Full_Commission
2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 MEETING OF THE FULL ARTS COMMISSION
Monday, May 4, 2009
3:00 p.m.
City Hall Room 416
Minutes
President Johnston called the meeting to order at 3:10 p.m.
- Roll Call
Commissioners Present
P.J. Johnston, President
René Bihan
Nínive Calegari
John Calloway
Leo Chow
Amy Chuang
Topher Delaney
Lorraine García-Nakata
Alexander Lloyd
Cass Calder Smith
Dede Wilsey
Sherri Young
Ron Miguel, ex officio
Commissioners Absent
Maya Draisin, Vice President
Sherene Melania
Jeannene Przyblyski
- Approval of Minutes
President Johnston severed this item from the agenda because the minutes had not been distributed.
NOTE: ALL ADOPTIONS ARE UNANIMOUS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED.
- President’s Report
President Johnston was very pleased to begin his report by introducing and welcoming two new Commissioners, Amy Chuang and Leo Chow. He described them as great leaders with strong ties to San Francisco and to the Arts Commission.
He explained that Commissioner Chuang was very active in a number of community groups. Commissioner Chuang said that it was a great honor to be appointed to the Commission, and that she looked forward to learning a lot from everyone and would do her best to make a positive contribution.
President Johnston pointed out that Commissioner Chow, a local architect of some renown, was a colleague of John Kriken’s at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Mr. Kriken served twice on the Arts Commission and is now retiring to write a book. President Johnston remarked on that continuity, while noting that Commissioner Chow has his own strong background. Commissioner Chow said that he was excited to join such an accomplished group and hoped to contribute. He added that he hoped to bring not only a local perspective, but to keep in mind an international one.
President Johnston also noted that Commissioner Smith had been favorably covered in the press recently.
President Johnston distributed new Committee assignments, noting that most of the Commission’s work was accomplished at the Committee level, while the full Commission ratified Committee decisions and focused on the bigger picture. He thought that the appointment of Commissioner Chow to the Civic Design Review Committee would make a great working group even more effective.
President Johnston reported that there was a lovely sendoff party for Deputy Director Nancy Gonchar. He expressed his appreciation and praise for her years of service to the City, and his sadness at her departure.
In an update on the strategic planning process, President Johnston reported that the Executive Committee met with Teri Jourgensen, who leads the Workforce Development group within the Department of Human Resources. The Committee had an extended and fruitful discussion about their proposal to facilitate strategic planning for the agency. He noted that some would prefer to work with a consultant completely outside of City government, with a background in the arts. He argued that, because the Arts Commission is a governmental agency and not a nonprofit, the Workforce Development group has a significant advantage in being completely familiar with the limitations and structures of government. He also stressed the importance of the cost, efficiency and timeliness of the proposals. He explained that Ms. Jourgensen proposed a five-phase process over the next five to six months. He added that cost is a critical factor, and the process must be cost-effective, in a budget context of layoffs and grant reductions. The Committee will consider Ms. Jourgensen’s proposal at its next meeting. He invited all Commissioners to attend the meeting, observing that this planning process is important to the Commission and the staff as a whole.
Finally, he acknowledged and thanked Commissioner Zhao for his years of service to the Commission and wished him well.
- Director’s Report
Mr. Cancel also thanked Commissioner Zhao for his service, and welcomed the new Commissioners.
Mr. Cancel added that he was looking forward to the Executive Committee’s decision on the strategic planning consultant, and he noted that the choice must be cost-effective for the City and the agency.
Mr. Cancel reported that the Mayor’s Budget Office advised all City departments that receive Hotel Tax funds that the economic downturn is also affecting hotel occupancy rates, which are down forty percent from this time last year. The Hotel Tax funds much of the cultural sector including Cultural Centers and Cultural Equity Grants, as well as Grants for the Arts. While the Mayor’s Budget Office met with the affected departments to discuss reductions, they understand how devastating it would be to reduce cultural funding by forty percent.
Mr. Cancel reported that he is consulting with various stakeholders, including San Francisco Unified School District Visual and Performing Arts (“VAPA”) staff, Arts Providers Alliance (“APA”) representatives, and the Arts Education Funders Collaborative (“AEFC”), to elicit their perspectives and suggestions on the continuing role for the Arts Commission in arts education. There is general agreement that the agency should continue to act as a clearinghouse, including continuing both the publication of Inside Out and its companion website; continue to work closely with the APA, connecting them with schools and the District; encourage professional development for teaching artists, helping working artists understand and meet the specific standards and procedures of the District; and serve as a nexus or liaison with other governmental agencies, like the Department of Children, Youth and Families, on arts education matters. Other priorities included working closely with District staff to evaluate District-wide implementation of the Arts Education Master Plan. He noted that they are already reporting on how Proposition H funds are used.
Mr. Cancel noted that after-school, evenings and weekends with the family are all part of shaping the child, and suggested that there may be opportunities for the Arts Commission to be involved in the development of after-school programming to introduce arts and culture to young people.
He reported that he intends to finalize the job description for the Arts Education Manager shortly, and hopes to be able to fill the position near the beginning of the new fiscal year.
In response to Commissioner García-Nakata’s question, Mr. Cancel explained that two new proposed areas of responsibility were the end-of-year reporting and review with the District, and the identification of after-school as an opportunity target.
President Johnston supported the idea of rigorous assessment and annual reporting on the Arts Education Master Plan, and thought this could inform future program development. Secondly, he emphasized that the Master Plan called for an arts curriculum in the schools, within the school day, and that this must continue to succeed and grow along with any additional programming undertaken outside the school day. He thought that most principals contract with the YWCA or other nonprofits for after-school programs, and that it is important that the arts be part of those programs.
Other Commissioners mentioned the many good after-school programs run by local nonprofits, and asked about preschool and the First Five initiative. Mr. Cancel replied that preschool was outside the scope of his discussions with the stakeholders.
Commissioner Calloway raised questions about the year-end evaluation, observing that VAPA was seriously understaffed with only three people for the whole district. In regard to after-school programming, he noted that many students travel so far from home to school that they do not stay afterwards; he also suggested working with the Cultural Centers for after-school programming, particularly in middle and high school.
Commissioners Calegari and Calloway agreed on the importance of professional development for artists becoming classroom teachers, noting that great artists are not necessarily naturally great teachers.
Mr. Cancel reported that the Arts Commission was participating in a multi-pronged interagency “huddle” on graffiti prevention with the Department of Public Works. Community Arts and Education Program Director Judy Nemzoff spearheaded the development of a curriculum for grades four through six on the distinction between creating public works of art with permission, and the violation of “self-expression” on private or public property without the permission of the owner. The aim is to engage young people in dialogue on this question.
The second part of the initiative is called Street SmArts, which will connect property owners who have been frequent victims of tagging with more mature urban artists to create murals with the owners’ permission. Hearkening back to the tradition of community-based murals, the idea is to bring the taggers under the constructive guidance of more mature artists and to redirect the taggers’ energy in a more positive way. Mr. Cancel described this as a move from a reactive stance toward a proactive approach, noting that the City spent some $20 million in the last year combatting graffiti.
Commissioner García-Nakata asked whether DPW understood that the murals would have legal protection. Mr. Cancel answered that they did, and that he was working with the City Attorney’s office to craft an appropriate agreement to include public protections. Interim Deputy Director Jill Manton added that the proposal includes designated spaces for spontaneous creations, and made a distinction between urban or street art and tagging. The moment one of the murals is tagged, DPW will paint it over.
Mr. Cancel announced that the show he curated before his arrival in San Francisco (5x5: Pluralism), highlighting the work of five Venezuelan and five North American artists, was being exhibited at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts (“MCCLA”). He thanked MCCLA director Jennie Rodriguez. He explained that the San Francisco Examiner helped to publicize the show, printing their first bilingual centerfold as the handout. Mr. Cancel thanked the publisher of the Examiner for their support.
Mr. Cancel announced the May 16 fundraiser for the Arts Commission Gallery, noting that they accomplish a great deal with very little funding. He encouraged all to attend, and to invite friends. He reported on the Gallery’s current shows, Trace Elements, opening on Friday, May 8, and In Our Own Pictures and In Our Own Works, which opened in City Hall on April 24. The City Hall show, featuring the work of Sixth Street Photography Workshop and Hospitality House, both in the Tenderloin, was curated by Gallery Assistant Joyce Grimm.
Mr. Cancel reported that Street Artists Program Director Howard Lazar had been invited to speak at the Seventh International Public Market Conference on the Street Artists Program and its impact on San Francisco.
Mr. Cancel added that he had been invited to speak at the opening of the Jazz Center’s Jazz Ambassadors photo exhibit at Yoshi’s, on May 17.
President Johnston added his support for the Gallery’s fundraiser, saying that it had been a fabulous event the previous year, more an installation than a typical fundraising event.
- Consent Calendar
President Johnston severed item 2 from the Consent Calendar, approval of minutes of the Executive Committee meeting of March 23, 2009, because the minutes had not been distributed.
The Commission approved the remaining Consent Calendar as follows.
RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-102:
Approval: RESOLVED, that this Commission does hereby adopt the following items on the Consent Calendar and their related Resolutions:
Approval of Committee Minutes
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-103: Motion to approve the Ad Hoc Planning Committee Meeting Minutes of February 19, 2009.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-104: Motion to approve the Community Arts, Education, and Grants Committee Meeting Minutes of April 14, 2009.
Community Arts, Education, and Grants Committee Recommendations (April 14, 2009)
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-105: Motion to approve recommendations to award forty-three grants totaling $525,000 in the 2008-2009 cycle of Organization Project Grants to the following organizations, and to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into grant agreements with each for the amounts listed:
AfroSolo Theatre Company, $13,500
Arab Cultural & Community Center, $12,000
ArtSpan, $12,000
Asian Improv Arts, $12,000
BAYCAT, $12,000
Chhandam Chitresh Das Dance Company, $12,000
Circo Zero, $12,000
Climate Theater, $13,500
CounterPulse, $13,500
Cuba Caribe, $13,500
Cutting Ball Theater, $12,000
Cypress String Quartet/Cypress Performing Arts Association, $12,000
DanceArt, Inc, $12,000
Dancing Tree, $12,000
Earplay, $12,000
Epiphany Productions, $12,000
Femina Potens, $12,000
Genryu Arts, $13,500
Golden Thread Productions, $12,000
Intersection for the Arts, $13,500
Janice Garrett and Dancers, $12,000
Jess Curtis/Gravity, $12,000
Joe Goode Performance Group, $13,500
Litquake, $12,000
Margaret Jenkins Dance Company, $13,500
Museum of Craft & Folk Art, $12,000
Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu, $12,000
New Langton Arts, $12,000
PlayGround, $12,000
Root Division, $12,000
San Francisco Cinematheque, $12,000
San Francisco Independent Film Festival, $6,540
San Francisco Live Arts, $12,000
San Francisco Mime Troupe, $13,500
Scott Wells and Dancers, $12,000
ShadowLight Productions, $12,000
Shinichi lova-Koga/inkBoat, $12,000
Small Press Traffic Literary Arts Center, $12,000
Southern Exposure, $12,000
Stepology, $13,500
The African & African American Performing Arts Coalition, $12,000
The ESP Project: Erika Chong Shuch Performance Project, $11,460
The San Francisco Silent Film Festival, $12,00
Visual Arts Committee Recommendations (April 22, 2009)
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-106: Motion to approve honoraria payments to the following artists for the amount of $400 each: Michelle Blade, Jason Jagel, Ray Potes, Clare Rojas, Deth P. Sun, Kelly Tunstall, and Marci Washington, and $1200 to Maya Hayuk, for their participation in the exhibition “Trace Elements” at the SFAC Gallery from May 8, 2009 to July 3, 2009.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-107: Motion to approve the removal of a portion of a mural entitled History of the Sunset District created in 1978 with lead artist Henry D. Sultan and the Sunset Mural Workshop and restored in 2003 with Precita Eyes Muralists under the direction of Jason Gilmore. The mural is located on the retaining wall on the north side of the West Sunset Playground at 3223 Ortega Street in San Francisco, and will be removed as part of the renovation to the Ortega Branch Library to increase security and decrease vandalism.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-108: Motion to approve the following individuals as members of the Leland Avenue Streetscape Artist Selection Panel: Rene de Guzman, Senior Curator, Oakland Museum of California; Amy Trachtenberg, artist; Marlene Tran, community representative; and Anne Seeman, community representative.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-109: Motion to approve the following individuals as candidates for the Valencia Streetscape Artist Selection Panel: Kevin Chen, Program Director, Intersection for the Arts; Carolina Ponce de León , Director, Galería de la Raza; Patricia Rodriguez, Gallery Manager, Mission Cultural Center; Alleluia Panis, Executive Director, Kularts; Susan Cervantes, Executive Director, Precita Eyes Mural Arts Center; Margie O’Driscoll, Executive Director, American Institute of Architects, San Francisco Chapter; and Kim Anno, artist, professor, writer.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-110: Motion to approve Clare Rojas’ final design for her artwork for Boarding Area G at San Francisco International Airport and approval to proceed with fabrication.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-111: Motion to approve patina colors for Cliff Garten’s sculptural handrail for Laguna Honda Hospital.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-112: Motion to approve revised proposal by Suzanne Biaggi to integrate the design of the retaining wall encircling the sculpture site in Courtyard F at Laguna Honda Hospital by cladding it in cor-ten steel so that it appears as an intended sculptural element.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-113: Motion to approve and accept four glass mosaic artworks—Hermit Thrush 2, 3 3/4” x 40” x 3/4”; Goldfinch 5, 40” x 40” x 3/4”; Goldfinch with Zinnia 2, 40 1/3” x 39 7/8” x 3/4”; Morning Light 2, 471/4” x 47 1/4” x 3/4”—2009 by Diane Andrews Hall, commissioned for Laguna Honda Hospital, into the Civic Art Collection.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-114: Motion to approve the artist team Wowhaus and their proposal for the Ortega Branch Library, as recommended by the Ortega Branch Community Artist Selection Panel.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-115: Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into contract with the artist team Wowhaus in an amount not to exceed $75,000 for the final design, fabrication, and transportation of an artwork for the Ortega Branch Library.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-116: Motion to approve an honorarium payment to Christian Werthmann in the amount of $9,500 to develop a design proposal and to address the feasibility and cost of implementing the Harvey Milk Memorial (also known as the Pink Cloud) as a temporary project at the intersection of Castro, Market and 17th Streets.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-117: Motion to approve the following arts professionals as potential selection panelists for the Church & Duboce Muni Track and Streetscape Improvements Public Art Project: Joseph Becker or Jennifer Dunlop Fletcher, Assistant Curator, Architecture and Design, SFMOMA; Zac Frank, former Special Projects Director, Urban Art Program, NYC Department of Transportation, Division of Urban Art and Design; and Julio Morales, artist.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-118: Motion to approve Laurel True as the project artist for the Hayes Valley Playground project.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-119: Motion to rescind Resolution No. 0913-04-192, which suspended the Civic Art Collection Loan Program in September 2004 as a result of budget cuts and the elimination of the Civic Art Collection Program Director.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-120: Motion to implement the Civic Art Collection Loan Program, as described in the staff report, with the borrowing department assuming all costs associated with the loan.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-121: Motion to approve six finalists: Julie Chang, Colette Crutcher, Paul Hayes, Liang LiQing, Shan Shan Sheng, and Margarita Soufertis; and two alternates: Kana Tanaka and Hou Yumei; for the Chinese Recreation Center public art project.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-122: Motion to approve the final design of What is Missing?, a cone-shaped sculpture with audio and video components, by Maya Lin, to be permanently displayed in the East Terrace of the Academy of Sciences.
- Committee Reports and Committee Matters
- Executive Committee—P.J. Johnston, Chair
- President Johnston reported that the Committee met and discussed the strategic planning process. He thought that working with the DHR group would be the best choice.
- Civic Design Review Committee—Cass Calder Smith, Chair
- Commissioner Smith reported that the Committee was finding its way after the departure of Deputy Director Nancy Gonchar, who had been the staff member in charge of the program. He noted that a sudden power outage forced the cancellation of the last meeting, which had been rescheduled for May 11. He said that the Committee has been encouraging the design concepts of projects, citing the example of the cable car ticket building, which the Committee has approved after a few rounds of discussion and revision.
He said that the Committee has discussed an annual Civic Design competition with awards as a way to recognize excellent design.
- Community Arts, Education and Grants Committee—Maya Draisin, Chair
- In the absence of Vice President Draisin, Mr. Cancel reported that the Committee discussed the Native American Arts and Cultural Traditions grants. He explained that there was a “virtual” Native American Cultural Center funded by the Arts Commission which suffered a crisis of leadership in the last couple of years. Rather than allowing the community to suffer the consequences of that crisis, the Arts Commission decided to regrant the funds to Native American artists. This is the second year of the program, a collaboration between Community Arts and Education and Cultural Equity Grants, funded ultimately by the Hotel Tax Fund. He explained that the program will continue for another two years while efforts are underway to create a new Native American Cultural Center. Mr. Cancel reviewed the grant categories, adding that the panelists who reviewed the applications were experienced and active artists in the Native American community.
Commissioner Calegari added that staff had made beautiful presentations at the meeting, and that the Cultural Centers are applying for federal stimulus funds to try to “green” their buildings. President Johnston said that federal grants were particularly important now, and praised Ms. Nemzoff and CEG Program Director San San Wong for their great work building the Native American grants program on such a quick timeline.
President Johnston presented the following motion.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-123: Motion to approve recommendations to award fourteen grants totaling $106,000 in the 2008-2009 cycle of Native American Arts & Cultural Traditions (NAACT) grants to the following organizations and individual artists, and to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into grant agreements with each for the amounts listed:
In the “Individual Artists” category:
Ross Cunningham, $7,500
Reid Gomez, $7,500
Jeremy Goodfeather, $7,500
Niki Lee, $6,000
In the “Presenting the Arts” category:
Asociacion Mayab, $7,250
La Pocha Nostra, $7,250
Mama Calizo’s Voice Factory, $7,500
Yerba Buena Arts & Events, $7,500
In the “Building Sustainable Arts” category:
Galería de la Raza, $15,000
Native American AIDS Project, $15,000
Seventh Native American Generation, $15,000
In the “Mini-Grants” category:
Friendship House, Inc., $1,000
Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu, $1,000
Native American AIDS Project (Taking Care of the Tribe Powwow), $1,000
- Street Artists Committee—Alexander Lloyd, Chair
- Commissioner Lloyd reported that the Committee did not meet in the last month and was scheduled to meet later in the current week.
He presented the following motion.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-124: Motion to approve requests by former certificate-holders for priority issuance of certificate with waiver of re-screening of wares: Jose Loli, Nicole Ballard, Mame Fama Thiam, Guo Ming Chen, Ramesh Chindam, Frederick Grandy.
- Visual Arts Committee—Jeannene Przyblyski, Chair
- Commissioner García-Nakata commented that she was always very impressed by the scope and depth of the work reviewed by the Committee, and praised the artworks for the San Francisco Airport as well-grounded in the community.
In the absence of Commissioner Przyblyski, President Johnston reported that the Committee had reviewed many different projects, from street improvements and street furniture through major projects like Laguna Honda Hospital, the Transbay Terminal and the Airport. He suggested a report to the full Commission soon on some of the interesting artwork being commissioned throughout the city.
President Johnston asked Ms. Manton to discuss the “greening” of Stanley Saitowitz’s Promenade Ribbon along the Embarcadero, the subject of the motion below.
Ms. Manton explained that the illuminated artwork was designed in the early 1990s. It is five feet wide by two miles long, occupying the zone at the edge of the city, where the city meets the bay. In some places, it is flat concrete flush with the sidewalk, rising in other places to a bench or bollard, and separating pedestrian traffic from auto traffic. One challenge over the years has been how to deal with the mix of skateboarders, bicyclists and baby strollers, and their impact on the artwork. Ms. Manton explained that one consequence of global warming is that the bay sometimes washes over the sidewalk, introducing saltwater into the lights. Over the years, cable and conduit have been accidentally cut. Arts Commission staff has been working with Port staff to modernize the technology, de-electrifying the lights and replacing them with a phosphorescent light source. Under the terms of the current motion, the Port will pay for research and samples, and the artist will do a preliminary mockup. Once the test is successful, the Port will take over the redesign and retrofit of the work, in conjunction with several planned construction projects.
In response to a question by Commissioner Smith, Ms. Manton offered to present the project to Civic Design Review. President Johnston added that the artist is involved, and that he has heard from a former Commissioner interested in the project that she is delighted with this proposal.
Ms. Manton reported on the Maya Lin sculpture at the Academy of Sciences, and thanked Commissioner Miguel for his participation. Ms. Manton described the artwork as an homage to endangered and lost species, explaining that this will be the artist’s last monument. Ms. Manton considered the piece a brilliant solution with a singular form, a bronze cone lined with wood, projecting the sounds of extinct and vanishing species. She said that maintenance will be much more manageable than for the previously proposed artwork, and that the Academy may agree to take on the maintenance. She noted that the cone invites viewers to crawl inside for a closer view.
Commissioner Miguel, too, was pleased. He said that everyone involved had liked the earlier concept but that the execution was problematic: the outdoor video was difficult to see, like looking at a cell phone screen in the sunlight. He praised the Academy staff for working closely with the artist. Commissioner Smith added that he had recently heard Ms. Lin speaking in New York, and that she had very good things to say about the San Francisco Arts Commission staff.
President Johnston presented the following motion.
- RESOLUTION NO. 0504-09-125: Motion to approve the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into an agreement with Stanley Saitowitz for an amount not to exceed $10,000 for research and preliminary design relative to the “greening” of the Promenade Ribbon sculpture and its conversion from an electrically illuminated sculpture to one utilizing other solar-activated sources, and to conduct research into a concrete patching compound for the repair of the spalled and cracked concrete along the Ribbon, with funding to be provided by the Port of San Francisco.
- New Business
There was no new business.
- Reports and Announcements
There were no reports or announcements.
- Public Comment
There was no further public comment.
- Adjournment
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:29 p.m.
5/15/09 spr
