Painting the town red

Emotions are running high as artists and merchants prepare for what will likely be the last ArtWalk of its kind in Ventura. It’s been more than a decade since the city of Ventura made the fortuitous decision to brand itself “California’s New Art City,” creating staffing positions dedicated to arts planning and funding, not only to provide a hospitable environment for the existing community of artists but also to fertilize it with the hopes of growing a serious tourist destination that would ultimately yield a cash crop.

There is anecdotal and statistical evidence aplenty to support the success of this strategy, and ArtWalk, the city’s flagship event, is a big cog in the economic engine; yet by most accounts, the unconverted abound. One man at a recent City Council meeting insisted local artists should get “real jobs.”

Michele Chapin, owner of Stoneworks Studios on Ventura Avenue and an ArtWalk participant since its inception 17 years ago, is offended by this attitude. She believes artists and their contribution to the city’s economy are misunderstood and undervalued.

The city voted last month to cut 50 percent of the ArtWalk’s $106, 477 budget and re-route half of ArtWalk coordinator Robin Elander’s responsibilities to other areas of cultural affairs. What this means is that if ArtWalk — which happens this weekend in downtown and the west end of Ventura — is to continue, the community will have to fill the gap. Elander, who has held the position for six years, feels this will ultimately benefit the event and the city.

“I think we’ll be able to grow this stronger,” she says. “I think we’re going to be in good shape.”

It could be wishful thinking, but the fact is that similar events in other cities are not city-staffed and –managed. They are community coordinated. While Elander, who will leave for a six-month unpaid sabbatical in June to travel the world, handles nearly every detail associated with the event, from marketing to security to merchant relations, she also depends on 50-75 volunteers to make it run smoothly.

It’s a far cry from the early days of ArtWalk when Donna Granata (while she was conceptualizing Focus on the Masters, now one of the county’s leading arts nonprofits) had the reins for more than four years as a part-time contractor. Granata believes coordinating the ArtWalk does require a full-time, dedicated manager. “For ArtWalk to be at its best, it takes a lot of coordination to stay on top of all the artists . . . encouragement, technical assistance,” says Granata. “I see it as both an art event and a business.”

Over the years, the event has nearly tripled in attendance, bringing an estimated 30,000 to Ventura’s cultural district to shop, eat, be entertained and, yes, buy art. Downtown merchants and restaurants benefit greatly from ArtWalk but art is the heart of the event and purchasing it, according to Granata, is key to keeping the city’s vision intact.

“We all run to the mall for a little gift,” she says, “but we can shift the mindset to more handmade, [items] that only the artist can provide. We’re talking grass roots support to maintain what we’ve all built up over the years.”

Though Chapin, who carves fairly large sculptures out of stone, once sold $30,000 worth of her work during one ArtWalk, it’s not uncommon for artists to sell nothing. But when Chapin’s sweat equity and monetary contributions are factored in, it may be a case of getting back what you put in. Her studio is one of the most popular stops on the ArtWalk, where her gallery space and garden accommodate more than a dozen artist booths, live music and a gourmet buffet that she painstakingly prepares and pays for. Chapin spends an average of $2,000 per ArtWalk in addition to her $125 participation fee. Contrary to what some naysayers have implied, she and other Ventura artists are not looking for handouts from the city.

“The artists are who make the ArtWalk,” she says. “The artists chip in their own cash to pay for [related expenses] and the city reaps the benefits. They all get tax revenue. We’re paying for putting it on.”

Chapin, Granata and Elander agree that part of the problem with funding the ArtWalk is the fact that participation is not mandatory. Therefore, a good number of downtown merchants opt out, even though most of them receive some kind of payoff, whether it’s increased sales or increased visibility. This is especially true for downtown restaurants, which are typically packed during ArtWalk.

Zoey’s Café and Loft owner Steve Hogansan, who sponsors a live music stage for ArtWalk, appreciates what it does for his business. “We look forward to ArtWalk because of the increased foot traffic,” he says. “It’s definitely one of our better days of the year.” In an attempt to even the playing field, Elander has been working with the Downtown Ventura Organization (DVO) to create a way for restaurants to help. Since restaurants don’t often make ideal venues for viewing art during an event, Elander and the DVO hope to help restaurants hold fundraisers throughout the year, with proceeds going into a DVO fund set aside for the ArtWalk.

While everyone would like to see the DVO play a big role in the ArtWalk, it’s another entity whose future is uncertain. City funding for the DVO and the salary of its executive director Rob Edwards, ends June 30. Unless other funding becomes available, potentially via a property-based improvement district (P-BID) currently undergoing an approval process, the DVO will cease to function at its current capacity.

Regardless of who steps up to the plate, the fact remains that for the ArtWalk to continue being produced the way visitors, artists and business owners have come to expect, it will require a concerted effort from the community.

Granata thinks community involvement is a great idea but warns that people are not prepared for what the job really entails. “It’s going to be a challenging transition. I don’t think people really realize how much is involved to make it go smoothly.”

Considering that the City of Ventura leans hard on the arts for its cultural identity, which translates to dollars spent in the downtown cultural district by locals and tourists, nixing arts funding, despite the current economic climate, is, to many who are involved, like tossing out the baby with the bathwater.

We have a good idea how the arts in general impact the city economically but to date, no studies have been done to quantify ArtWalk’s impact. While there are no hard numbers to support the claim, Elander says some businesses claim it’s their biggest night of the year. This weekend she hopes to get a better idea of exactly how the city is benefiting from ArtWalk when she hands out questionnaires to artists, merchants and visitors. Elander says the city council has been extremely positive about ArtWalk, but it’s forced to make tough decisions of late. “They really have to be particular about how they spend the money,” she says. It’s not that they don’t care but that they need more information.

Despite the city’s support of the arts, the fact is something has to give. Possibly one of the biggest disconnects for people in understanding why the arts are not expendable when pitted against essential services like police and firefighting, is that revenue generated from the arts pays for those services. “It’s not an us vs. them situation,” says Granata. And the money the arts puts into the coffer comes from many sources that are not obvious to the public, such as large grants which are then used to patronize local businesses for things like printing, graphic design and office supplies. “It’s one of the few places in the
city budget that has a quantifiable income.”

Granata is moved by the hardships we find ourselves encountering, but stresses the role the arts play in cushioning the fall. “As we enter in this uncharted territory — three sides around me, my neighbors have walked away from their homes — art allows us to endure,” she says. “It helps us find our bearings it feeds and nurtures our souls. It’s essential that we maintain a healthy art community if for no other reason than to keep everyone from falling into the abyss.”   

ArtWalk, Saturday and Sunday, April 25 and 26, in downtown Ventura. For a complete guide to artists, galleries and entertainment please go to pages 22-23.

michel@vcreporter.com