2015 Annual Convention
June 12-14, 2015
Chicago, IL
The 2015 Annual Convention brought together 1,000 attendees to discuss, plan, and prepare for the future of the arts landscape in America. One day prior to the Convention, Americans for the Arts hosted 3 separate preconferences focused around specific themes: Public Art & Placemaking, Cultural Equity, and Arts Leadership.
Public Art & Placemaking play a role in driving tourism, making places more interesting to visit and encouraging the exploration of a location; the preconference focused on the role of artists, administrators, the Public Art Network, and the future of public art.
The Cultural Equity preconference focused on the interrelated threads of cultural equity, cultural representation, and cultural democracy, bringing together participants from throughout the country for a community-based, artistically charged immersive learning experience.
The Arts Leadership preconference brought together four field leaders to present and discuss disruption, access, opportunity, and how to fundamentally transform the arts field so that it can meet a changing nation and time.
Highlights included:
- A keynote presentation by renowned designer, artist, and educator Walter Hood. Hood discussed his work, which ranges from small community-based pieces to large-scale landscape commissions.
- Music, dance, and poetry performances by Blues Kids, Heartbeat of Mother Earth, Black Ensemble Theater, and Louder Than A Bomb.
- An opening reception at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art.