Pillar Arts (formerly Arts Alliance of Greater Bloomington) 2023 Annual Report

Our Mission

The Arts Alliance of Greater Bloomington is a member-driven organization that promotes the sustainability of the creative arts community by catalyzing communication and collective action. The Arts Alliance seeks to connect all art genres, arts organizations, and art advocates with each other, and with local businesses, tourism, and arts marketing initiatives. By facilitating education and collaboration, the Arts Alliance empowers the individual artist, and enriches the community’s vibrant arts network.

2023 Annual Report Summary

The Arts Alliance has had a year of success and growth. The organization has a very active board, an impressive advisory council of civic and arts leaders and an ever increasing number of artists and arts activities in the Arts Alliance Center.

Working with the Bloomington community, the AAGB has sponsored a mayoral candidate forum, worked consistently with the city, co-sponsored Paint Bloomington, sponsored various workshops and concerts and strengthened the Bloomington Arts Directory. With arts support funding from the Indiana Arts Commission, AAGB has contracted with Artsopolis, a national arts website development firm to redesign and strengthen the Bloomington Arts Directory.

With the Arts Alliance Center at the mall, we now support and promote the work of over 40 regional artists. AAGB continues to offer monthly artist exhibits in the Arts Alliance “flex space” and continues to collaborate with local artist organizations such as the Bloomington Watercolor Society, Upland Plein Air, Portrait Group, Artists for Climate Awareness, and the IU Jacobs School of Music.

Highlights

• Upgraded website – bloomingtonarts.org

• Upgraded Bloomington Arts Directory

• Promotion of artists and events with our bi-monthly newsletter to over 1500 recipients

• Exhibiting over 40 artists work at the Arts Alliance Center at the College Mall

• Provide space for workshops, classes, concerts and special art shows

• Features in local media i.e. Bloom Magazine and Herald Times

• Received two year support funding from the Indiana arts Commission

• Received support funding from Bloomington Arts Commission

• Collaborate with Constellation – trading space in our Arts Center for ad space in the Playbill

• Partnering with “The Hundredth Hill” and “Girls Inc.” to plan a Youth Arts Camp for
  underserved youth

• Underwriting with WFIU and WFHB

• Received funding from Psi Iota Xi to support “Paint Bloomington” which had over 100 participants

Arts Alliance Events & Activities

ARTS CLASSES

• Portrait group regular sessions
• Figurative Drawing Class
• Watercolor art workshop
• Oil painting art workshop
• Connie Shakalis Improvisation Workshop
• Artist for Climate Awareness/IU School of Music Concert
• Mary Ann Davis Workshop
• Kendall Reeves Photography Workshop
• Wyatt LeGrand Oil Painters workshop
• Rena Brouwer Watercolor Workshop
• Ann Wood Paper Tearing Workshop

ART EXHIBITS

• Opera Maya
• Upland Art Exhibit
• Climate Awareness Exhibit
• Arts and Crafts Holiday Show
• David Young & Dena Hawes Exhibit
• Rick Wilson Exhibit
• Jane Matranga FabricDesign Art Exhibit
• Paint Bloomington Finalists Exhibition

MUSIC

• Opera Maya Concert with Poetry
• Conserve Bloomington Concert
• Dear Darling Concert
• AAGB Holiday Party with Dena El Saffar ensemble
• Belly Dance Recital

MOVEMENT CLASSES

• Tai Chi
• Donna Barbrick Belly Dance Classes

MEETINGS

• Mayoral Candidate Forum – Waldron
• Meeting with Mayor John Hamilton and Holly Warren
• Advisory Council Reception
• Arts Forward
• Annual Membership Meeting
• Monthly Board Meetings
• Regular AAC Artist Meetings
• IU Council of Arts and Humanities

Board of Directors

• Henry Leck

• Donna Barbrick Carlton

• Sarah Asher

• Colleen Newbill

• Kendall Reeves

• Hiromi Yoshida

• Michael Squires

• Tom Duffy

• Danielle Bruce

• Valerie Gill

• Lily Fishleder

• Krista Detor

• Bob Appelman

• Carol Rhodes

• Xinyuan Zhang

Advisory Council

Advisors:

• Malcom Abrams

• John Armstrong

• Bob Arnove

• Babette Ballinger

• Alain Barker

• Ken Buzzard

• Patricia Cole

• Pablo Fuentes

• Tom Gallagher

• Sally Gaskill

• Gabe Gloden

• Mary Grogan

• Dena Hawes

• Ursula Kuhar

• Sara Laughlin

• Denise Lessow

• Mike McAfee

• Miah Michaelsen

• Martha Moore

• Gerard Pannekoek

• Brad Schiesser

• Irina Shishova

• (Baba) Berry Stafford

• Jaime Sweany

• Steven Versaw

• Holly Warren

• David Young