ARTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Meeting of Monday, 02 July 2007

Mansfield Community Center (MCC) Conference Room

MINUTES

1. The meeting was called to order by Acting Chair Kim Bova at 7: 06p. Members present: Leon Bailey, Kim Bova, Scott Lehmann, Joan Prugh. Members absent: Jay Ames, Blanche Serban. Others present: Jay O’Keefe (staff).

2. The minutes of the 04 June 07 meeting were approved as written.

3. Membership. Leon Bailey was welcomed as an official member of the Committee!

4. Art display policy. Nobody knew whether Jay A. had sent the revised draft of the art display policy out for comment. To be sure it goes out, Scott will send it to Jay O’K. for forwarding to MCC staff, the Recreation Advisory Committee, Town Mgr. Matt Hart, Town Atty. Dennis O’Brien, Greg Haddad, the Mansfield Library, and the Senior Center.

5. Downtown Partnership. Kim attended another Festival on the Green planning meeting. Festival organizers would like help in identifying artists to jury the art show planned for the Festival and also in encouraging artists to apply to exhibit in it. Kim suggested Jay A. as a juror; Blanche might also be willing. Scott will ask Peggy Church to notify Quiet Corner Artists about the juried show. Several musical groups will be performing at the Festival. Joan thinks the choir in which she sings might be interested in participating and will suggest that its director contact Cynthia van Zelm about this.

6. Meeting dates. Joan will not be able to attend Monday evening meetings in the fall. Tuesdays appeared to be possible for everyone who attended the June meeting. Kim will ask Blanche if Tuesday is OK for her.

7. MCC art displays. Displays for 15 Jul – 15 Oct are now up. Bobby Brown’s work will have to be removed from the display cases at least temporarily to allow Festival on the Green advertising there during the first two weeks of September. So far we have only Laurie Smolin for the fall quarter. Jay O’K. will send out a press release advertising display opportunities at the MCC; Kim will stop in at Riverworks to see if there is interest there in displaying sculpture

Exhibit Period	Entry cases		Sitting room		Hallway
	Double-sided	Shelves	Upper	Lower	Long (5)	Short (2)
15 Jul – 15 Oct	Bobby Brown (sculpture)			Bobby Brown (acrylics)	Anita Bacon (watercolors)
	Festival on the Green 9/1-9/15
15 Oct – 15 Jan					Laurie Smolin (watercolors)

8. New directions? There was some discussion of what the Committee might do in addition to arranging art displays at the MCC. Scott and Jay O’K. reviewed some of the Committee’s past projects: compiling a list of Mansfield artists; organizing the Arts 300 Festival at Holiday Hill (31 May 03); putting together the Opportunities for Mansfield Artists flier and Artspaces packet listing businesses offering exhibit/performance space, with instructions for artists and sample contract; arranging for Full Gael performance (06 May 06) and poetry reading (14 Jun 06) at the MCC; promoting an arts presence in the Storrs Center project.

· There was general agreement that the Committee should continue to speak for an arts presence in the new Storrs Center.

· There was also interest in broadening arts offerings at the MCC. Joan will contact Joan Sidney to see if her group might be interested in another poetry reading. Jay O’K. noted that a “Battle of the Bands”, organized by an E. O. Smith student, had been held several years ago at the Teen Center. Perhaps the Committee could enlist student help in scheduling a series of musical evenings at the Teen Center that would give student groups, whether connected with school music programs or independent of them, an opportunity to perform. Kim will see if her son might be interested in this.

· A monthly or quarterly calendar of arts/cultural events for Mansfield, similar to that published by the Ridgefield Arts Council (or, on a different topic, Becky Lehmann’s Family Fun in Mansfield), would be useful, though a lot of work to put together.

This discussion will be resumed at the August meeting. Committee members were asked to think about what they would like to see the Committee do.

9. Adjourned at 8:24p.

Scott Lehmann, Acting Secretary, 04 July 07