Title: Dane County Arts Council Records
Inclusive Dates: 1967-1982

Creator:

• Dane County Arts Council (Wis.)

Call Number: Mss 639

Quantity: 2.4 c.f. (5 archives boxes and 1 flat box)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Records of the Dane County Arts Council, an organization in existence from 1975 to 1980 that was responsible for coordinating and promoting the development of the arts in the Dane County, Wisconsin area. The collection consists of constitutions and by-laws, planning documents, and other organizational materials; minutes, correspondence, and reports of the board of directors and the staff; press releases, newsletters, and other publications; program files; financial records; and information collected on other state and local arts organizations. The program files variously include proposals for grant funding, correspondence, and financial reports, but few narrative evaluations of the council's innovative projects are included. Best represented are projects aimed at senior citizens and one program which employed artists with CETA funds.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00639

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The Dane County Arts Council (briefly named Madison Area Performing Arts Association and the Madison Area Arts Association) was organized and incorporated in 1975 as a private, non-profit umbrella organization to coordinate and promote the development of the arts in Madison and the Dane County region. Membership consisted of visual, performing, and literary arts groups; individual artists; businesses; and the general public.

DCAC had three stated goals: (1) to provide information and services for its members and the public; (2) to support and develop arts projects; and (3) “to provide a unified voice for the arts service industry.” Essentially, DCAC provided resource information, referral, and coordinating services for agencies and individuals. DCAC attempted to accomplish these objectives with a number of different publications, programs, and services. It published and distributed a monthly arts events calendar; the Arts Yellow Pages, an annotated directory of arts organizations and resources; and a Directory of Housing for the Arts, which listed space available for artists.

The council also sponsored events such as the “Arts Drop-In,” a cooperative series of programs by member groups; “Sweet Thursday,” a series which allowed experimental and unestablished artists to exhibit their work; children's art workshops; the Monroe Street Merchants Spring Art Show; and “Seven in the Center,” a program featuring performing artists in the Madison Civic Center. DCAC also periodically sponsored workshops on grant writing, public relations, budgeting, and fundraising. Surveys completed by the DCAC included a study of arts organization needs, an economic impact survey, and a poll of unemployed artists.

The DCAC also provided clerical services such as typing, bulk mailing, telephoning, and registrations for member groups through funding from Title IX and Title V grants from the Wisconsin Bureau of Aging. A New Outreach Arts and Handicrafts Program (NOAH) was also sponsored by the Title IX and V grants from the Wisconsin Bureau of Aging. Through this program, senior citizen were employed to direct and offer art projects and programs at centers and nutrition sites. DCAC's Mainstream Arts Project (MAP) was staffed by CETA-funded artists to create and direct visual and performing art projects throughout the county. For example, MAP artists were responsible for the Fantastic Flying Machine contest on the Capitol Square, the First National Bank Sculpture (Madison), and the Dane County Regional Airport mural. Another DCAC program was the Theater Bus Project, which provided transportation to arts events to senior citizens. This project was incorporated and became an independent program in 1979.

The Dane County Arts Council was financed by work programs funded by CETA, Public Service Employment (PSE), the Wisconsin Bureau of Aging, and the Dane County Commission on Aging. Major funding came through grants from the Wisconsin Arts Board, Madison Rotary, the Dane County Cultural Affairs Commission, the City of Madison, and corporations such as Oscar Mayer, Webcrafters, American Family Insurance, and First Wisconsin National Bank.

In 1980 the board of directors experienced a major change in membership because of internal conflicts as well as management, personnel, and financial difficulties. At the same time, DCAC lacked a sufficiently strong public image to allow it to deal with conflicts between member groups. Because of these problems, the Board of Directors could not readily obtain funding. After a study of objectives, community roles, and effectiveness, the board unanimously agreed on August 25, 1980 to dissolve.

The collection's coverage is quite thorough in the administrative, historical, financial, and programming aspects of the council's operation, with the chief failing being the absence of narrative reports and evaluations concerning the numerous innovative projects which the council undertook. The collection is composed of minutes, correspondence, reports, grant files, financial files, and publications arranged into five series: organizational records, governing board and staff records, programs and publications, financial records, and state and local arts organizations.

ORGANIZATIONAL RECORDS include articles of incorporation, bylaws, corporate documents concerning tax exempt status, historical and planning information, and miscellaneous information. The files in this series generally contain correspondence, notes, and draft versions of some documents.

The arrangement of the GOVERNING BOARD AND STAFF RECORDS series reflects the hierarchical administrative structure of DCAC: the board of directors, executive director, general staff, administrative assistant, artists, and volunteers. These files variously include minutes, correspondence, lists of names, grant files, and reports.

PROGRAMS AND PUBLICATIONS includes information on art projects and programs sponsored by DCAC. Best documented are the Mainstream Arts Project, the Theatre Bus Project, and the New Outreach Arts and Handicrafts (NOAH) and clerical programs. These files, which are arranged alphabetically by project title, generally include correspondence, committee minutes, reports, publicity, and financial statements about the particular art program. Unfortunately, final narrative reports concerning many of their innovative programs are not included.

Publications include a monthly arts events calendar, press releases and a newsletter, Arts Yellow Pages, and Housing for the Arts in Dane County. Also included are reports and reference materials on the public relations case study project.

The FINANCIAL RECORDS series consists of three subgroups: fundraising, grant applications, and financial statements. The fundraising materials include lists of contacts, information about the campaigns of 1977-1980, receipts registers, and schedules. The files in the grant applications subgroup generally contain proposals, correspondence, agreements, award notifications, reports, and notes about specific grants. The files in this category are arranged alphabetically by granting agency. The financial statements consist of balance sheets, income statements, general ledgers, cash receipts and disbursement journals, payroll ledgers, and other general accounting records.

The STATE AND LOCAL ART ORGANIZATIONS series consists of publications such as newsletters, brochures, publicity, and newspaper clippings collected about many arts organizations and a small quantity of correspondence. The files are divided into state and local categories and then arranged alphabetically thereunder.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Dane County Arts Council via Ben Merens, Madison, Wisconsin, August 11, 1981. Accession Number: M81-440

Processing Information

Processed by Debbie Anderson and Joanne Hohler, 1984, and by Loralei Bloom and Carolyn J. Mattern, 1988.

	Series: Organizational Records
Box   1 Folder   1	Articles of incorporation, 1975
Box   1 Folder   2	Bylaws (drafts, correspondence), 1975, 1978
Box   1 Folder   3	Corporate documents, 1976-1978
Box   1 Folder   4	Lapham School and YMCA rental agreements, 1978-1979
Box   1 Folder   5-6	Mission planning and historical information, 1978-1980
	Series: Governing Board and Staff Records	⇧
Box   1 Folder   7	Annual meeting minutes, 1977-1980
	Governing board
Box   1 Folder   8	Membership lists, committee lists, 1979-1980
Box   1 Folder   9	Minutes, 1975-1981
Box   1 Folder   10	Correspondence, 1975-1982
Box   1 Folder   11	Information packet, 1979
Box   1 Folder   12	Executive Committee minutes, 1975-1979
	Membership Committee
Box   1 Folder   13	Minutes, 1978-1979
Box   1 Folder   14	Correspondence, 1979-1980
Box   1 Folder   15	Membership drive, 1978-1980
Box   1 Folder   16	Personnel Committee correspondence, 1979-1980
Box   1 Folder   17	Visual Arts Subcommittee minutes, 1979
	Staff records
	Executive directors
Box   1 Folder   18	Correspondence, 1976-1981
Box   1 Folder   19	Reports, 1976-1980
Box   1 Folder   20	Staff correspondence, 1978-1980
Box   2 Folder   1-3	Administrative assistant files, 1977-1980
Box   2 Folder   4	Lists of artists in Dane County, undated
	Series: Programs and Publications	⇧
	Programs
Box   2 Folder   5	“Arts Drop-In” project
Box   2 Folder   6	“Arts in Dane County,” 1976
	Mainstream Arts Project
Box   2 Folder   7	Artists/program coordinator correspondence, 1978-1980
Box   2 Folder   8	Reports, 1978-1979
Box   2 Folder   9	Lists of artists, 1978
Box   2 Folder   10	First National Bank sculpture, 1978
Box   2 Folder   11	Regional Airport mural, 1979-1980
Box   2 Folder   12	“The Seed” mural dedication, 1978
Box   2 Folder   13-15	CETA, PSE funding proposal, 1977-1980
Box   2 Folder   16	Title VI monthly fiscal reports, 1978-1979
Box   2 Folder   17	CETA files, 1980-1981
Box   2 Folder   18	Financial statements, 1979
Box   2 Folder   19	Miscellaneous material, undated
Box   2 Folder   20	Monroe Street Merchants Spring Art Show, 1980
	NOAH and Clerical Programs
Box   2 Folder   21-23	Title IX grant files, 1978-1980
Box   2 Folder   24-26	Title V grant files, 1979-1980
Box   2 Folder   27-29	Monthly, quarterly, and annual work progress reports, 1978-1980
Box   2 Folder   30	Prison art project, 1978
	“Seven in the Center” program
Box   2 Folder   31	Program proposal, objectives, committee minutes, final reports, 1980
Box   2 Folder   32	Correspondence, 1979-1980
Box   2 Folder   33	Programs, publicity, 1980
Box   2 Folder   34	Financial statement, contract, 1980
	Theatre Bus project
Box   3 Folder   1-2	Constitution and bylaws, 1977-1979
Box   3 Folder   3	Committee minutes, 1977-1979
Box   3 Folder   4	Correspondence, 1977-1979
Box   3 Folder   5	Reports, 1978-1979
Box   3 Folder   6	Program guide, 1977
Box   3 Folder   7	Publicity, 1978
Box   3 Folder   8	Questionnaire, 1979
Box   3 Folder   9-11	CETA, PSE funding, 1978-1980
Box   3 Folder   12	Title VI monthly fiscal reports, 1978-1980
Box   3 Folder   13	CETA audit, reports, correspondence, 1980-1981
Box   3 Folder   14	City of Madison grants, 1978-1979
Box   3 Folder   15	Commission on Aging grant, 1977-1979
Box   3 Folder   16	Financial ledger pages, 1977
Box   3 Folder   17	Financial statements, 1978-1979
Box   3 Folder   18	Miscellaneous material, 1978
Box   3 Folder   19	Unemployment among artists survey, 1977
Box   3 Folder   20	Workshops, 1976-1978
	Publications
Box   3 Folder   21	Arts events calendar, 1977-1980
Box   3 Folder   22	Publishing information, 1980
Box   3 Folder   23	Newsletter, 1976-1977
Box   3 Folder   24	Housing for the Arts in Dane Co., 1977
	Arts Yellow Pages, 1977-1980
Box   3 Folder   25	Publishing information, 1980
Box   3 Folder   26	Press releases, 1975-1980
Box   3 Folder   27	Newspaper clippings, 1976-1980
	Public relations case study project
Box   3 Folder   28	Reference materials, 1979
Box   3 Folder   29	Reports, 1979
Box   3 Folder   30	Miscellaneous notes, undated
	Series: Financial Records	⇧
	Fundraising
Box   4 Folder   1	Lists of contacts, undated
Box   4 Folder   2-3	Campaigns, receipts registers, 1977-1980
Box   4 Folder   4	Schedules, 1978
	Grant files
Box   4 Folder   5	Dane County Cultural Affairs Commission, 1976-1979
Box   4 Folder   6	National Endowment for the Arts, 1978-1980
Box   4 Folder   7	Oscar Mayer proposal, 1979
Box   4 Folder   8	PSE funding, 1978
Box   4 Folder   9-10	Wisconsin Arts Board, 1976-1980
Box   4 Folder   11	Wisconsin Humanities Committee, 1976-1978
Box   4 Folder   12-13	Miscellaneous grant information, 1975-1980
	Financial statements
Box   4 Folder   14	Balance sheets, income statements, budget sheets, 1976-1979
Box   5 Folder   1-3	General ledger, 1975-1979
Box   5 Folder   4	Miscellaneous ledger pages, 1975-1976
Box   6 Folder   1-2	Cash receipts and disbursements journal, 1978-1980
Box   6 Folder   3	Payroll ledger pages, 1978-1979
	Series: State and Local Arts Organizations	⇧
	State arts organizations
Box   5 Folder   5	Wisconsin Arts Board, publications, 1974-1980
Box   5 Folder   6	Wisconsin Arts Board, arts inventories, 1977-1979
Box   5 Folder   7	Wisconsin Arts Council, 1967-1977
Box   5 Folder   8	Wisconsin Citizens for the Arts, Inc., 1980
Box   5 Folder   9	Wisconsin-Coalition for the Arts and Human Needs (WisCAHN), 1978
Box   5 Folder   10	Wisconsin Humanities Committee, 1972-1980
	Local arts organizations
Box   5 Folder   11	Artists Research Workshop, 1975
Box   5 Folder   12	Badger Photographic Society, 1979
Box   5 Folder   13	Center for the Arts Administration symposium, 1974
Box   5 Folder   14	Center Gallery, 1979
Box   5 Folder   15	Elvehjem Art Center, 1978-1980
Box   5 Folder   16	Encore, publications, 1979
Box   5 Folder   17	Equinox Festival, 1979
Box   5 Folder   18	Kanopy Dance Theatre, 1978-1980
Box   5 Folder   19	Kids in a Dramatic Society, Inc., 1978-1980
Box   5 Folder   20	Madison Art Center, 1979
Box   5 Folder   21	Madison Boychoir, Inc., 1979
Box   5 Folder   22	Madison Civic Repertory Theatre, 1977-1980
Box   5 Folder   23	Madison Consort of Early Music, 1979
Box   5 Folder   24	Madison Dance Council, 1978
Box   5 Folder   25	Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, 1978
Box   5 Folder   26	Wisconsin Theatre Association, 1977-1978
Box   5 Folder   27-29	Miscellaneous clippings and publications re state and local arts groups, 1976-1980