Artists are a part of the economic engine of the city, county and state and an Indiana Arts Commission (IAC) $10,000 grant will help the Warsaw Public Arts Commission (WPAC) engage community members to determine what kind of public art they’d like to see.
One of the first ways the community can get involved is a Collaborative Thumbprint Mural Project at Warsaw’s Third Friday (July 21) from 5 to 8 p.m. at Fribley Field, 700 E. Market St. People will fill in an iconic Warsaw image on a canvas with ink thumbprints. They also will be able to complete a survey in paper form or scan a QR code to do the survey online.
Anyone not able to attend First Friday can fill out the survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L3FY7WF.
On Thursday, the IAC announced it awarded five Indiana communities with early action grants to implement creative community development projects designed to enhance quality of life and grow local economies.
Bedford, Dillsboro, Monticello, Valparaiso and Warsaw are receiving grant funding through phase two of the pilot program Creative Convergence, which was offered this spring in partnership with the Indiana Communities Institute at Ball State University.
The Creative Convergence pilot is an outgrowth of a research study released by ICI in 2022, according to a news release from the IAC. “Planning with Arts & Culture” examined how Indiana municipalities were utilizing local arts and culture in their community and economic strategies. Key amongst the findings was the expressed need for support in identifying and leveraging the creative sector to improve quality of life for all.
In phase one, participating community teams composed of government, economic development and creative sector representatives attended a two-day training delivered by Indiana Communities Institute (ICI) focused on topics such as understanding the positive impacts of arts and creativity on communities, quality of place as a talent attraction and retention tool, local economy diversification, community asset and needs identification and community engagement.
Suzie Light, WPAC, said, “The Warsaw Public Arts Commission members were thrilled to participate in the Creative Convergence pilot training. Following that two-day training, the Commission strategized how we could work collaboratively across many creative sectors in our community. We will be working with a media specialist in our community to communicate data of the economic impact and community value of arts and craftmanship. The awareness campaign is one of our first steps.”
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said the “Creative Convergence” program is a dynamic one and a lot of the pieces are already in Warsaw.
“We just got to kind of put it all together and create an art scene in our community,” he said. “This grant will be a little bit of a boost to really bring it out to the community. We’re going to be down at Third Friday tomorrow talking to residents about their creativity, if you will, so it’s involving the community in the art scene and understanding how important it is to the community as an economic development driver.”
Light said the data from the Indiana Communities Institute helped them understand the economic value of creative workers in Indiana and they wanted to share that information in a way that helps performers, photographers, writers, painters, wood workers, soap makers, bakers and jewelry artisans be recognized for the economic engine they really are in Indiana and Kosciusko County.
“At the same time, we are gathering community input using a survey, asking what types of public art people wish to see in Warsaw. Following gathering community input, we will do a call to artists for proposals. One of the conditions will be that the artist engage community members in an art-making process,” Light said. “Toward the end of our project, about 12 months from now, we will engage community members in ‘making public art’ but we don’t know what form that will take. The end product – the creative output- could be a temporary or permanent piece of public art. This is a project that above all, we want to be fun and inspiring.”
The ICI brings together top research and outreach activities to assist communities as they strive to improve life experiences for residents, businesses and visitors, the IAC release states.
“The involvement of the Indiana Communities Institute was critical to the Creative Convergence pilot,” said Miah Michaelsen, executive director of the IAC. “The ICI is recognized statewide for the quality of their community and economic development training programs, and their partnership was invaluable in ensuring that both the creative sector and Indiana communities had access to the latest in quality of life and local economies research.”
“The Indiana Communities Institute has long advocated for place-based, people-focused investments to ensure stronger and more sustainable communities,” said Brian Blackford, director of program development and training for the ICI. “We are excited to continue working with the Indiana Arts Commission to further explore the impact that arts and culture can have in all areas of the state.”
As a result of the pilot training and grant funding, the five communities will gain experience in how to embed arts and creativity in community and economic planning and development, how to work collaboratively across sectors and how to effectively engage their community in addressing an identified need or opportunity through an intervention focused in creativity.
In the IAC news release, its description of Warsaw’s program is:
• Warsaw, through its Warsaw Public Arts Commission, will engage in a project to communicate the economic and community value and impact of the arts and creativity in Warsaw through an education and awareness campaign. The WPAC will leverage this project to encourage additional investments and creative output in the community.
At the end of the pilot period, the IAC and Indiana Communities Institute will assess community outcomes for a planned formal rollout of the program in 2024.
Light concluded, “The grant funds are wonderful, but more important was Warsaw was selected to participate in this pilot program through IAC. It demonstrates our community’s potential to elevate arts as an important quality-of-life issue.”