Episode 7: ABBA Summit - Proposition E, Arts Impact Endowment & Grants for the Arts Update & Discussion

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Arts for a Better Bay Area State of the Arts Summit Breakout Session on Proposition E, 2018 & Arts Impact Endowment Update & Discussion

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"I think the action and the continuity of the coalition from Prop S to Prop E went from 40 organizations to 140 organizations. That was something that was huge” - Vin Seaman

This is episode is part of our special series on how the arts and culture sector is coming back from the covid 19 pandemic and features voices from the Co-Production of Arts For A Better Bay Area State of The Arts Summit held at the Strand Theatre in San Francisco on June 28th 2023. The focus of the summit was on rebuilding our communities through the arts. 

This ABBA Summit breakout session hosts a community conversation to update the status of Proposition E from 2018, the Arts Impact Endowment and Grants for the Arts. Our discussion features the voices of Joe Landini the Founder and Director of Giving at Safe House Arts, Vinay Patel, the Executive Director of the Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, Denise Pate, the  Director of Community Investments for the San Francisco Arts Commission, Vallie Brown, the Director of the City of San Francisco’s Grants For The Arts, and Shrey Purohit an artist and cultural worker at Arts Span along with our wonderful co-host Isa Nakazawa, the Director of Community Engagement of BAVC Media.

Joe Landini - Director/Founder, Safe House Arts 

Joe Landini (director of giving/founder) of Safe House For the Arts received his BA in choreography from UC Irvine and his MA in choreography from the Laban Centre (London). His choreography has been presented at the ODC Theater, Z Space, the Cowell Theater and Dance Mission, as well as Santa Cruz, Marin, Sacramento, Monterey, Laguna Beach, Santa Fe (NM), Mexico City and London. He founded SAFEhouse for the Performing Arts in 2007 and received the GOLDIE award from the SF Bay Guardian in 2012. In 2022, Landini received the award for Sustained Achievement with the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards and celebrated his 30th year of choreographing in the Bay Area.

Vinay Patel - Executive Director, API Cultural Center

Patel has over a decade’s experience as an arts administrator. He has been a critical factor in the growth of Asian Improv aRts’ (as a co-founder and a coordinator of the California Asian American and Pacific Islander Arts Network), producer of concerts, festivals, tours, and recordings, and he has been an organizational development consultant as well. Patel has been the Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center since 2009

Denise Pate - Dir. Community Investments, SF Arts Commission

Denise Pate currently serves as the Director of Community Investments for the San Francisco Arts Commission. In this role she stewards approximately $13 million annually in municipal funding to invest in San Francisco’s individual artists and arts nonprofits with a focus on racial and cultural equity. She manages an 11-person, Community Investments team which oversees all grant programs as well as the City’s Art Vendor program. Pate has worked for over 30 years in nonprofit management as an executive director, program manager, board member, development professional, dancer, and choreographer. She has raised funds, managed programs, and provided technical assistance for organizations throughout Bay Area counties. Pate formerly served as the Cultural Funding Coordinator for the City of Oakland where she managed competitive cultural arts granting to Oakland individual artists and nonprofits. Pate’s past affiliations include California College of the Arts, Young Audience of Northern California, Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts, Youth in Arts and World Arts West. She has an M.B.A. and also has a B.A. in Movement Education.

Vallie Brown - Director, Grants for the Arts

Vallie Brown is a former Board of Supervisors member, where she represented District 5. Subsequent to her departure from the Board of Supervisors, Brown ran for the Democratic County Central Committee (DCCC) in the 17th Assembly District. She has worked as a project manager for affordable housing for the City's Office of Economic and Workforce Development and served as a legislative aide for London Breed. Brown started an art program at the Hunter's Point Boys and Girls Club. After taking note of the high incidence of breast cancer and asthma in the neighborhood, Brown started raising awareness of chemical hazards and became an environmental activist.

Isa Nakazawa - Dir. Community Engagement, BAVC Media

Isa Nakazawa is the Director of Community Engagement at BAVC Media, responsible for cultivating meaningful partnerships with other non-profits, community-based organizations, independent artists, media and arts institutions, neighbors and a cross-section of local community members to provide accessible, enriching and connective public programming.

Isa joined BAVC Media in January 2020, following nearly a decade of serving as a teaching and performance artist and Director of Marketing and Communications at Youth Speaks. She has a passion for community radio, music journalism, rhizomes and the cosmos. At the core of her work is a fundamental belief in the interconnected nature of the liberation of all people.

She writes about the transformative power of music for publications like Okayplayer and has hosted two community radio shows on Oakland’s own ADP.FM: The Parked Car and Rhizomatic Radio. She has produced and facilitated countless panels, workshops, film screenings, Q&A’s and events in the arts all across the country. She is a 2023 NALAC Leadership Institute Fellow and is currently accepting new clients for her professional astrology and tarot business.

SAFEhouse Arts

SAFEhouse is a cooperative, community art space that hosts Residencies, Workshops, and Performances, and also has space available for Rentals. SAFEhouse for the Performing Arts is a 501(c)3 California non-profit and is operated by the resident artists and staff who are supported by the SAFEhouse Board of Directors.

SAFEhouse has moved around to several locations over the years and currently resides in their newest venue located at 145 Eddy St. SAFEhouse is proud to have a staff entirely comprised of working artists and a strong board to support them. Although SAFEhouse is only 15 years old, it has quite a colorful history with a strong mission and bright future. Find out more about Applications for Artists, Renting the Facilities, Artists Bios and Making a Donation

Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center

APICC proudly presents the annual United States of Asian America Festival (USAAF), showcasing diverse artistic works in music, dance, film, visual art and more from API artists throughout San Francisco.

The Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center’s (APICC) mission is to support and present multidisciplinary art reflective of the unique experiences of Asian Pacific Islanders living in the United States.

APICC was founded in 1996 by representatives of five nonprofit arts groups: Asian American Dance Performances, First Voice, Asian Improv aRts, the Asian American Theater Company, and Kearny Street Workshop. Since 1998, the center has promoted the artistic and organizational growth of San Francisco’s API arts community by organizing and presenting the annual United States of Asian America Festival as well as commissioning contemporary art for and by the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Find out more about Programs & Events, Festival, Fiscally Sponsored Events and Making a Donation.

San Francisco Arts Commission

The San Francisco Arts Commission is the city agency that champions the arts. We believe that a creative cultural environment is essential to the city’s well-being and we strive to integrate the arts into all aspects of city life. The San Francisco Arts Commission consists of fifteen members appointed by the Mayor for four-year terms. Our work is overseen by the Director of Cultural Affairs. We believe that the transformative power of art is critical to strengthening neighborhoods, building infrastructure and fostering positive social change. Find out more about Programs, Opportunities, The Arts Impact Endowment Program [CSAP], [AIE] Grant Arts Hub Public Meetings and Getting Involved.

Grants For The Arts

The Grants for the Arts program is a funding initiative by the City and County of San Francisco that provides general operating support for arts and culture organizations, and funds re-granting to individual artists and groups. Since its inception in 1961, the program has distributed $400 million to hundreds of nonprofit arts and culture organizations in San Francisco. The program is funded through a combination of City and State legislation, and its annual revenue is derived from the hotel tax. Find out more about Grant Application and Making a Donation.

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Thanks to our Sponsors

Voices of the Community is supported by a grant from the Zellerbach Family Foundation, whose Arts and Culture grants ensure vibrant work is created, new voices are celebrated, and artists and audiences inclusive of the Bay Area’s diverse communities and cultures have opportunities to thrive. Find out more at ZFF dot org

Voices of the Community is supported by a grant from the Peaceful World Foundation dedicated to fostering a culture of global peace through the promotion of hosted conversations and education. You can learn more at peaceful world foundation dot org.

Thanks to our CoProduction Partner

BAVC Media is a community hub and resource for media makers in the Bay Area and across the country, serving several thousand freelancers, filmmakers, job-seekers, activists, and artists every year. BAVC Media provides access to media making technology, storytelling workshops, a diverse and engaged community of makers and producers, services and resources. Get Training, participate in the MediaMaker Fellowship, become a member and produce shows through the SF Commons program.

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