HomeMy WebLinkAbout5/14/2015 - City Arts Commission - 03 Staff Report Cultural Arts ActivitiesTO: Newport Beach City Arts Commission
FROM: Tim Hetherton, Library Services Director
(949) 717-3810, thetherton@newportbeachca.gov
PREPARED BY: Tim Hetherton
TITLE: Cultural Arts Activities for April 2015
Agnes Schenk: The library debuted the work of this talented local artist in her first-ever exhibition titled
Spring Spectacular – Flowers Rediscovered. An artist reception was on held Thursday, April 16 in the
Friends Meeting Room at the Central Library.
Red: Jonathan Prince’s Red was installed in the Civic Center Park on April 27. The piece was recently
restored to pristine condition.
Raymond Otis: Local artist Ray Otis returns to the Newport Beach Central Library for his exhibition
Seacoast and Harbors. The show will run from May 6th to June 6th. A lecture, “How & Why I Paint” and a
reception will be held on May 19th from 4:30PM TO 7:00PM in the Friends Room.
Fine Art Exhibitions at Central Library: The following artists are scheduled for exhibitions in the Central
Library gallery space:
May 2015: Raymond Otis
June/July 2015: James Strombotne (pending CAC approval)
August 2015: Richard Bohn
September/October 2015: Ting Ting Lee
November 2015: Joe Lewis
December 2015/January 2016: Charlotte Lerner
Master Arts and Culture Plan presentation: On April 14, Staff presented a recap of Arts OC’s Master
Arts and Culture Plan. The 2006 Newport Beach General Plan cites the importance of arts and culture
for Newport Beach and the expectation that meaningful programs will require “coordination,
preservation, and promotion” in order to avoid unintended losses of cultural assets. While the Newport
Beach Arts Commission and City staff have worked together for a number of years to provide arts and
cultural activities, exhibits and programming to the community, there has been an interest in recent
years to develop a longer-term, cohesive plan for providing these services to Newport Beach residents
and visitors.
The City contracted with Arts Orange County (Arts OC) in May 2014 to develop Phase I of a Master Arts
and Culture Plan. To gather community input as it developed the plan, Arts OC conducted one-on-one
interviews with key stakeholders, held focus groups with community leaders, hosted a community
forum, and conducted an online survey. The plan was completed by Arts OC and approved by the
Newport Beach Arts Commission in November 2014. Arts OC representatives first presented the plan to
the City Council during its November 25, 2014 Study Session and heard general Council and public
comments about the plan and the process followed to develop it.
On April 14th, staff requested a more in-depth discussion and further direction from City Council on how
the staff and Arts Commission should proceed in implementing the plan’s major recommendations:
1. Grow public investment in arts and culture.
2. Establish an appropriately-staffed Division of Arts and Culture.
3. Establish arts-friendly City policies.
4. Develop a 21st Century Arts and Culture Communications Plan.
5. Develop a multi-faceted arts and culture program plan.
6. Refine the City’s Public Art Policy.
7. Develop new accessible creative spaces.
8. Animate existing City parks, beaches, and other public spaces with unique programming,
signature events, and neighborhood festivals.
9. Establish key partnerships that support arts education.
10. Include aesthetic considerations in city processes that review and approve public and
private development of the built environment.
In response, City Council support of the the Plan was unanimous. Council approved 9 of the 10
recommendations.
City Manager Dave Kiff summarized Council direction as follows:
Return the Master Plan to the City Arts Commission to work on goals and a long-term
vision;
Remove recommendation 10, “Include Aesthetics in Review of New Development”;
Focus on the private/public-funding aspect of arts and cultural activities; and,
Staff should provide options for Council action on a Request for Proposal for an arts position.