Art And Survival: Editorial

The struggles between diverse people and communities over the allocation of resources, power and control in the arts is nothing new. What may be new in America is that the tradition of struggle and integrity that sustained our artistic cultures in the past seems to be waning with each successive generation. Given this reality, we must come to terms with the fact that too many of us have equated the acquisition of capital with self-determination. And perhaps unwittingly, we have raised too many of our children to think like this. As a consequence, we can bake a whole pie, and yet we are still willing to sell it to a system that makes its profit by disenfranchising the very hands that baked the pie.

We welcome you to the inaugural issue of ArtandSurvival.com. Keep in mind that we are a not-for-profit collective of concerned individual artists, arts entrepreneurs and critical cultural thinkers who are simply trying to create the context to improve the quality of life in our communities.

For almost twenty years media scholars and cultural critics have sounded the alarm about the negative consequences that will flow to our society as a result of the concentration of power and control in the culture industries. At ArtandSurvival.com, we intend to serve as an educational resource for directing our readers to the work of many scholars and other critical thinkers who are examining these issues.

Recent history reveals that the majority of the economically viable mechanisms for the mass distribution of cultural information and ideas remain concentrated in the hands of an elite ruling class. Those of us who are not co-opted by this elite ruling class are engaged in a struggle that will play a crucial role in determining what kind of world we will inhabit in the decades to come.

I am thinking particularly about our young people who are facing a future in which almost every human experience has been colonized by the commercial imperative. One thing we can do to help ourselves is teach each other how to combat the forces that seek to destroy our cultural and economic self-determination. In our Issues & Action section, we begin our discourse in this area by examining the plight of African American recorded music at the beginning of the 21st Century.

With new eyes we can foster a new attitude in the arts community.

"I think that the artists that are alive today should not be fundamentally asking the question, 'How do we increase our market share?' ... The question that artists should be asking today is, "How do I give to a culture so desperately in need, that which I am inspired to give, whatever the consequences?" says psychologist Michael L. Penn. (See In Dialogue: On the Interface between Psychology and Culture).

British-born and London-based pianist/composer Julian Joseph shared with us the circumstances, which led to him deciding as a child to pursue a career as a jazz musician. He says, "If I would hear a big luscious chord or orchestration on the radio or television that I liked, when I asked what it was, I would always be told that Jazz had something to do with it." The answer to a child's question resulted in an exemplary career for this artist who maintains the conviction that it is "so important to keep the Jazz in Jazz." (See our Artist In Focus by Kim Berry.)

Sometimes a good way to bring a point home is with a visual aid. We are pleased to review and recommend two educational videos which put certain issues in perspective . Contributing writer David K. Pride reviews PBS's Frontline video entitled, The Merchants of Cool and the Media Education Foundation's video Money For Nothing: Behind the Business of Pop Music. If there was ever a reason not to believe the hype, these two videotapes will break it down for you. (See Observations: Learn To Unlearn. See also, Resources: a link to Who Owns What Media?)

In our first year, we plan to publish three editions of this journal. We also intend to periodically update each edition with relevant information. Thereafter, we will explore the feasibility of publishing more frequent editions. Yes, we plan to grow!

Please spend some time at our site and tell other people about us.

We also welcome your inquiries. (See Contact/Inquiries.)

Keith R. McKinley