The chair of the National Endowment for the Arts says South Dakotans need to share success stories about robust local arts projects with the rest of the country. NEA head Jane Chu is in Sioux Falls on a visit to explore federally-supported projects and speak to local advocates.
Chu says she encounters support for government investments in the arts, but she says it’s necessary that people talk about projects that prove communities benefit from nurturing arts programs.
Chu says one example is Meldrum Park in Sioux Falls. She says one N-E-A grant two years ago helped 8th graders in the Whittier neighborhood transform a barren wall that was often vandalized into a major public mural.
"So with the support of the Sioux Falls Arts Council and the City of Sioux Falls and the Department of Parks and Recreations, this mural brought together 200 neighborhood residents and students as they researched and designed, and they painted the mural in collaboration with professional artists, and the National Endowment for the Arts celebrates this kind of connection," Chu says.
Chu says more people are participating in the arts today, but the way they experience the arts is changing. She says more people are going beyond attending traditional concerts and galleries to embrace emerging arts including electronic media.
NEA Chair Jane Chu has been on the job for about three months. She grew up in Arkansas, but Chu lived in Sioux Falls for a few years about 25 years ago.