Welcome!
Hello! We are so glad that you are interested in learning more about the role of artists working in the civic realm in rural communities. This resource hub includes a compilation of resources and conversation guides to help get you started on your civic arts journey, plus a library of additional resources for a little deeper dive.
The Granite Falls City Artist-in-Residence Advisory Group worked together for over a year before the official project launch in 2020.
How To Use This Intro Resource Hub
The resources provided in this Intro Resource Hub are intended to be conversation starters, shared language builders, and readiness assessments for the beginning of your civic arts journey. They are part of DoPT’s Rural Civic Arts Partnership (RCAP) Program.
You know your community best. Please utilize these resources in a way that works for you by considering what is useful and leaving what is not. The tools provided only scratch the surface of what’s available, and we hope they inspire you to keep moving forward!
You are welcome (and encouraged) to use these resources within your community to learn, dream, grow, and plan together! However, reproduction or distribution of the materials adapted or created by DoPT is prohibited without our written consent. This includes using these materials in any external resources, handbooks, or teaching materials. If you have any questions about this, please feel free to contact us!
Please reach out to Ash Hanson at ash@publictransformation.org if you are interested in working with DoPT as a consultant while you develop your own civic arts project(s).
Projects in Southwest Minnesota are encouraged to apply for Southwest Minnesota Arts Council’s Quick Support for Organizations Grant to support consultation; SMAC staff are happy to assist with putting together an application!
FIRST, A FEW DEFINITIONS . . .
What is “Civic Practice”?
Civic practice refers to projects that bring artists into collaboration and co-design with community partners, municipal governments, and/or local residents around a community-defined aspiration, challenge, or vision; and, where an artist employs the assets of their craft in response to the needs of community partners as determined through ongoing, relationship-based dialogue.
Adapted from the definition provided by Center for Performance and Civic Practice.
What is a “civic arts project”?
Civic arts projects can be many different things ranging from short- or long-term artist residencies to community art projects, gardens, parks, and gathering spaces. These projects can range in scale (and timeline and budget!) from teeny-tiny to really-really-big. There is no wrong size for a civic arts project! In fact, it’s best to dream big and start small.
While some arts projects are made by artists for personal expression or aesthetic purposes, civic arts projects are created collaboratively to address specific social, cultural, or environmental challenges and/or opportunities in the community. Community engagement can include (but is not limited to!) community meetings, workshops, and other events to gather input and feedback from community members. Community engagement can look many different ways and happen at various points throughout a process.
Civic arts projects are a way to use art as a tool for social change, systems transformation, cultural expression, and community connection. They help to bring people together, promote civic engagement, and create a sense of collaboration and investment in the community.
BEGINNING THE JOURNEY
Creating the Core Team
Once you and/or your community decide to begin the civic arts journey, the first step we recommend is creating your Core Team. The Core Team is the small group of people who are the instigators and cheerleaders of the effort. These (usually 3 or 4) individuals from each community are the ones ready to show up first, roll up their sleeves, and encourage others to join the journey. We suggest that the Core Team consist of at least one representative of each of the following: a City representative, an arts/culture representative, and an activator. The Core Team will be responsible for assembling the Advisory Group described below.
Who is an “artist”?
DoPT intentionally defines the term “artist” broadly. An artist is anyone who is creative, resourceful, inspired, and driven to collaborate across all sectors of public, private, and civic life. This includes mediums such as visual, performance, multimedia, literary, social/civic, culinary, land, traditional, folk, textile, events, and more. We mean culture bearers, craftspeople, artisans, hobbyists, contractors, and handypeople.
Who is an “activator”?
An activator is anyone who is an instigator, organizer, connector and cheerleader of the effort. They are the ones ready to show up first, roll up their sleeves, and encourage others to join the journey.
Note: In small towns, we sometimes (often) wear all the hats at once! You might identify as an Artist and an Activator… or a City Representative and an Artist. That’s okay; you don’t have to pick and choose! You can be everything you are, but it’s best to have at least 3 people with some representation from each of these 3 areas: City, Community, Creativity.
Assessing Readiness
Determining whether or not your community is ready to host a civic arts project is a crucial step in the process. Below is a tool that you can use with your Core Team to assess how “ready” your community is to host. There is no recommended score to determine readiness, rather this tool is meant for your Core Team to determine for yourselves how ready you feel you are and which areas may need strengthening prior to beginning the journey. It can also be used as a temperature check tool along the way!
It is important for the Core Team to reflect on why a civic arts project is of interest or importance at this moment, find common ground and shared interests, and identify potential goals or outcomes for the civic arts project or residency. You can use the worksheet provided below with your Core Team to help prompt discussions about the thoughts, feelings, and actions that should be taken into account before embarking on your project.
Developing your Civic Arts Advisory Group
Civic arts projects are best designed when the community that will be working with the artist is engaged in the design process. We recommend creating a cross-sector advisory group that will be deeply involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of the civic arts project or residency.
The Advisory Group is a group of people (ideally between 8 to 12 people) recruited by the Core Team who are ready to commit to turning a civic arts project dream into a reality. It is important for this group to have a diverse representation of the community. This group shares ownership of the process by collaborating on design, development, and ongoing evaluation; supporting budgeting, fundraising, and hosting; assisting with communication in and with the community; and cheerleading the overall effort, together. The way the group works together can look many different ways, and is unique to the skills, relationships, and capacity in your community.
An additional exercise that we recommend with your Core Team is to dream big about your outcomes! During the process of generating your Advisory Group list, try this short activity:
PLANNING AND DESIGNING
After your Core Team and Advisory Group have been assembled, we recommend setting up a series of design meetings in which you determine the objectives of your project, create a realistic budget and timeline for implementation, and determine the capacity needed and roles of the partner organizations and individuals involved. Remember to dream big and start small.
Determining how you would like your civic arts project to impact civic life in your community is a great place to start. The tool below was developed based on the article “Six Reasons Why Government Should Collaborate with Artists” by Mallory Rhaksana.
We recognize that there are many more than six reasons to engage with civic arts, but these are the top common reasons that cities across the country have identified, so it’s a good place to start! Try exploring these reasons with your Core Team to see if any stand out for your community.
Launching, designing, implementing, supporting, and maintaining a civic arts project or residency takes a lot of people power and financial resources to result in a successful project where the artists, municipalities, partners, and residents all feel included, represented, supported, and valued throughout the project. It is important to clearly determine the roles and responsibilities of each partner organization/individual involved in the process.
We’ve created a planning worksheet below based on the useful resource guide “Artist Residencies in the Public Realm” developed by the Office of Public Arts, Pittsburgh to help think through roles, responsibilities, and capacity needed to plan a successful project. This worksheet allows you to ask questions of your Advisory Group to assist in the realistic planning for the amount of capacity and resources needed for your civic arts project or residency idea.
MEASURING IMPACT
As you begin your civic arts journey, it is helpful to consider what impacts and outcomes you would like to see as a result of your project. The following conversation guide was developed based on Animating Democracy’s “Continuum of Impact” as a starting point for discussing the impact you hope to have with your civic arts project.
This Theory of Change Inspiration worksheet contains examples of questions that could be used as inspiration to develop your own theory of change for a civic arts project. Your questions and/or desired impact will be unique to your community.
