heard of The Drawing Studio. The daughter had never had any formal art instruction in school, but her mother vouched for her interest and natural ability. I gave them a tour of the Studio, anchoring it in description of what goes on in the Art of Summer. Although the girl was quiet, her eyes got larger and livelier by the moment. A small smile flitted across her face, then stayed, and I could tell she desperately wanted to sign up then and there.

Her mother, meanwhile, though quite warm and friendly, seemed to be getting tenser by the moment. Finally, and offhandedly, I mentioned that if money were an issue, we had a generous scholarship program funded wholely by gifts from individuals. I wish you could have seen how, in a fraction of a second, her body relaxed and a smile to match her daughter’s appeared. It was clear to me that here was a mother committed to doing her best by her daughter, to supporting her daughter’s passion, and she had just been handed a gift of the means to do so. The real difference my gift to the annual fund makes couldn’t have been clearer to me than if I had reached in my pocket and handed her an envelope of $20 bills. 

You can make your gift to the annual fund through PayPal