Fine Arts Commission

Skokie Fine Arts Commission April 12, 2023 Meeting Notes 1. Call to Order at 7:02 p.m. by Chairperson Pam Garbarini Present: Chairperson Pam Garbarini, Staff Representative Meredith Gioia, and Commissioners Debra Hatchett, Pramod Joshi, Judy Levan, Doris Liberman, Sonya Osseny, Pamela Sloan, Mitch Thomas, James VanOsdol, and Ellen Waxberg 2. Introduction of New Commissioner – Pramod Joshi 3. Past Projects a. SOAR Art Exhibit at Oakton College (03/02/2023-04/04/2023) i. Overall, the exhibit was a great success ii. Purchases to be made: new poster(s) with explanation of what SOAR is, additional certificates and folders, bags iii. Suggestion was made to include a comment/suggestion box at open house for parents/teachers to submit their thoughts iv. Look into issuing a press release to Skokie Review and an article on Patch v. Musicians were nice addition to open house and should be invited again. vi. Schedule Oakton space for March next year with open house during Oakton’s spring break. Shorten open house to 2 hours only. Check with teachers as to start time. (Do they want it ASAP or would they like a break) vii. Gioia will add the photographs she took to the website 4. Upcoming Projects a. October 2023 National Arts and Humanities Month i. Proclamation - Gioia shared a proclamation (included) for the commission to review. All agreed that it was comprehensive. Suggestion to perhaps add how the arts and humanities help us find our common bonds through collaboration and communication ii. Google Form for Outreach - Reminder to commissioners that the Google form is open for them to add their suggestions of arts organizations to reach out to iii. Discussion as to whether or not scheduling a culture crawl or mini gallery walk would be warranted. Commission agreed that we are simply publicizing what others are organizing not doing the organizing ourselves. If something happens organically, we may promote it. Maybe encourage Skokie Swifters to do a public art run or something? Reach out to Skokie Senior Services about them planning a field trip. #610446  iv. Posters are being ordered. Important for the venues and businesses to have something to advertise their participation. Franchises may not post but many of the smaller individually owned businesses may. b. Spring/Summer 2023 Skokie Through the Lens i. Theme Selection - Poll winner was “Delighting in Our Diversity” ii. Committee Selection - Commissioners Levan, Waxberg and Hatchett volunteered to be on the selection committee c. October Storytelling Event i. Choose date(s) and location - Discussion centered around whether to hold it at Take Flight again or to explore a larger venue like Devonshire or Skokie Theater. Concessions are now available at both. Question as to whether the size would be too larger and lose some of the intimacy. Was part of the draw the “cool factor” of a performance in a distillery/more of a night out? ii. Fundraiser for Skokie Community Fund? – Concern was expressed as to the legality of charging for tickets. Need to check with General Counsel. Could we simply accept donations at the door/pass the hat? iii. Committee Selection – Commissioners Thomas, Liberman, VanOsdol, and Sloan volunteered to be on the planning committee. 5. New Business – No new business 6. Adjournment – Commissioner Lieberman motioned we adjourn and Commissioner Levan seconded. Meeting was adjourned at 8:25 p.m. Upcoming meeting: May 10, 2023 Skokie Village Hall 5127 Oakton Street Skokie, IL Conference Rooms D&E #610446 ARTS & HUMANITIES MONTH Village of Skokie, Illinois Proclamation By George Van Dusen, Mayor of Skokie WHEREAS, the arts and humanities are the embodiment of all things beautiful and entertaining in the world -- the enduring record of human achievement; and WHEREAS, the arts and humanities enhance every aspect of life in Skokie -- improving our economy, enriching our civic life, driving tourism, and exerting a profound positive influence on the education of our children; and WHEREAS, arts education research shows that the arts help to foster discipline, creativity, imagination, self-expression, and problem-solving skills while also helping to develop a heightened appreciation of beauty and cross-cultural understanding; and WHEREAS, we use the humanities -- history, literature, philosophy -- to explore what it means to be human; and WHEREAS, the arts and humanities play a unique and intrinsically valuable role in the lives of our families, our communities, and our state; and WHEREAS, the month of October has been recognized as National Arts and Humanities Month by thousands of arts and cultural organizations, communities, and states across the country, as well as by the White House and Congress for more than two decades: THEREFORE, I, George Van Dusen, Mayor of Skokie, Illinois, do hereby proclaim October 2023 as SKOKIE ARTS & HUMANITIES MONTH and call upon all citizens to celebrate and promote the arts and culture in the Village of Skokie. #610446