Author Archives: Arlene Goldbard

About Arlene Goldbard

Arlene Goldbard is a writer and consultant focusing on the intersection of culture, politics and spirituality. See her talks and writings at her Web site: www.arlenegoldbard.com. Her most recent books include New Creative Community: The Art of Cultural Development (New Village Press, November 2006), Community, Culture and Globalization (Rockefeller Foundation 2002) and Clarity, a novel. Her essays have been published widely, and she speaks frequently. She has provided advice and counsel to hundreds of community organizations, independent media groups, funders and policymakers. She is writing a new book on art’s public purpose. She serves as President of the Board of Directors of The Shalom Center.

Harmony: How to Build Relationships With Non-Arts Groups

Note to readers: This article is part of the WomenArts Harmony Project. Arlene Goldbard has interviewed ten women artists who have been successful at building collaborations with non-arts organizations, and she is presenting their advice for other artists. The full series of articles is posted in the Harmony section of our website. Start With People You […]

Harmony: Building Community Trust – Part 2 (9/23/11)

Jawole Willa Jo Zollar & Rene Yung In this installment of the Harmony Project News Arlene Goldbard interviews choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and multi-media artist Rene Yung about their successful collaborations with community partners. Without a foundation of trust, partnerships can’t work. How do you establish that firm grounding for a collaboration? It takes […]

Harmony: Building Community Trust – Part 1 (9/8/11)

Marty Pottenger & the City Employees of Portland In this and the next installment of the Harmony Project News, Arlene Goldbard introduces three more women artists who have had successful community collaborations: Marty Pottenger, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, and Rene Yung. Previous newsletters have touched on the range of collaborative projects and the reasons for […]

Harmony: Reasons for Artists and Activists to Collaborate – Part 2 (8/19/11)

The previous Harmony Project blog explored two of the many reasons that artists and activists collaborate. This week Arlene Goldbard interviews Sarah Crowell, the Artistic Director of Destiny Arts, and Donna Porterfield, Managing Director of Roadside Theater, about more ways that artist-activist collaborations can multiply impact. Choreographer Sarah Crowell: Creating Opportunities for Public Dialogue – […]

Harmony: Reasons for Women Artists and Activists to Collaborate – Part 1 (8/5/11)

Since most activist groups struggle with limited time and resources, it can be challenging to persuade them to include artists in their work. This week, Arlene Goldbard talks to filmmaker Debra Chasnoff and visual artist Beth Grossman to illustrate some of the benefits of collaborating. Filmmaker Debra Chasnoff: Putting a Human Face on Issues – […]

Harmony: The Meaning of Collaboration

By Arlene Goldbard The meaning of collaboration ought to be straightforward: its Latin root means “working together,” plain and simple. But in practice, artistic collaboration is a continuum. At one extreme, it’s a total partnership between an artist and organization, in which a project’s style, content—even the arts media used—are jointly conceived, evolving through ongoing […]

Harmony: Introducing the WomenArts Cultural Partnership Project

The Harmony Project is a bold new addition to WomenArts’ ongoing efforts to bring the full power of women’s artistic creativity to the struggle for women’s rights and social justice. This is an exciting time for women, since there are so many organizations that are advocating for our rights. What would happen if those groups […]