Artists' Quake Aid Final Report 

 

This report was published in September 2001.

Table of Contents

  • Forward
  • Executive Summary
  • Section II: Summary of the Artists' Quake Aid (AQUA) Report
  • Section III: Artist and Gallery Case Studies
  • Section IV: General Conclusions
  • Section V: Key Concerns for Artists
  • Section VI: Short Term Set of Recommendations
  • Section VII: Long Term Recommendations/Issues Raised by the Earthquake
  • Section VIII: Artists' Quake Aid Statistics
  • Section X: Studio Preparedness Earthquake Tip Sheet
  • Earthquake Preparedness Resources 

    • Foreword

     When the Nisqually earthquake hit on February 28 this year, I was at my desk. My phone began to jump, and within seconds I saw a fellow staff member dashing for the door of our one-story office building in downtown Olympia. Just minutes later, a few of us re-entered through fallen ceiling tiles, scattered paper and dark hallways. Damage to our building was minimal. We knew others weren't as fortunate.

    That Friday, just two days after the quake, I received a call from Bill Ivey, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, first to express his concern about the impact of the earthquake, then to offer some assistance. Chairman Ivey agreed to consider a request for funding for a relief project to respond to damages incurred by artists and/or arts organizations. If a little money can help, I can take a Chairman's action to forward a small amount of funding to you quickly, he told me. I promised I'd be in touch.

    In the next few days, I made a series of calls to Artist Trust and local arts agencies in the areas most affected by the Nisqually earthquake: Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle, Bellevue, Pierce and King Counties first to assess damages, then to identify any needs that might be addressed by NEA funds.

    We learned that many artists seeking emergency assistance had contacted Artist Trust. Damage had occurred throughout the Puget Sound area, with an alarming impact on artists. There had been catastrophic losses of artwork, equipment and supplies; some artists were permanently shut out of their rehearsal or studio spaces; others were relocated while repairs were being made. In the Pioneer Square district of Seattle, where nonretrofitted studio space is common, many artists were severely impacted. Damage was also reported throughout quake-affected counties.

    Just two weeks after the earthquake, Artist Trust and the Washington State Arts Commission submitted a letter requesting $25,000 from the NEA to provide relief funds to individual artists who lost work, supplies and/or studio space in the earthquake. King County Arts Commission generously agreed to match, dollar for dollar, funds provided by the NEA. When the NEA grant was confirmed, we had $50,000 for a project, named Artists' Quake Aid (AQUA), with two components:

    • A quick, thorough survey of earthquake damage to artist work spaces and arts facilities

    • A relief fund to assist individuals dealing with work-related damages due to the earthquake, available to artists in all disciplines living or working in counties affected by the quake.
    Sixty-two artists applied for the available funds: they reported a total of nearly $1.3 million in losses, including nearly $890,000 in inventory losses. To maximize the impact of the available AQUA funds, grant amounts were small ($250 to $1500); grants were presented to 48 artists working in six counties and in a variety of disciplines.

    Short term relief, long term impact

    The earthquake has complicated the artist studio space issues that were already difficult due to a changing neighborhood, uncooperative building owners and developers, and skyrocketing prices for rental space.

    - From the letter to Bill Ivey, March 2001
      Our survey of earthquake damage convinced us that the project report in this document must include preventative information to reduce damages from future disasters, and contact information to help artists find the resources they need. We are hoping this Report is a useful, proactive tool for helping to address the need for safe, affordable space for artists throughout the Puget Sound and helpful to artists and arts supporters elsewhere.

      Thanks
    From the beginning, we knew that this project must be done quickly and proficiently. Artist Trust skillfully managed this project working with WSAC, the NEA, King County Arts Commission and Seattle Arts Commission on the details, and with professional peers elsewhere in the arts community to coordinate efforts and get the word out. Matching funds from King County Arts Commission enabled us to help artists with valuable information as well as relief funding.

    This project could not have happened without the quick, collaborative, good-spirited work of that original earthquake team: Barbara Courtney, Heather Dwyer, and Jennifer West at Artist Trust; Barbara Goldstein at Seattle Arts Commission; Jim Kelly at King County Arts Commission, Marlene Buchanan at Pierce County Cultural Resources, Josie Emmons and Benjii Bittle at Tacoma Cultural Resources Division; Mary Pat Byrne at Bellevue Arts Commission; and Linda Oestreich at Olympia Arts Commission.

    Thanks, as well, to the panelists who reviewed the AQUA applications: it was a lively, compassionate group that included four Washington State artists (Sheri Cohen, Jason Huff, Shea Bajaj, Sabrina Knowles); Artist Representative Aaron Tuller of Olympia; and Cornelia Carey, Executive Director of CERF (Craft Emergency Relief Fund), headquartered in Montpelier, Vermont.

    Finally, thanks to Bill Ivey, Chairman of the NEA, for the vision and compassion behind his call last March, and his leadership that allows us to respond to these real issues of making art.

    At the Washington State Arts Commission, our mission is to "cultivate a thriving environment for creative expression and appreciation of the arts for the benefit of all."

    That work is best done together; trite, but true. The real work may be ahead, as we continue to work for that thriving environment that includes safe, affordable spaces for making art.

    Kris Tucker, Executive Director, Washington State Arts Commission