Prominent Writers and Cultural Leaders Explore The Creative Mind: Artists and Scholars as Public Citizens

Washington, DC - Acclaimed playwright David Henry Hwang, author of FOB, M Butterfly, and Golden Child; Mary Schmidt Campbell, Dean of the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and former New York City Commissioner of Cultural Affairs; Lincoln Center Festival Director Nigel Redden, and Verlyn Klinkenborg, of the New York Times, will discuss the relationship between artists, scholars and society at a public forum sponsored by the Center for Arts and Culture on Tuesday, April 6, 1999 from 3.30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the National Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW in Washington, DC. This free public event is the second in the Center’s spring series of public programs examining critical issues in the cultural sector.

Do Americans feel that artists “speak truth to power” or that they have given themselves undeserved license? What is the role of the artist and the scholar in a democratic society? What is the American view of individual creativity? All the speakers bring impressive qualifications to discuss these questions and have written about them for years. Redden, for example, faced them during the recent controversy over the production of the Chinese opera The Peony Pavilion at the Lincoln Center Festival. Conversation between the speakers and audience will provide an opportunity to assess the impact of scholars and artists and to reflect on our lives American citizens.

Calling the Question, a series of public programs addressing policy issues in the cultural sector, provides forums for a wide range of views. The Center is offering three programs this spring: Beyond Grants: Federal Cultural Leadership, which was held March 18, 1999; New Trends in Cultural Philanthropy will be held Monday, May 3, 1999.

The Center for Arts and Culture is an independent, non-partisan, national institution based in Washington, D.C. that explores new policy directions in American artistic and cultural life. Through research, convening and communication, it promotes intelligent and informed debate on those dimensions of American life where culture and policy meet. “The Calling the Question series is an important first step for policymakers, scholars, practitioners in the cultural field to come together and address the significant challenges we face in the years ahead,” said Center for Arts and Culture Executive Director Gigi Bradford.

The cultural sector will be at the center of a global transformation in the 21st century. This sector embraces arts and humanities and the support they receive from government and the private sector. It includes both commercial and non-profit arts industries and the laws that govern them. It encompasses the contribution of artists and scholars to democratic society. In upcoming Calling the Question programs the Center will continue to examine the changing face of this dynamic field. In Fall 1999 it will present three programs on the impact of globalization.

The Calling the Question series is made possible with support from the Nathan Cummings Foundation and is presented in collaboration with the National Building Museum.