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During the recent round of city of portland plan consultation workshops, the mayor in his slide presentation showed some stats that said that the city of seattle allocates a MUCH larger budget per head of population for arts and culture than does Portland.

This is a very interesting contrast of statistical data, because Portland has such an incredibly renowned and vibrant cultural life DESPITE this apparent disparity in support from the city itself.

It would make a great show to explore why this should be so.

Are - e.g. personal values; the enthusiasm and energy of youth; a willingness to use creative means to create rather than let money alone determine what is possible or not; or other forces - playing a more significant role and one of greater importance in fostering a vibrant and lively, grass roots driven culture? Is money and even 'professionalism' not quite as important to a city's creative outcomes, possibilities and environments, as might be commonly assumed?

Why can (or how can) a smallish city like Portland achieve such an outstanding reputation for its community's cultural life?  What really gives here? And what can we and all other cities learn from this?

As a former cultural development officer these questions hit me immediately.

(Maybe Oregon Artbeat could also explore these issues in one of its programs as well.)

posted 2 years, 1 month ago
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