“I can’t say how I really feel”

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard from people how hard it is to “make it” in the arts. When I tell people I want to make a career out of the arts they say “oh that’s a tricky field” and that it’s “certainly not where the money is.” If you want to make money in the arts you first need to start with some money, buying supplies or instruments, renting spaces, or building a brand for yourself, it all costs money. This is typically where grants come in. 

A couple of days ago we visited an organization that provides grants for arts projects, national initiatives, and partnership agreements called the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The NEA is “an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.” ¹ It is governed by a chairman who is appointed by the president to a four-year term, as well as an advisory committee made up of 14 individuals also appointed by the president for their expertise and knowledge in the arts. As of August 2019, Mary Anne Carter is the current and 12th chairman of the NEA.

It was started by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965, beginning with a budget of over 2 million dollars. From about 1985-1995 the NEA’s budget was as high as it’s ever been, ranging from 160 million to 180 million dollars until it was abruptly cut down to 99.5 million dollars. This happened because the NEA decided to fund a piece of controversial art called “Piss Christ” by Andres Serrano.² 

This is a crucifix submerged in a vat of Serrano’s urine.

This piece of art got a lot of backlash from Christians and specifically the American Family Association, so the NEA’s budget was cut down. 

Another point of controversy in the NEA’s past is when the 5th NEA chairman John Frohnmayer vetoed a grant to Karen Finley, a performance artist advocating for women’s sexuality, for work that was “too controversial.” Finley and 3 others who were not given grants decided to sue the NEA for a violation of constitutional rights (National Endowment for the Arts v. Finley)³, and they lost. 

A photo of Karen Finley herself covered in honey. This is a part of a series that Finley did to advocate for and bring attention to women’s sexuality.

These controversies are the reason why the NEA decided to focus more on arts organizations and groups rather than, as a book snippet I read said “artists in trendy urban centers”.⁴

Visiting with the NEA was a very interesting experience. When we asked about controversies such as these, the members of the NEA wouldn’t talk about what happened, and that they don’t really fund art that could be considered controversial in any way anymore. Something that was the most striking though was what one specific woman said when she was asked what her experience was like being a civil servant. She said that despite all of the things she has sacrificed (including her voice in some instances) she feels that her job is incredibly important and she feels like she is really making a difference, or else she wouldn’t still be there. However, she wouldn’t go any further, saying “I can’t say how I really feel” 

Of course, creating controversy isn’t the only thing that the NEA does. They provide necessary funding for artists (see my first paragraph). The NEA paves a pathway for many who wouldn’t be making art today if it weren’t for the grant they received. I looked through their recent grants and I found two that were granted to organizations that some Minnesotans and especially Oles may recognize: The American Composers Forum and Cantus!⁵

This visit sparked a stirring conversation among us students. We hadn’t considered the fact that because many institutions are under the federal government, they are essentially controlled by the ideas and beliefs of the government, which means avoiding controversy and remaining “neutral.” And that, my friends, is a whole other story.