A project of HERE
MADE HERE is a documentary series and website focusing on performing artists based in New York City. A collage of intimate interviews, performances and behind-the-scenes footage, MADE HERE mirrors the rich diversity of the artists and communities they serve. The website has more than doubled initial projections, with over 23,000 unique visitors from 77 countries.
The first season was launched in May 2010, and by the end of September, had released 15 short episodes featuring 40 artists and covering five major issues: Creative Real Estate, Day & Night Jobs, Family Balance, Activism and Technology. Season Two rolled out from March through July 2011 with 28 additional artists and three episodes each month on: Identity, Creative Practice, Money, Lifework, and Home. Season Three will be from April through June 2013 with 25 additional artists and three episodes each month on: Art & Commerce, Criticism, and Health. The website provides a platform for audiences to offer feedback on the episodes, artists to share and discover resources, and communities to engage on the issues. In addition, each issue is accompanied by a monthly live screening and panel event. MADE HERE is supported by a 2009 Rockefeller Cultural Innovation Fund award with renewed funding for Seasons Three and Four. Additional support was provided by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the New Generations Program administered by Theatre Communications Group.
HERE has been a premier arts organization in NYC and a leader in the field of new, hybrid performance work since 1993. Under the leadership of Founding Artistic Director Kristin Marting and Producing Director Kim Whitener, HERE has served over 12,000 emerging to mid-career artists developing work that does not fit a conventional programming agenda. Work presented at HERE has garnered 14 OBIE awards, including the 2009 Ross Wetzsteon Award, an OBIE grant for artistic achievement, five Drama Desk nominations, four NY Innovative Theatre Awards, an Edwin Booth Award and a Pulitzer Prize nomination. HERE proudly supports artists at all stages in their careers through full productions, artist residency programs, festivals and subsidized performance and rehearsal space. Work at HERE is curated based on the strength and uniqueness of the artist’s vision. HERE’s Artist Residency Program (HARP) provides development, commissions and full production for 15-18 artists over one-to-three years. HERE is located at 145 Sixth Avenue, one block below Spring Street. For more info, http://visit www.here.org.
Kristin Marting is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of HERE and a director of hybrid work based in NYC. At HERE, she cultivates artists and programs all events for two performance spaces for an annual audience of 30,000. Under her leadership, HERE has garnered 16 OBIE awards, 2 OBIE grants for artistic achievement, an Edwin Booth Award, five Drama Desk nominations, two Berrilla Kerr Awards, four NY Innovative Theatre Awards and a Pulitzer Prize nomination. She was recently named a nytheatre.com Person of the Year and honored with a BAX10 Award. She lectures at various universities and serves on grant panels for various agencies. She graduated from NYU with honors in 1988.
Kim Whitener joined HERE as Producing Director in February 2007. She works in partnership with Artistic Director Kristin Marting to co-curate and co-produce HERE’s performance programs and activities. HERE supports the work of mid-career artists working in hybrid forms through commissions, developmental activities, and fully produced works as part of the HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP), and presents Visiting Artist works through its presenting programs. Ms. Whitener has also been an independent producer working with a diverse range of artists in the contemporary theater, dance-theater, and multi-media worlds, including The Builders Association, Big Dance Theater, Martha Clarke, among others. Previously, Ms. Whitener was Managing Director of The Wooster Group.
Tanya Selvaratnam is a producer, writer, theater artist, and activist. Since 2008, she has also been the Communications and Special Projects Officer for the Rubell Family Collection. Recent film productions include Mickalene Thomas’s HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, Catherine Gund’s WHAT’S ON YOUR PLATE?, Chiara Clemente’s OUR CITY DREAMS and the Webby Award-winning BEGINNINGS. As a theater artist, Tanya has performed around the world in shows by The Wooster Group, The Builders Association, Jay Scheib and many others; appeared in films and video installations by Carrie Mae Weems, John Malpede, Sharon Hayes, Andrea Geyer, David Michalek, and Jennifer Reeves; been a fellow at Yaddo and Blue Mountain Center; and a guest actor at New Dramatists, Lincoln Center Directors Lab, Voice & Vision Theater, and the Institute on Arts and Civic Dialogue. As an activist, she has worked with the World Health Organization, Ms. Foundation, NGO Forum on Women, Third Wave Foundation, and Groundswell Community Mural Project. Her book, THE BIG LIE, is forthcoming from Prometheus Books in Winter 2014. about.me/tselvar
contact: tanya@here.org
Chiara Clemente is a film director who explores identity, cultural contrast, and the creative process. In 2000 she directed her first art documentary for RAI in Italy. Chiara continued to film and collaborate with artists, and in 2005, she started making her first feature documentary, Our City Dreams, following five women artists (Nancy Spero, Marina Abramovic, Kiki Smith, Ghada Amer and Swoon) who live and work in New York City. Critically-acclaimed, Our City Dreams premiered at New York City’s Film Forum in February 2009, screened in more than 30 cities worldwide, and was broadcast on the Sundance Channel. Since making her feature Chiara has directed for Saatchi and Saatchi, T Magazine of The New York Times, Levi’s, Apple, Wieden + Kennedy and Persol. Most recently she has created and directed two seasons of Beginnings, an original short film series for the Sundance Channel, which won a Webby Award in 2012. www.chiaraclemente.com
Russell Greene is a New York film editor of seven feature films as well as numerous commercials, short films and promotional videos. His most recent films include Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (Venice Film Festival and SXSW) and Ordinary Miracles: New York’s Photo League. In addition to editing, he also wrote and directed the short film Easy Street, winner of six awards for Best Short Film on the 2012 festival circuit. He served as First Assistant Editor on several additional films including the Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-winning The Betrayal and the Sundance Award-winning Patti Smith: Dream of Life. He is currently editing a feature doc on the legendary Coney Island restaurant Nathan’s Famous. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two children.
Heather Greene is a New York-based producer that works in Feature and Documentary Film, Television, and Live Events. She has been a part of numerous and varied projects such as the live shows and film projects of Fischerspooner and Vanessa Beecroft, Vice’s “Guide To Travel”, the television series "How's Your News?”, the Sundance web series "Beginnings", and documentary features “Of All The Things” and “What’s On Your Plate?” to name just a few. Heather lives with her husband and two sons in Brooklyn, NY.
Karina is a New York-based producer and filmmaker, whose projects include an original web series, an interactive online documentary series, promos, how-to videos, and event videography. She has produced, shot, and edited videos for Howcast.com, Downtown Community Television, 13 Playwrights Inc., EmcArts, art.party.theater.company, and is the Associate Producer of "Flag Football," a feature documentary about the journey of four teams in the National Gay Flag Football League to Gay Bowl X. Currently, Karina is the Online Cultural Producer at EmcArts, Inc. Prior to joining EmcArts, she was a producer for Season One of the documentary series "MADE HERE: Performing Artists on Work and Life" for HERE, where she also served as General Manager/Associate Producer from 2008 to 2011. Prior to HERE, Karina served as General Manager for 13 Playwrights, Inc., Management Associate for Liz McCann/Tony Awards Productions, and Producing Assistant for Carole Shorenstein Hays Productions. Karina has an MFA in Theater Management and Producing from Columbia University, where she wrote her thesis on the strategic use of online tools and technologies for arts organizations. She holds a BA from Harvard College.
SEASONS THREE AND FOUR ONLY
Camera: Omar Mullick
Assistant Camera: Jorge Arzac
Sound Mixer: Richard Levengood, Joshua Tucker, Coleman Wenner
Assistant Editor: Erin Taylor Kennedy
Trailer and Graphics: Alex Meillier and Tanya Ager Meillier
Website Manager: Trevor Martin
Research & Outreach Associate: Kelsey Ryan
Theme Song: Sxip Shirey
SEASON TWO ONLY
Assistant Producer: Erin Taylor Kennedy
Camera: Frank Stanley
Sound Mixer: David Pruger, Jarett Livingston
Assistant Editor: Erin Taylor Kennedy
Website Manager: Matthew de Leon
Research & Outreach Associate: Cassie Wagler
Theme Song: Reggie Watts
Additional Music: Moby
SEASON ONE ONLY
Camera: Miklos Buk, Theo Stanley
Sound Mixer: David Pruger, Michael Reilly, Christopher Reifeiss
Assistant Editor: Cat Tyc, Kelly Bray
Production Interns: Debby Brand, Brian Bauman
Theme Song: Reggie Watts
Additional Music: Moby
Art Direction & Design
Open
New York, NY
Design & Production
Rich Watts
Brooklyn, NY
SEASON THREE: Joey Arias, Arthur Aviles, Eisa Davis, Mohammed Fairouz, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill T Jones, Cherry Jones, Mia Katigbak, Lisa Kron, Ethan Lipton, Carolina Penafiel, Charles Rice-Gonzalez, Sxip Shirey, Elizabeth Streb, Clyde Vanletin, Reggie Watts
SEASON TWO: Jen Abrams, Kahlil Almustafa, Thomas Bradshaw, John Collins, Brendan Coyle, Amanda Curtis, Dana Edell, Oskar Eustis, Miguel Gutierrez, Joan Jonas, Aaron Landsman, Elizabeth LeCompte, Young Jean Lee, Kate D. Levin, Sheila Lewandowski, Abby Marcus, Qui Nguyen, Brian Rogers, Mildred Ruiz-Sapp, Steven Sapp, Betty Shamieh, Black-Eyed Susan, Chandra Thomas, Basil Twist, Kate Valk, Reggie Watts, Natasha Williams, Caroline Woolard
SEASON ONE: Moe Angelos, Arthur Aviles, Jess Barbagallo, Anne Bogart, Wally Cardona, Hai-Ting Chinn, Ping Chong, Gabri Christa, Chinese Theatre Works, Toni Dove, Yehuda Duenyas, James Tigger! Ferguson, Kuang-Yu Fong, Ximena Garnica, Roselee Goldberg, Ain Gordon, David Gordon, Miranda Hardy, Mikéah Ernest Jennings, Melanie Joseph, Ben Kerrick, Mari Kimura, Peter Ksander, Taylor Mac, Kristin Marting, Jennifer Miller, Paul D. Miller, Shige Moriya, Julie Atlas Muz, Erin Orr, Vernon Reid, Laine Rettmer, Charles Rice-Gonzalez, Rokafella, Elizabeth Streb, Valda Setterfield, Xiaojun Song, Charlie Todd, Kate Valk, Marianne Weems, Jennifer Wright Cook, Ying Zhang
A.R.T./New York
Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance
Brooklyn Arts Council
Brooklyn Arts Exchange
The Chocolate Factory
Council on the Arts & Humanities for Staten Island
The Field
Harlem Arts Alliance
LaGuardia Performing Arts Center
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council
New York Theater Workshop
Joe's Pub
Queens Council on the Arts
Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden
Anne Bogart
Thomas Bradshaw
Una Chaudhuri
Boo Froebel
Elinor Fuchs
Roselee Goldberg
Frank Hentschker
Jay Scheib
Mac Wellman
MADE HERE needs your support so we can continue capturing the lives of performing artists. Every donation helps us expand the project to more issues, episodes, artists, contributors, and audiences.
For questions or information on corporate sponsorship, contact info@madehereproject.org.
MADE HERE is supported by a 2009 Rockefeller Cultural Innovation Fund award.
Welcome to the third issue of Season 2! MADE HERE explores the impact of $$$ on the lives of performing artists. The first episode explores the concept of the value of artists: are artists recognized as legitimate members of the workforce? Then, we hear about business strategies artists have developed to support their work. Finally, artists share the strange and sometimes hilarious things they have done to raise money for their projects.
The three episodes for this issue are: Value, Strategy, and Getting It.
Click for relevant news, organizations, and research.
Give us a personal example of when you felt your work as an artist was valued or not valued. What is the strangest thing you have done to raise money for your projects?
Submit a resourceNot only do artists need to be creative with their work – they need to be creative in how they fund it. An artist’s financial strategy is shaped by their personality, preferences, personal philosophies, and by the work itself. Sometimes the strategy is a space – somewhere you can always come back to. And sometimes it is a faith in the bounty of the universe.
NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman on supply and demand in the nonprofit arts sector.
Calling All Artists, Whoever You AreWall St. Journal article on the challenges of identifying working artists for census purposes.
Polly Carl on perceptions of scarcity and abundance in theatre.
The Arts, The Work and the Gift EconomyFrom Culturebot, an essay on arts funding and “gatekeepers” of the arts.
Why Should We Pay Artists More?This Culturebot blog questions the economics of art-making and whether artists should be paid more.
Accusations Of Fraud In Chase Community Giving Contest On FacebookHuffington Post article on the controversy surrounding Chase Bank’s Community Giving contest.
Massive cutbacks in arts funding by US companies, governmentsAn article about the calamities of US arts funding and where cuts are being felt.
Living the Starving Artist LifeAn article in the Gothamist with advice on living as an artist in New York.
To MFA or not to MFA?Examining whether or not MFA theatre programs are worth the time and cost.
Fleeing ArtistsFrom Crains New York Business an article on how many artists are fleeing New York in such of a realistic and affordable lifestyle.
Jazz Beyond Jazz - Arts funding disparities show philanthropists' prioritiesAn article on how smaller organizations can suffer when it comes to philanthropy.
New York Times - Arts Groups Use Twitter to Compete for GrantLeading arts organizations feel driven to compete on Twitter for grants.
Military Marching BandsNPR reports on the amount of money spent every year on military marching bands.
Art WorkA national conversation about art, work and economics.
Successful Fundraising for Arts Cultural OrganizationsInsights into today's best fundraising strategies for arts and cultural organizations from fundraising experts Karen Brooks Hopkins of the Brooklyn Academy of Music and Carolyn Stolper Friedman of the Contemporary Museum of Art in Chicago.
National nonprofit organization that supports artists across disciplines with financial and advisory support.
The Foundation CenterLeading national nonprofit service organization that connects grantmakers, philanthropists and nonprofits.
A bi-monthly magazine and valuable news source for charity leaders, fundraisers, and grant-makers in the US.
Grantmakers in the ArtsNational association of private and public funders of artists and arts organizations.
National Endowment for the ArtsAn independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for arts and culture.
New York Foundation for the ArtsResources for New York artists and art organizations. Information, services, grants, awards, and fiscal sponsorship.
NYSCA - The Theatre ProgramProduction and development support to professional theatre companies.
NYC Department of Consumer AffairsFinancial counseling and workshops for working artists and arts administrators. Focus on reducing debt and managing credit.
NYC Department of Cultural AffairsThe Department of Cultural Affairs offers grants to non-profit cultural institutions, and free art supplies to public school arts education programs through it’s Materials for the Arts program.
Actors ChecklistAn extensive list of grant programs offering funding in the visual and performing arts and creating writing, with a focus on funding for individuals.
A.R.T New YorkSupporting the work and development of nearly 300 member theatre companies. Services include: shared office and rehearsal spaces, a revolving loan fund for real estate, and technical assistance programs for emerging theatres.
Franklin FurnaceAdvocating for avant-garde art! Grants and support for emerging avant-garde artists.
Women ArtsA list of grant programs eligible for women in the arts.
KickstarterA web-based fundraising strategy for creative projects and start-ups.
IndieGoGoAn international alternative to Kickstarter!
International FundingA list of international funding programs for artists. Opportunities for travel, touring, study, and cultural exchange.
Resources for managers of arts organizations on how to reach new audiences and build financial support for their institutions.
Finance For ArtistsFinancial tools for artists.
A selection of reports by ArtsFund about the arts and their economic impact.
Artist Help NetworkCaroll Michels based this website and advice network on her book "How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist: Selling Yourself without Selling Your Soul."
How America Funds the ArtsA detailed report from the National Endowment of the Arts on the sources of funding for the arts in the United States.
Arts Funding Response and Readiness KitA support kit by Americans for the Arts with information on how to survive the economic crisis.
Artists in the Workforce 2000-2005A report by the National Endowment of the Arts with key findings on the representation of different artists in the workforce in the United States.
Artists in the Workforce 1999-2009Key statistics on the number of artists in the workforce and their employment rates.
Art EconomyA vast resource for artists working in the recession. Includes hidden benefits of the recession, and how to create and work within a difficult economy.
Jumper - Diane Ragsdale on what the arts do and why.Diane Ragsdale's blog about the arts and economy, based on her Ph.D. research on cultural economics.
Arts and EconomyA 2009 study on how States can use arts and culture to stimulate their economic development.
Theatre FactsA breakdown of statistics from professional and non profit theatres in the United States. Includes data on salaries, budgets, attendance and openings.
What did you think about the episodes?
“in creating art one get’s the benefit of being looked at, but also the responsability of telling the truth” Someone much smarter than me said that.
In the short story Hellscreen, it shows what someone is willing to do to tell that truth as he sees it. It ends up killing him. I don’t think you have to die to tell the truth, but its personal toll can have ramifications far beyond one’s expectations; even to the disolution of the self. Creating art is about more than not being paid well. What “truth” is… is seemingly undefinable.
Am just getting through the new videos. Wonderful and so inspiring. This angle: the daily life of an artist. No one gets to see the difficulty, the hard work, they things given up for art. And to get a glimpse at the intimate parts of their lives is such a privilege.
About labels and identity: Young Jean Lee’s comment was really gratifying and made me think that a label can be something one earns. It can reflect an amount of discipline and focus in one’s work that leads to a title. Playwright. Choreographer. Whatever it is, which is not to say that it cannot be a blend or a new term, but that it can have weight and purpose and structure.
Love the trailer for the madehere project. Looking forward to more…so important a contribution to history.
I have been loading up on watching made here and am totally addicted. It’s so reassuring to hear others talk of the same things that you deal with and encouraging to see the ways different people live as artists.
I watched the latest Made Here series. I love the new categorization themes—identity, labels… such a great idea.
You did not work on it, or can’t do it.I work in the US for 5 years and back and work in a world class Ads agency in Thailand. I have seen and works on a lot of stuff. I agree Thai peolpe and AE care too much about stylize. I make me sick everyday I hear their comment. They have not idea about design fundamental. Totally opposite when I work in the US, they strongly care about design principle no matter what projects are. All Typography are well structure, never let any un-editing work out to clint hand, because it show how civilize they are as a real professional not a student work.
An Arts ThinkTank: This is exactly what an Arts Council shloud be. I’m sure you’ve noticed how often the Fraser Institute is cited on various issues. Do we ever here from the BC Arts Council? A Vancouver City Arts Council could be a powerful voice, but only if it’s made up of fearless, intelligent, and energetic advocates for the arts in all economic and social sectors.
How beautiful that you caeutrpd history and beauty of the island. I remember loving Hanappepe and want to get back there soon. Meanwhile, am overjoyed with the opportunity to hang out withCherise et al. Cheers for the beautiful photos.
Funny week. When I checked in last week, I meenointd feeling disconnected, so I was glad to see this week being about connection. I didn’t think that this week’s exercises were that useful, but I do have to say that I am feeling much more connected again, and much more positive about my creative pursuits. Weird.
Writer and Director Sharon Lennon answers the question: “How have you raised money for your work?”
Teacher, writer, choreographer and dancer Carrie Stern answers the question: “What was a time you most felt your work had value?”
Actress Tara Sarathy answers the question: “When do you feel your work is most valued?”