Thursday, June 12, 2014
NY's Joan Mitchell Foundation Invests $20 Million For New Orleans Arts Center
The Joan Mitchell Foundation came to New Orleans in the aftermath of the 2005 storm and flood and spread around hundreds of thousands of dollars to artists and art institutions during the recovery. That was a big help, but it was only the beginning.
Since then, the management Foundation decided to make New Orleans the site for a splendid artists' retreat, the sort of place where promising painters and sculptors from across the country can commune together for weeks at a time, honing their skills, being advised by art authorities and soaking up the Crescent City vibe.
By the time the foundation finishes its Bayou Road campus, it will have invested roughly $12.5 million buying up old property and commissioning new construction. With that investment on top of what has been and is being spent hosting visiting artists, paying staff and producing art events, the folks at Joan Mitchell will have pumped roughly $20 million into the New Orleans economy....