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Michael Kaiser, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, will be the guest speaker at a free arts leadership symposium at the Pantages this Friday from 9-11 a.m. The symposium, one of two in Washington state, is part of a national tour for Kennedy Center initiative "Arts in Crisis," and will address issues of sustainability and relevance for arts organizations.

Congressman Dicks, who represents Washington's sixth congressional district and is the chairman for the House Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, will give opening remarks before a 90-minute conversation with Michael Kaiser, moderated by Andrea Allen, education director for Seattle Repertory Theatre. There will also be a 30-minute meet-and-greet session with Kaiser, and refreshments will be provided. The event is hosted by ArtsEd Washington.

Interested participants should register online at www.artsedwashington.org/artsincrisis

More money for local arts! The Washington State Arts Commission today announced that it will be investing $1.2 million in arts organizations and education across the state, some as a result of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (also known as the "stimulus" act.) Recognizing the role the arts play in the country's economic and cultural well-being, the Act provided $50 million in stimulus funding to the National Endowment for the Arts, which has in turn passed on $285,000 to the WSAC to preserve arts jobs in 24 non-profit cultural organizations throughout the state. Tacoma's Broadway Center for Performing Arts is one of the recipients.

“This funding will help arts organizations minimize layoffs during this economic downturn,” said governor Christine Gregoire. “Jobs in the arts are important to the health of our communities and to the economic future of our state.”

In addition, the NEA has provided $1.2 million dollars in stimulus funding directly to 23 Washington arts and cultural organizations, including the Evergreen Longhouse in Olympia and the Museum of Glass in Tacoma. Other WSAC grants include $525,000 in arts education money to support 29 community partnerships that develop arts education programs in K-12 public schools, and more than $350,000 in organizational grants to 115 arts groups around the state, including the Tacoma Art Museum, the Tacoma Symphony, the Tacoma Youth Symphony and the Tacoma Arts Commission.

A full list of WSAC funding recipients can be found at www.arts.wa.gov; more details on stimulus funding in Washington can be found at www.recovery.wa.gov.

Local pottery artists are having their third annual sale this weekend, selling hand-crafted functional ware, mosaic and sculpture. It's a great place to get unique work and cheaper older stock or seconds.

Participating artists include Kazumi Divens-Cogez
, Jana Fisher, Barb Gabriel-Driggers
, Ann Meersman
, Jill Rohrbaugh
, Janet Rudolph
, Charan Sachar
, Rebecca Smart
 and Susan Thompson
.

The sale is from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Aug. 21 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 22 at 717 N. D. St., Tacoma. Information: Susan Thompson, 253-678-9184.

Immanuel Presbyterian Church is turning 100 years old this fall, and is celebrating with an art competition. The juried art contest honoring the historic church building located at 901 N. J Street will result in the winning entry being displayed in the church and used for celebration material, as well as earning a $500 prize.

Artists may submit original works in paint, drawing or mixed media based entirely on an outside view of the Immanuel Presbyterian Church building. There is no entry fee. The submission deadline is September 19; all submissions must be delivered to the church on this date between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. The winner will be announced on September 20, and the winning work will become the property of Immanuel Presbyterian Church.

An exhibit of all submissions will take place at the church after the 10:30 a.m. worship service and before the 5:00 p.m. Blues Vespers on September 20. Artists submitting work may wish to make their work available for sale. For more information, see www.ipctacoma.org

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...David Mackey. The Film Festival, which runs at The Grand Cinema from Oct. 1-8, holds an annual competition to see who gets to design the promotion poster, and Mackey's image of a giant popcorn bucket with festival details on the side was today announced as the winner out of 120 submissions from all over the world.

So who's David Mackey? A native of Tacoma, he's a graduate of Wilson High School and a musician who got into graphic design when he couldn't find anyone else to create his album covers. He now lives in Venaco, Corsica (part of France) but his mom and brother still live in Tacoma. Mackey's design was chosen by The Grand's executive director Philip Cowan and other staff and volunteers, and will be used in promotion material. The award also includes $350, a joint membership to the Grand and festival passes. All other submissions will be displayed in The Grand's foyer area.

"The poster screams 'movies' along with highlighting landmarks of Tacoma and Pierce County," explains Cowan, who's the instigator of the Tacoma Film Festival.

The 2009 Tacoma Film Festival opens October 1 with a 6:30 p.m. reception at the Annie Wright Great Hall followed by the opening night film at the Annie Wright Kemper Theater. Films will continue through October 8 playing at the Grand Cinema, Tacoma Art Museum and the Tacoma School of the Arts. The festival program is scheduled to be ready by Thursday, Sept. 9. For more information visit www.TacomaFilmFestival.com

Congratulations to the winners of the juried art show at the Proctor Arts Fest, held last Saturday in the Proctor District. Categories judged were two-dimensional art, three-dimensional art, photography, textiles and people's choice. Jurors were artists Janet Marcavage and Sally Tjostelson, and Handforth Gallery manager David Domkoski. And the winners are:

TWO-DIMENSIONAL
First - “The Decision” by Pat Graham
Second - “A Stroll in London” by Jeanne Strohmann
Third - “Harmony” by Karen Marie Petrillose
Honorable Mention - “Snow Days” by Michele Livernash

THREE-DIMENSIONAL
First - “Eris Coyote” by Michael Haney
Second - “Post Looking for a Gate” by John Simpkins
Third - “Red Tailed Hawk” by Dave Miner
Honorable Mention - “Heart of Flicker” by Enrique R. Leøn

PHOTOGRAPHY
First - “A Dingy Reflects” by Sharon Styer
Second - “Bad Hair Day” by Daniel Suckow
third - “Dandelion Dreams” by Jim Oliver
Honorable Mention - “Rear View” by Lenny Zimmerman

TEXTILE
First - “Oriental” by Patricia Yates
Second - “Pentecost” by Darlene K. Cloud
Third - “Self Portrait” by Patricia Yates
Fourth - “Easter” by Darlene K Cloud

PEOPLE’S AWARDS - VOTED BY ART SHOW GUESTS
First - “Beautiful Buddha” by Sheri Neville
Second “The Decision” by Pat Graham
Third - “Jacobson Point” by Frederika Thomas

What happens when you mix a furnace with an aerosol spray can at a party?

You have a blast. (Heh, heh.) And that's what will happen at the first ever Hilltop Arts Night Out next week. The Hilltop Artists in Residence (student glassblowers at Jason Lee Middle School) are collaborating with the Fab Five hip-hop organization to hold a kind of open house, only much more fun. Glassblowing demos (that's the furnace bit), graffiti demos (that's the spray cans), live MCs, breakdancing battles, tagging tutorials (we hope they'll teach NOT to tag illegally) and good food will turn this arts night into the kind of party that usually doesn't happen at school.

Hilltop Artists in Residence Tacoma (HART) has been providing tuition-free glassblowing, bead making and glass fusing to local teenagers for nearly 16 years, keeping kids in school and giving them career skills. Fab Five is an initiative of the Northwest Leadership Foundation, and creates safe, drug- and alcohol-free hip-hop events to mentor youth and foster talent.

The event, running 4-8 p.m. August 4 at the Jason Lee Hot Shop, is in conjunction with Safe Streets National Night Out (the police are invited, too), and is completely free. It's a great way to show off local youth talent, celebrate the HART program and introduce a kid you know to a community they might shine in. And hopefully, nothing will ignite unintentionally.

The Jason Lee Middle School hot shop is located at 602 N. Sprague Ave., Tacoma, near the back of the parking lot. Information: 253-571-7690, www.hilltopartists.org, www.fab-5.org

The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, which supports philanthropic activities, has recently awarded $405,910 to 42 Pierce County nonprofit organizations. In the first of five categories (Arts and Culture, Basic Need, Education, Environment and Neighborhood/Community) eight local arts organizations benefitted from the biannual grant money: Artist Trust, Arts Impact Puget Sound, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts, the Northwest Leadership Foundation, the Northwest Sinfonietta, Tacoma Art Museum, the Tacoma Opera Association and the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra.

The funding was determined by a new framework, say Community Foundation officials, rewarding organization that "focus on root causes, identify systemic challenges, and support community driven solutions."

“In pursuit of our vision of a vibrant community, we award grants to Pierce County organizations addressing the systemic issues affecting our region,” says Community Foundation president and CEO, Rose Lincoln Hamilton.

The Community Foundation oversees and invests more than $72 million in donor-driven assets. In the 2008 fiscal year, the Community Foundation awarded more than $3.4 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and student scholarships.

For more information, visit www.gtcf.org or call 253.383-5622.

The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, which supports philanthropic activities, has recently awarded $405,910 to 42 Pierce County nonprofit organizations. In the first of five categories (Arts and Culture, Basic Need, Education, Environment and Neighborhood/Community) eight local arts organizations benefitted from the biannual grant money: Artist Trust, Arts Impact Puget Sound, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts, the Northwest Leadership Foundation, the Northwest Sinfonietta, Tacoma Art Museum, the Tacoma Opera Association and the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra.

The funding was determined by a new framework, say Community Foundation officials, rewarding organization that "focus on root causes, identify systemic challenges, and support community driven solutions."

“In pursuit of our vision of a vibrant community, we award grants to Pierce County organizations addressing the systemic issues affecting our region,” says Community Foundation president and CEO, Rose Lincoln Hamilton.

The Community Foundation oversees and invests more than $72 million in donor-driven assets. In the 2008 fiscal year, the Community Foundation awarded more than $3.4 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and student scholarships.

For more information, visit www.gtcf.org or call 253-383-5622.

Carolyn Burt, "Sweet Onions." Photo courtesy of the artist.

Promote art and feed the hungry – it's a great combination, and 12 artists from the Proctor Art Gallery will be doing just that this Saturday morning at the Proctor Farmers Market. In a collaboration between the market, the gallery and the FISH Food Bank operating out of Mason United Methodist Church, the artists will create food-themed paintings and wood-carvings for the entire five hours of the market. Market-goers can donate into nearby collecting boxes to support the Art-a-thon, and all donations will buy fresh fruit and veggies from the market to give to patrons at the Food Bank. Art produced will be for sale afterward at the gallery, with some proceeds going back to the Food Bank.

It's a much-needed service. The Mason FISH Food Bank now serves 4,100 individuals per month, up 42 per cent from 2008, says Beth Elliott, executive director of FISH Food Banks of Pierce County. Donations are often in the form of dried or canned goods, but everyone needs fresh produce, and organizers see this as a win-win situation where the Food Bank can get fresh food and support local farmers at the same time.

Donations can also be made online at www.foodbankartathon.com.

Meanwhile, shoppers can watch artists at work right there in the street. They'll be set up in small groups, ideal for demonstrating their art. “It will be a great opportunity for the public to see and talk with artists in action,” says Carolyn Burt, gallery owner. Burt will be one of the participating artist; others include Bonnie Cargol, Andrea Greenfield, Sharon Crocetti, Alexis St. John, Mary Mann, Janyce Sukow, Brad Stave, Penny Grellier, Mary Wolfe, Lucy Schwartz and Sherri Bails.

The Proctor Farmers Market is open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays through October at North 27th and Proctor Streets, Tacoma. www.proctorfarmersmarket.com
The Proctor Art Gallery is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday at 3811 N. 26th St, Tacoma. For more information, call 253-759-4238 or visit www.proctorartgallery.com