PEOPLE

Edited by Jennifer Davis

Shifts at the Top Stephen Schnorf is state budget director. He replaces Joan Walters, who now heads the Department of Public Aid. Schnorf formerly headed Gov. Jim Edgar's policy office and was director of the Department of Central Management Services from 1991 to 1994. Walters had been Edgar's budget director since 1991. She replaces Linda Baker. Penny Wollan-Kriel is the new executive director of the Springfield Art Association. Previously, she was assistant director of the Springfield Area Arts Council. Mary Young is now director of arts in education and outreach for the Springfield Area Arts Council. Michael Lawrence, Edgar's former press secretary, has been named to the State Board of Ethics. Lawrence now teaches journalism at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. The ethics post pays expenses only.

Honors

Former Gov. James R. Thompson was among this year's recipients of the Governor's Awards for the Arts, a recognition of contributions to the arts by indivduals, arts organizations, corporations and communities in Illinois.

Thompson, who is helping raise funds to restore a Springfield landmark, was given a special recognition award. He announced in October his effort to help raise $ 1 million to restore the lies House, the home of Springfield's founder Elijah lies. Thompson, who launched Illinois' collection of state-owned art, also was instrumental in the restoration of another Springfield landmark, the Dana-Thomas House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Also honored with the Governor's Awards were:
The Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, as an outstanding arts organization. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, the center is the largest museum of its kind in the nation, and the first Latino museum to be accredited by the American Association of Museums.

Indira Freitas Johnson, as an individual artist. Her visual art has been displayed internationally, nationally and locally. Most recently, her exhibit Art in Chicago 1945-1995 was shown at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.

WPWR-TV Channel 50 in Chicago, as an outstanding corporation for its commitment "to elevating public awareness of the importance of the arts." The station has developed arts partnerships and public awareness campaigns.

The city of Belvidere. This Boone County community was recently named the "City of Murals" by Gov. Jim Edgar. The city had more than 250 artists from the United States and Canada paint nine murals covering 6,000 square feet in just 72 hours.

The Governor's Awards were presented last month.

QUOTABLE

"I'm happy to report [her radios] were both tuned to WUIS and she was listening to public radio. "

Illinois State Police Director Terrance Gainer reporting that Roby widow Shirley Alien had been taken safely from her home to a hospital for mental evaluation. She had held police at bay for more than a month. Alien wasn't just a public radio listener; she pledged during the Springfield station's spring fund drive. State police cut off her telephone prior to the fall drive. But Gainer pledged in the fall.

ACTING NEA CHAIRMAN NAMED

Scott Shanklin-Peterson is the acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. She replaces Jane Alexander, who resigned in October after fulfilling her four-year appointment. Alexander left shortly after Congress approved a $98 million budget for the NEA. The agency, which funnels federal money to artists and art groups nationwide and helps promote arts education, has been fighting a years- long battle against critics who pushed to abolish the NEA because it has funded controversial projects.

Among the critics are some Illinoisans. Shortly after announcing her resignation, Alexander told the Chicago Sun-Times that she and Republican U.S. Rep. Philip Crane of Mount Prospect "think differently on this issue. I feel there should be a government role at the federal level, the state level and the local level, and Mr. Crane doesn't." Of Democratic U.S. Rep. Sidney Yates of Chicago, an ardent NEA supporter, she said: "Sid Yates is my hero. He really is. Through thick and thin. I call on Sid all the time. He's a very wise person. He's a very wise politician. He's wise about the arts." Yates is retiring.

Shanklin-Peterson, former deputy chairman for grants and partnerships, was named acting chairman in October.

38/ December 1997 Illinois Issues

Question & Answer

MICHAEL DUNBAR

He's been coordinator of the Illinois Capital Development Board's Art-In- Architectiire Program since 1977 when the program was launched. Illinois was among the first seven states to decide to use taxpayer funds to promote its artists by purchasing and displaying their works in public buildings. Over the past 20 years, Illinois has collected more than 500 pieces of art, everything from small paintings to huge outdoor sculptures. Dunbar talked with Illinois Issues about why public-funded art is important and what he sees for the future. He's a sculptor in large-scale metal.

Q. What exactly do you do?

I determine which state building projects are eligible for having artwork included. We work with the architect of the project and the people who will be occupying the building to determine what type of artwork they like and where it will go. We use committees, a different one for each project so that you don't have any one group dictating taste to the state. We look at both the intrinsic value of the art as well as whether it'll be something safe and durable. I orchestrate this whole process.

Q. Why is public-funded art important?

It's funny. Art is always at the bottom of the list when it comes to funding, but, if you go through history, it's the top item. It's the pinnacle of every culture. What do we remember about the Egyptians? Their artifacts, of course. We'd like to think that Illinois is a state aware of the significance of its art and the pleasure it brings.

Most people don't stop and stare at a painting, but they still enjoy having it there. It's like they enjoy it by osmosis. It's like when you walk into a beautiful grove of oak trees. You feel peaceful. You feel good. You don't stand there and think about it. You just feel it. That's how art makes us feel.

We only buy works from Illinois artists. So the money that comes from Illinois taxpayers goes directly back into the Illinois economy. By supporting our artists, we're allowing them to continue to live and work here.

It used to be that student artists, as soon as they graduated, they'd buy a ticket out of here and head for New York or California. But now many are choosing to stay in Illinois because of our tradition of supporting culture and the arts.

Q. Have our tastes changed much?

Yes, we've finally broken out of that modernist movement of architecture. Before, you would see a very severe look to buildings. Now you see many more columns and arches that lend themselves to a wider variety of art, and have a lot of nooks and crannies in which to place pieces.

When I first started, the first show we put up was at the Illinois Department of Transportation back in 1979. We put 11 huge, monumental outdoor sculptures out there. The idea behind it was that everybody who visited Springfield couldn't help but see it. I wanted people to know we weren't just going to be buying bronze statues of Lincoln.

Q. What does the state spend on average for apiece of artwork?

There is no average. We've spent everywhere from $50 to $250,000 on one piece. It just depends on the media and the type of artwork it is.

With large-scale pieces, a lot of that money is going to the people who worked in the foundry making the mold, and to the cost of the bronze or steel.

It's like building a building: A lot goes toward the bricks and mortar part. With paintings, you're getting into the time and creativity it takes.

We bought pieces 15 years ago that have appreciated three or four times in value. Not that we're going to sell them.

Q. Do you have a favorite piece?

I won't answer that. Although I think you could say there have been definite highlights recognizable by all, events that were significant to art history. For instance, when the state library commissioned two works from Harold Gregor. Those were the largest paintings he'd ever done. They are just spectacular. He took that and went into a new direction and scale.

Q.What do you see as the future for your program?

Someday we're going to turn around and look at what we've acquired. I think we will be in awe. We have put up permanent pieces that cannot be denied. Consequently, I think when we finally do look back at these acquisitions, we're going to be very pleased at what we've done for Illinois.

Illinois Issues December 1997 /39