IT'S HAPPENING IN TACOMA >>>

Arts Advocacy Meeting

The Washington State Arts Alliance Foundation will host its next Arts Advocacy Meeting Wednesday, March 3 inside Visibility Center (ninth floor, 747 Market St.) in downtown Tacoma. On the agenda: Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland discusses arts and culture in Tacoma and Pierce County; reports by city/county/state and other municipal arts leaders; the latest statewide K-12 report by Lisa Jaret, program manager for the Washington State Arts Commission; and information on current status of arts-related bills during the 2010 session. 

Arts Leadership Lab

The Arts Leadership Lab Core Team is taking applications for its next 18-month professional development, peer learning and community building opportunity. According to the release, the Arts Leadership Lab "is a home for creative dialogue, learning, and networking opportunities for the emerging and current leadership of our arts and cultural sector. ALL produces regular public events that explore innovation, public issues, and best practices in the arts. The Core Team of 8-12 individuals acts as the governing body that collaborates to produce one of each of the following public events every quarter:

• Accountability and the Arts - Seminars in best practices for arts management
• Creative Conversations - Forums/panels on issues impacting arts and culture (e.g. space, technology, advocacy)
• S'PIKEd/ALL Out - Happy hour networking events

Beginning in 2010, the Core Team will also produce and host an "UnConference," a half-day of short presentations by innovators in cultural ecology."

Applications for the program are due Friday, March 5. To download the application, click here.

ARFS & CRAFTS

ARFS & CRAFTS, the annual benefit for the Prison Pet Partnership Program at the Women's Correctional Institute at Purdy and the Gig Harbor based Assistance Dog Club of Puget Sound, will be held April 15-17, 2010 at The Art Stop in downtown Tacoma. The folks behind the event seek artist pet dishes for the art show with a focus on "function, fanciful, funky, fun and fabulous" states the press release. "Each year entries range from practical put-‘em-on-the-kitchen-floor pet dishes to exquisite and artsy works of fancy."

The Art Stop will, once again, hand out the Silver Biscuit Award. Hand-crafted of sterling silver by Tacoma artist Joan Joachims, the Silver Biscuit is awarded to the artist whose bowl is voted Best of Show by visitors to ARFS & CRAFTS. In addition, a panel of celebrity judges will select The Pick of the Litter from the entries.

The pet bowls are due at The Art Stop by April 10. For more information, call The Art Stop co-owner Phyllis Harrison at 253.274.1630.