Interested in the arts? Music, painting, community projects? Interested in them as economic development? If yes, read The Community Arts Movement: Tilting at Windmills? on Daily Yonder.
The article discusses Robert Gard, “characterized as the ‘the father of the community arts movement,’” and his ideas which transformed communities.
His cultural advocacy was a lifelong affair, but Gard’s deepest impact in the arts was realized with the 1969 publication of The Arts in the Small Community: A National Plan. Affectionately called “The Windmill Book” by advocates (the cover illustration depicted a striking ink rendering of an old-fashioned windmill), the report detailed a pilot program funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, aimed at building arts infrastructure in five, rural Wisconsin communities. It gave examples of the sorts of projects each community embraced, profiled key figures in carrying out those efforts, drew conclusions about what worked and did not work in each case, and extrapolated lessons learned for the benefit of those who would follow suit. And follow suit they did.
Learn more: Read The Arts in the Small Community – A National Plan and Arts in the Small Community: Essays and Supplements, Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Arts in the Small Community: A National Plan. Both are available as PDF downloads at The Arts in the Small Community (The Windmill Project).