The Arts District Albatross

“Fourth Street” Digital art by BZTAT

A business bringing 1,000 jobs to a city like Canton, OH can be a very welcome thing. When rising unemployment and home foreclosure hits a city like it has in Canton, any new jobs are celebrated.

There are consequences, however.

When those jobs are low wage positions for people with few skills, a number of problems can arise for the neighbors of said businesses.

I am the neighbor of one of these said businesses.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have contributed significantly to the development of Canton’s Arts District in the downtown area. A number of artists and business leaders have worked tirelessly to develop the city center as a destination place for people to visit using artist studios, galleries, and performing arts venues as attractions to the downtown area.

We have an albatross, though.

Digital art by BZTAT

A rather large building sat empty for quite some time smack dab in the middle of the district. Everyone hoped that it would eventually be inhabited by a company or organization with compatibility to the arts district. That did not happen.

It was instead purchased and inhabited by a call center company (lured by various incentives offered by the mayor) that has rapidly employed approximately 1,000 people. These employees in a rather short period of time have totally changed the artful character of the area in which I live and work.

I do not lament the numbers of people. It is the behaviors of these people that are concerning. I confess that I am shocked by their total disregard for the environment around them and lack of respect for others. Is this the future of America’s workforce?

When on their breaks, many of these individuals smoke and loiter along the street, making excessive noise and commotion that is anything but professional. They sit on flowers in carefully tended planters; they destroy property; and they liberally yell expletives at each other and unknown persons on their mobile phones.

I often wonder, if this is how they act while at work, imagine how they act at home!

The persons who drop them off or pick them up for their shifts sit in their cars with booming stereos that shake the windows, playing music with extremely profane and violent lyrics.

As you would suspect, this climate on MY street is now becoming a gathering place for nefarious individuals who have suspicious behaviors and provocative clothing, looking to “score” off of the newly hired who do not yet know how to budget a paycheck.

Will it be a place that people want to visit in the future, or will downtown Canton return to the blight it was just a few years ago?

digital art by BZTAT

Artists have to adapt and change with their circumstances, and I will. Still yet, I think the city has to think long and hard about its development strategy.

If businesses with troublesome employees are to be the priority, then a troublesome city will prevail.

Is that what Canton wants?

It is not what I want, nor is it what other creative professionals want. If Canton wants more than low wage earners, they will need to reconsider how they attract business to the city. The will need to be more proactive in mitigating the stresses one business can cause other businesses, and they will need to consider additional city services to accommodate influxes of workers.

They will need to think about how they retain those creative people who are willing to build their city into unique and desirable place to visit, live and work.

What is going on in your city? Do you have similar circumstances?

June 30, 2012

The Artist's Journey – Come along for the ride!

“Sailboat Wind” – Digital Art by BZTAT

If you buy art, you do so for a number of reasons. Regardless of the reason, you want to see the artist become successful, right?

If the artist becomes successful, it vindicates your purchase. The work that you own becomes more valuable, and you can honestly take pride in identifying a rising star before everyone else does.

More than anything, though, you want to see the artist become successful because you are part of their journey. When you support an artist, you become part of that artist’s story. You help the artist reach a point where they contribute greatly to the world, and that is no small thing.

Artists, be grateful to those who share and support your journey.

I look at the issue of artists making a career from their talent from two different perspectives.

There are concepts that society promulgates about artists that need to be changed. But artists also need to take responsibility and not assume that life should be handed to them on a silver platter.

I have started a writing journey to more openly share my own struggle with making a career as an artist that is financially sustainable. I hope that it is interesting to those who would purchase my art, even though the journey will inevitably lead to higher prices.

I hope it is interesting to others as well. Even if you do not purchase my art, you are supporting my journey. Thanks!

Where do you think this journey will lead me next?

June 29, 2012

Building cities through the arts – it is not done by accident anymore.

Digital art by BZTAT

When I moved to the Canton Arts District in 2007, it was an adventure. A formerly blighted downtown was being redeveloped into a creative paradise for artists. There was an energy that was exciting and inspiring.

For five years, I have been a big part of shaping and developing the district. I have lived here, worked here and helped to create and promote a variety of activities. Other artists and I, with the help of ArtsinStark, the Canton Special Improvement District and King Properties, can take pride in what we have built.

There is a wave of interest in developing declining downtowns across the country through the arts. Canton, honestly was on the forefront of that. It is not by accident.

Robb Hankins, the charismatic and inspiring leader of ArtsinStark, has led the city to redevelop and reshape itself through public art, live music and theater, and artists’ galleries and studios.

Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, has made such efforts a cornerstone of his agency’s purposes. Consultants like Rebecca Ryan actively encourage cities to capitalize on the arts as a way to bring young professionals to their cities.

Artists can benefit greatly from such an influx of interest in the arts. I have. But artist beware. It is not the end-all-be-all for launching an art career.

In Canton, we have had numerous challenges. Egos and lack of business acumen have impeded the progress of many creative people with high and sometimes unrealistic expectations. Canton is a football town, and although its people have embraced the new arts focus, it is not a community where enough people buy art to support a number of self employed artists.

And although the business community has embraced the arts in a very surprising way, the mayor and other elected officials have not. In a future post, I will share about how decisions made by city officials have totally altered my experience of the city.

The present day movement of building cities around the arts harkens back to the New York City SoHo District’s regeneration as an artists’ haven. Once a low cost area for creative people to live and work, it now is an upscale area where only the most successful artists can afford to live.

Most cities are hoping that the world that the artists create in their communities are not necessarily going to remain a place where starving artists can survive.

Cities are fluid organisms that change and adapt to the circumstances around them. Artists have to adapt as well, and recognize that change is inevitable.

How have the arts changed and contributed to the development of your city? How have artists had to adapt to the changing circumstances around that development? Are the arts an important and embraced part of your community?

Are you an arts supporter who wants to see artists and their cities succeed? What suggestions do you have for them?