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To create awareness among islanders to buy Madrona Point, we organized an art exhibition in 1986 and over 20 local artists participated. I created a handmade book with photographs honoring the quiet beauty that exemplifies what is special about the point. It used cattail leaf handmade paper, Cibachrome prints, and covers with Madrona Burl veneer.The art show attracted attention to the cause and many people volunteered to help protect it from development.
In 1989 we obtained $2.2 million from US Congress through the Department of the Interior to preserve Madrona Point. The experience of combining my artistic vision, interest in community action and love of nature to help preserve Madrona Point was gratifying. What explains why people care so deeply for special places? How could scientists explore the mystery of why sacred sites (a special view, a spectacular rock, a magnificent tree), just like certain works of art, are valued so highly by so many people and deemed essential?
In 1989 we obtained $2.2 million from US Congress through the Department of the Interior to preserve Madrona Point. The experience of combining my artistic vision, interest in community action and love of nature to help preserve Madrona Point was gratifying. What explains why people care so deeply for special places? How could scientists explore the mystery of why sacred sites (a special view, a spectacular rock, a magnificent tree), just like certain works of art, are valued so highly by so many people and deemed essential?
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“Good artists borrow, great artists steal.” Picasso’s famous remark served as my guide when I returned to Orcas and tried to replicate Nantucket’s successful strategy. As president of the non-profit organization Friends of the San Juans, I conducted a three year education and outreach campaign using artwork of our island’s beloved landscapes as the way to gain support for this proposed conservation program.
Instead of simply presenting the Land Bank concept as a new tax, which of course it is, I used slide shows to show how it would be an investment in what we most love… our scenic San Juan Islands. Nantucket islanders used the idea that “The problem (disappearing public access to open space) funds the solution” to make clear the need for a dedicated fund from an appropriate source. Despite widespread belief that taxes are never popular, it turns out that citizens will vote for a new tax if it is for something they want.
To test how well we reached a cross section of potential voters in our efforts to promote the land bank we commissioned a professional survey. The well designed and implemented mail survey achieved an impressive 72% return rate with over 1000 surveys mailed out to 1 in seven randomly selected voters. It predicted a 60% yes vote with plus or minus 3.5% error. This demonstrated that the art-based publicity campaign did help lay the groundwork for a successful vote in 1990 (59.7% yes). In the 26 years since, over $75 million has been raised by the San Juan County Land Bank to both protect and give public access to our greatest local asset – nature’s beauty.
Instead of simply presenting the Land Bank concept as a new tax, which of course it is, I used slide shows to show how it would be an investment in what we most love… our scenic San Juan Islands. Nantucket islanders used the idea that “The problem (disappearing public access to open space) funds the solution” to make clear the need for a dedicated fund from an appropriate source. Despite widespread belief that taxes are never popular, it turns out that citizens will vote for a new tax if it is for something they want.
To test how well we reached a cross section of potential voters in our efforts to promote the land bank we commissioned a professional survey. The well designed and implemented mail survey achieved an impressive 72% return rate with over 1000 surveys mailed out to 1 in seven randomly selected voters. It predicted a 60% yes vote with plus or minus 3.5% error. This demonstrated that the art-based publicity campaign did help lay the groundwork for a successful vote in 1990 (59.7% yes). In the 26 years since, over $75 million has been raised by the San Juan County Land Bank to both protect and give public access to our greatest local asset – nature’s beauty.
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One dad’s interview ends with: “As he looks around and remembers the early days of Opal Commons, Mathew thinks of it as a miracle. Eighteen families, none of whom would otherwise own a home right now, many of whom would undoubtedly have had to leave the island, are all here contributing to this community. The power of ownership! To Mathew this means ‘knowing that we don’t ever have to move again for the rest of our lives, unless we want to.”
River Malcolm, a poet, wrote: “Reading these stories infused me with the spirit of community, of human dignity, of helping one another by weaving together a fabric of caring. In a culture that stigmatizes financial need, these pioneering families have acknowledged their needs and created a rare vision of community and interconnection. Their example offers us an opportunity to help ourselves and others to be more at home in the world.”
This exhibit & book project assisted fundraising by emotionally involving islanders with an attractive solution to the neglected problem of housing. The artwork offered pictures and stories that bonded potential donors to the people whose lives they are assisting – our “family of friends.” Wise heads know hearts rule – how does art have the impact to open hearts, minds, and in this case also pocketbooks? “Telling our Stories” has helped OPAL raise over $27 million.
Would teaching creativity in our schools lead to a citizenry more able to take effective action for the good of all? What collaborative art project could benefit your community by raising awareness and funding for underserved causes?
River Malcolm, a poet, wrote: “Reading these stories infused me with the spirit of community, of human dignity, of helping one another by weaving together a fabric of caring. In a culture that stigmatizes financial need, these pioneering families have acknowledged their needs and created a rare vision of community and interconnection. Their example offers us an opportunity to help ourselves and others to be more at home in the world.”
This exhibit & book project assisted fundraising by emotionally involving islanders with an attractive solution to the neglected problem of housing. The artwork offered pictures and stories that bonded potential donors to the people whose lives they are assisting – our “family of friends.” Wise heads know hearts rule – how does art have the impact to open hearts, minds, and in this case also pocketbooks? “Telling our Stories” has helped OPAL raise over $27 million.
Would teaching creativity in our schools lead to a citizenry more able to take effective action for the good of all? What collaborative art project could benefit your community by raising awareness and funding for underserved causes?
Imagine a society with a educational system that teaches us how to:
Open our hearts
love our enemies
heal our hurts
free our spirits.
Open our hearts
love our enemies
heal our hurts
free our spirits.