In an effort to reach out and find out about Kentucky arts agencies and artists “Three Questions” will be an occasional feature of this column.

This first three questions went to Emily Moses of the Kentucky Art Council about its upcoming Creative Industry Summit, Dec. 6 in Mount Sterling. 

BM: What is it that has motivated the Kentucky Arts Council to focus on the topics of race, equity, access, diversity and inclusion in the arts?  

EM: The Kentucky Arts Council wants to start a long-term conversation with Kentuckians about race, equity, access, diversity and inclusion in the arts to help guide the agency’s work to break down barriers to arts access for the people of Kentucky. The Creative Industry Summit, which is an annual event, offers the perfect venue to begin this work. 

The Kentucky Arts Council has been in service to the state for more than 50 years. Our mission is to foster environments for the people of Kentucky to value, participate in, and benefit from the arts.  

This isn’t the arts council’s first foray into discussing these issues. In fact, equity and diversity are among our guiding principles — we believe that arts programs and services should be available to all Kentuckians. They should be available to all people — but that doesn’t mean they always are. It’s a fact of life in the world we live in that there are barriers to accessing programs and services of all sorts, and that includes the arts. The National Endowment for the Arts has researched barriers to accessing the arts and among those are issues related to race, income, age and location, just to name a few.  

This year’s summit is designed to provide a unique framework for discussion. Let’s be real, when we discuss issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, we often are talking about sensitive subject matter, we’re talking about real issues that real people face. The speakers and sessions we have lined up at the summit will provide a safe and comfortable forum to discuss these sensitive topics. I hope we have a great turnout because I believe participants will really benefit from it. I would encourage any person who is interested in discussing these topics to  attend the Summit. Yes, it will be arts focused, but there is context for applying the conversations and the work to other aspects of community life. I also want to say that our work in this area is supported by the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, and we’re thrilled to have their participation in and support of the Summit. 

BM: What are your expectations for this year’s Kentucky Creative Industry Summit?

EM: This is the sixth year the arts council has hosted an annual summit for the Commonwealth’s artists, arts organizations, community arts stakeholders, and others interested in arts and the creative economy in Kentucky. Each year we have the summit in a different Kentucky city and it will be great to be in Mount Sterling. People who have attended past Summits have really enjoyed the networking and interactive workshop opportunities. Attendees really have ample time to talk with their peers and learn about things happening across the state. In addition to the larger summit theme, we have several workshops planned that will allow artists, creative entrepreneurs and arts organizations to examine their own work and effectiveness. There are workshops on building audiences through social media, pricing your artwork, advocating for yourself and the arts, and business finance. Those interested in community arts topics can learn about a program to assist with growing your local creative economy, and how folk and traditional arts resources can improve community outcomes. You can see the full agenda and find registration information on our website at artscouncil.ky.gov.  

BM: What do you anticipate the results of this Creative Industry Summit to be and will there be a final report that summarizes the summit’s results? 

EM: There won’t be a final report on the Summit, no. In relation to the summit’s themes of race, equity, access, diversity and inclusion, it’s important to note that the event will be a starting point to discuss these topics with the state arts agency. Based in part on feedback from the day, we will have some direction on how to continue the conversation through 2020, which is the overall plan. The summit will offer the first opportunity for people to get involved. However, I do believe in the future we will have information to share based on what we learn from the long-term work. Overall, I anticipate that we’ll have a great Summit with lots of wonderful discussion and learning opportunities for Kentuckians.

More about the summit, costs and agenda, are available at at artscouncil.ky.gov.

Bill McCann is a playwright, poet, flash fiction writer, and teacher who writes about arts events and personalities. Reach him at wmccann273@gmail.com.