RESOURCES :: PUBLICATIONS

Theory
Practice

 
Theory

The following publications give you background on the importance of community-based projects and may provide concepts and vocabulary you can use for generating support and resources for your ideas.

1. Creative Community: The Art of Cultural Development
   This publication traces the history, methods, values and theories of community cultural-development practice. The report particularly analyzes the effectiveness of such practice as a response to destructive social and economic forces. Ordered online from the   Rockefeller Foundation or by fax (210-529-1119, Job#3186).


2. Strengthening Communities Through Culture
   This report discusses crucial ways in which America's communities can be identified, supported and enhanced by their art and culture. The report suggests the arts can be a force for enhancing community identity and making communities more vibrant and prosperous. It articulates four focal areas: community identity, community and economic development, education and cultural literacy and social needs.
   
   The Center for Arts and Culture is America's first independent think tank for arts and cultural issues. Based in Washington, D.C., the Center considers the role of creativity and innovation in our national and international life through research, analysis, publication and dialogue. It sparks a fresh look at the scope and contributions of art and culture to society, and links people, groups, and governments with the information they need for the future. In its nearly three years of operations, the Center has catalyzed a new kind of policy community through two core programmatic areas: research and communications.
   
   The report can be ordered directly from   The Center for Arts and Culture or downloaded as a PDF file.


3. Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization
   Arjun Appadurai, University of Minnesota Press, 1996


4. UNESCO World Culture Report and OurCreative Diversity, reports on international cultural policy. Available at   UNESCO.


5.   World Bank Participation Sourcebook
   
     World Bank
   More than 200 World Bank staff members and consultants present their experiences with participatory approaches to development activities. The Sourcebook serves as a reference guide to participatory development, featuring country case studies, pointers for participatory planning and decision making, and ways of enabling the poor to participate. It also discusses the role of non-governmental organizations in this area. Annexes include descriptions of methods and summaries of background papers. This site has good information on participatory models of development, and a publications list.


6.   Communications Initiative
   Development-related projects and resources. This site has good information on participatory models of development, and a publications list.


7. New Land Marks: Public Art, Community, and the Meaning of Place, ed Penny Balkin Bach, Fairmount Park Art Association, 2001. The contact address is postmaster@fpaa.org.


8. The Citizen Artist: 20 Years of Art in the Public Arena
   An Anthology from High Performance Magazine 1978-1998. Edited by API co-directors Linda Frye Burnham and Steven Durland. Published in May 1998 by Critical Press for their series: Thinking Publically: The New Era of Public Art. Available at   Critical Press.


9. Preserving Our Heritage by Keith Donohue
   Issue paper published by the   The Center for Arts and Culture
   "Cultural preservation, like conservation of our natural resources, depends upon political leadership..." "Here in the United States especially, we need old buildings and neighborhoods and works of art and archival documents because they help us to remember the marvelous diversity embodied in the word 'We'." "While most preservation efforts are undertaken through private initiative, more people are thinking of our shared cultural heritage as also a public good."

 
Practice

Publications with useful tools and specific methodology for implementing your ideas.

1. A Handbook for Rural Arts Collaborations
   This handbook will walk you through the process of collaboration and project development in a clear and straightforward manner. While its focus is on education and community projects in a rural environment, its recommendation applies anywhere. The guidesheets (excerpted on this Web site) are well worth its purchase. To order the publication, contact   COMPAS.