Open Arms With Grasping Fists Not A Welcoming Appearance by Joe Patti

So by now you have probably heard about the ill-advised job posting made by the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields which said they were "…seeking a director who would work not only to…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 11:12pm on February 15, 2021☆⚑

Applying For Save Our Stages Money, Keep Close Watch On The Site by Joe Patti

I am hoping that all of you who work at a performing arts venue in the United States are like me and have been getting seven or eight emails a week making you aware of a webinar on the Shutt…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 9:24pm on February 10, 2021☆⚑

What Do You Perceive As Biggest Impediment to Equity Efforts? by Joe Patti

Advisory Board for the Arts had sent out a survey on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access (DEI&A) efforts that non-profit organizations were undertaking. They released the results in …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 9:06pm on February 9, 2021☆⚑

Why Are You Asking Me On Board? by Joe Patti

A piece I wrote on diversity efforts in board recruitment appeared on ArtsHacker last week. I primarily drew the content from a piece Jim Taylor, BoardSource's vice president of leadership i…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 2:48am on February 9, 2021☆⚑

The Secret Lives Of Museum Tour Guides by Joe Patti

Long times readers know that when I was living in Ohio I had a close relationship with a local group called the Creative Cult. We did a number of projects together and I participated in the …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 7:12am on February 4, 2021☆⚑

Many Lens of Board Recruitment by Joe Patti

The upheaval of the past year in terms of public health, politics, social equity and other areas of concern have made it clear that a new operating environment will emerge, shaped by a chang…

SOURCE: artshacker.com at 1:43pm on February 3, 2021☆⚑

Reconnecting After The Highways Get Disconnected by Joe Patti

This week CityLab mentioned that the US Senate was working on funding a program to reclaim areas of communities displaced/demolished/bifurcated by highway projects as those roads are decommi…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 6:54am on February 3, 2021☆⚑

What Outcome Had The US Have Sustained Its Version Of The BBC? by Joe Patti

Back in December, Joseph Horowitz had a lengthy piece in The American Scholar about the impact of the pandemic on the arts in America. I may revisit the article in future posts, but there wa…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 12:18am on February 2, 2021☆⚑

TikTok As A New Employee Training Manual? by Joe Patti

Daniel Pink made a tweet today that I immediately bookmarked so I could go back to it. Good question to ask yourself on a Monday morning, whatever your position or role (and even if you're a…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 10:18pm on January 27, 2021☆⚑

Heavy Lifting of Leadership Occurs Before Baton Is Raised by Joe Patti

A week ago I cited a couple of posts Seth Godin had made about leadership. I and other readers were taken by his statement that leadership is a voluntary, risky and creative endeavor. Since …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 10:18pm on January 27, 2021☆⚑

Creative Expression As The Basis For Inclusive Democracy by Joe Patti

I came across a TED talk video on the importance of creative industries to national governments not five minutes after I had a conversation with staff on that very topic. Mehret Mandefro tal…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 10:18pm on January 27, 2021☆⚑

You Say Capt. Kirk Was Unqualified? That's What Made Him A Leader. by Joe Patti

In December Seth Godin made two posts titled Creativity Is An Act of Leadership. The second of the two added (Redux). I am a little leery of the trend in articles which label leaders as doin…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 7:54am on January 21, 2021☆⚑

Going Corporate by Joe Patti

Drew McManus came out with a really strong entry in his Shop Talk podcast today. He talks about transitioning from a non-profit arts career to a commercial career with guests Marc van Bree a…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 1:24am on January 20, 2021☆⚑

NEA Re-Opening Guide " You're Not Alone by Joe Patti

The National Endowment for the Arts has released their "Art of Reopening" guide. Looking through it, it doesn't substantially differ from other re-opening guides about which I have written. …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 5:24am on January 14, 2021☆⚑

Two Shows, Three Trucks by Joe Patti

I was talking with an agent for some Broadway show tours this week in order to get a sense of what things might look like for productions in Fall 2021/Spring 2022.  I was intrigued to lea…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 10:54pm on January 12, 2021☆⚑

Take The Opportunity For A Reboot by Joe Patti

Research has shown that offering free admission doesn't lead to an increase in participation by new audiences.  In most cases those that are attending are the people who normally attend, …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 10:32pm on January 11, 2021☆⚑

Lack of Perks Don't Make Or Break Donor Relations by Joe Patti

Advisory Board for the Arts just sent out a summary of four takeaways about what motivates arts donors based on interviews conducted this past November and December.. While this post is goin…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 8:42pm on January 6, 2021☆⚑

Prioritizing Cultural Practitioners To Receive Covid Vaccine by Joe Patti

NPR story came across my social media feed yesterday about how the Cherokee Nation has prioritized giving the Covid vaccine to those who are fluent in the Cherokee language.  I sought out…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 2:24am on January 6, 2021☆⚑

But Why Do People Want More Diverse, Locally Focused Stories Told? by Joe Patti

Last year (December 31, so technically) I had a post on Arts Hacker taking a look at the work LaPlaca Cohen and Slover Linett Audience Research had done interpreting the Covid edition of the…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 2:03am on January 5, 2021☆⚑

Plan For An Inclusive Post-Covid Cultural Experience by Joe Patti

In mid-December 2020, LaPlaca Cohen and Slover Linett Audience Research released an analysis of the data they collected in the Covid edition of the CultureTrack survey through the lens of ra…

SOURCE: artshacker.com at 4:17pm on December 31, 2020☆⚑

Don't Deserve Praise For Something Embarrassingly Easily And Long Overdue by Joe Patti

Yesterday Drew McManus released another episode of his Shop Talk podcast where he speaks to Kenji Bunch and Jenny Bilfield about artistic elitism. I was listening to it while painting one of…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 3:54am on December 24, 2020☆⚑

Bizarre Case of The New World Symphony by Joe Patti

Friend o' the blog, Rainer Glaap shared a video link to a session lead by Elliott Bruce Hedman, Head Design Researcher at, mPath an organization that researches how consumers engage emotiona…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 9:18pm on December 22, 2020☆⚑

They Are Serious About Play by Joe Patti

I didn't properly record the source, but last week someone tweeted a link to the LEGO Foundation's document, Creating Creators, which has the subtitle: "How can we enhance creativity in educ…

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 9:18pm on December 22, 2020☆⚑

Maybe They Could Increase Residency By Offering A Pastry Of The Month Subscripton? by Joe Patti

A little bit of amplification of my local community today. Next City ran an article on the Mill Hill artist village that is developing in one of Macon's original neighborhoods, Ft. Hawkins. …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 2:18am on December 20, 2020☆⚑

Decision Not To Grow≠Failure To Grow by Joe Patti

An article on Daily Yonder making an interesting point came across my social media feed last week.  They noted that part of the reason why rural communities are characterized as being in …

SOURCE: Butts In The Seats at 12:36am on December 16, 2020☆⚑