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	The Ypsilanti Courier A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

Local group to launch Arts Census

Arts Alliance set to release census

By Christine Laughren, Staff Writer

PUBLISHED: March 20, 2008

The Washtenaw County Arts Alliance will launch an Artists' Census April 1 through May 17 to help determine how many artists live and work in Washtenaw County.

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"Artists are the creative DNA of Washtenaw County, and provide the spark that makes our region such a great place to live," Tamara Real, Director of the Arts Alliance, said in a press release.

Real said the census would aid in building "visibility and credibility" of several artists in the community.

"It's easy to know how many arts organizations are in the county, but individuals artists are often overlooked.

Angela MartÌn-Barcelona, Marketing Director at Arts Alliance, a countywide service organization, said the nine-question survey is intended to be inclusive to all artists.

"We encourage everyone to take it," MartÌn-Barcelona said.

The findings of the census, which is part of the Washtenaw County Community Cultural Assessment, will be included in the Arts Alliance's cultural plan for the county.

According to MartÌn-Barcelona, the goal is to repeat the census every 3-5 years to report the health of the arts community.

Members of the Ypsilanti community got an early look at the Artists' Census questions at a forum Saturday morning at What Is That Art Gallery. The focus group met to share visions and ideas for cultural opportunities for the Ypsilanti portion of the Washtenaw County Cultural Assessment.

David Austin, co-owner of the gallery said the forum was very positive.

"It just shows that there is a prevailing positive energy in Ypsilanti," he said.

Artists from the area discussed what they liked about the arts culture in the area and gave suggestions for improvements that could be made.

Austin said he thinks a central outlet for communicating events to the community is the biggest thing that could be improved.

The Artists' Census will be available online at www.artscount.org. Hard-copy versions of the census will be located at public libraries and creative venues throughout the county. A full report is expected to be complete in early fall.

For more information, call the Arts Alliance at 1-734-214-0112 or visit www.a2artsalliance.org.

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