This week, Bend art lovers and champions are celebrating the success of a recent campaign to raise funds and awareness for the city's public art collection. Last June, "Be Part of Art" campaign organizers set out to raise $200,000 to complete a $500,000 fundraising challenge in support of the city's extraordinary public art collection. On December 11, "Be Part of Art" organizers announced that the fundraising goal has been reached.
The initial fundraising effort was launched as a result of a $500,000 pledge from The Bend Foundation, a private non-profit which was established and funded by Brooks-Scanlon, Inc., Brooks Resources and shareholders as part of their mission to enhance the cultural environment and quality of life for the citizens of Bend. The Bend Foundation pledged the $500,000 donation with a challenge to community members to match that amount in private donations.
According to Ward, the campaign for private donations involved two simultaneous efforts. The first was a major gift outreach led by local community arts advocate John James. The second was a grassroots campaign led by tbd advertising, a Bend-based creative agency that frequently champions local arts and culture projects. The grassroots component encouraged $25 donations that offered an opportunity to "own" a piece of art and join the local Facebook art community.
To date the campaign has raised $507,221 with another $73,500 in pledges committed for March 2012.
Moving forward, members of Art in Public Places will call for artist submissions. Review and selection of final art pieces will take place throughout the next 12 months and art installations are expected to be largely complete by the end of 2013. Citizens of Bend will also be invited to express their opinions on submissions which will ultimately be selected by AIPP.
While the matching donation goal has been met, organizers hope to continue promoting dialogue and financial support for Bend's public art collection.
To schedule interviews with representatives of the Be Part of Art campaign, contact Linda Quon at 541.617.1911, 541.610.4317 or lquon@quondc.com.