Author: Edited by Caitlin Strokosch Glass
The following is a compilation of discussions that took place around the Alliance’s recent annual conference. Led by Ce Scott from the McColl Center for Visual Art in Charlotte, NC, the panel included Malcolm Christian from Caversham Centre in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa, Mark Masuoka from the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha, NE, and Pamela Winfrey from the Exploratorium in San Francisco.
What does it mean to be truly diverse—in backgrounds, gender, perspectives, age, disciplines, etc.?
Pamela Winfrey: “The wonder of humanity is that it is made up of complex individuals. Each individual brings their own unique perspective. I come from a museum of science, art, and human perception and in many ways it is the human perception that is the umbrella concept. Years ago, I started this program called Cultural Rhythms which examined culture as another way to think about perspective. If you are raised in a large town you view the world differently than if you were raised in a small town… that kind of idea.”
Ce Scott: “Diversity for McColl Center means remaining completely open to the realities and changes that occur when there is true diversity—embracing and accepting the differences and various cultural expressions as they relate to the particular groups involved. We also think a lot about Charlotte’s growing communities (for instance Latino) and other groups that we would like to engage.”
Malcolm Christian: “[It means] living diversity not as a life style but as indivisible from Life. It is a celebration of our uniqueness whilst providing an opportunity to discover that essential value systems are based in commonality. It is the mirror that enables us to confront and overcome primary fears. It is the conduit through which each of us is able to share those things that are meaningful to us and through this process to gain affirmation of our own significance and that of others.”
Mark Masuoka: “I view diversity as the conduit in which all judgments are disseminated. A diverse culture allows for the free flow of expression and saturates individuals beyond the surface layers of our daily experience. Diversity is the barometer we use to gauge our humanity. Can we truly be diverse without any bias? I do not think so—but I do believe that the intent to include a vast array of opinions, backgrounds and experiences makes for a more interesting conversation and hopefully a more inclusive environment. Diversity remains at the core of our mission at Bemis and influences all levels of management, programming and community outreach. Our residency program continues to reach out to artists globally and as a result, maintains a rich, vibrant and diverse artist community.”
How do you determine what’s appropriate for your organization?
Pamela: “I’d guess that the benchmark is listening carefully to the resulting dialogue—has it changed substantially because of the direct influences of the interactions of a wide variety of perspectives? We use an analysis of the resulting exhibits and programs as benchmarks. We use tons of visitor research to try to understand the visitor perspective, but one can also just observe the effect of certain works on certain people.”
Ce: “At the onset, dialog started at the staff level to determine what was appropriate based on the mission and the goals for the center. A Diversity Committee was soon formed, made up of three staff members, one board member, and two or three ‘stakeholders’ from the local community. The Diversity Committee kept the staff informed, helped to generate ideas, suggested ways to approach and build new audiences. They also contributed to discussions about continuing diversity within the Center’s programs.”
Malcolm: “Constant vigilance: reflection, dialogue, ownership and action—the basis for evolution. Sustainability is based on relevance, the need that the organization fulfills within its local and national context, with practical application related to an organization’s mission and community. I come from a country where the crime against humanity called Apartheid created a legacy that permeates one’s being and is carried like a tattoo on one’s soul, causing the issue of diversity—access given, access denied—to be found at the heart of most South Africans, their institutions and initiatives. It is part of our constitution and contributes to the cultivation of a new national psyche.”
Mark: “At the Bemis Center, evaluating our effectiveness or appropriateness is based on how we have assisted in the creative process. Whether it is our residency or exhibition program, we remain focused on developing a broad base of people, which ultimately offers the best opportunities for us to witness benchmarks in our program. For artists to thrive at the Bemis Center, we must constantly provide an environment which encourages creativity, experimentation and questioning. Benchmarks are the tangible or intangible end products of our ability to fulfill our objectives, and diversity is a binder that holds us to our mission.”
What are the real benefits of having an open, diverse environment?
Pamela: “The true benefit is that it is more interesting, more challenging, and ultimately more rich. Our artist-in-residence program is built on the concept that artists and scientists will benefit from working together.”
Ce: “The quality of the staff’s daily work experience is greatly enhanced. Both personal and professional growths are enriched. Because of this, the staff is more cognizant about the importance of maintaining and building diversity in hiring practices, board recruitment and program development.”
Malcolm: “Diversity provides richness, texture and resonance which cultivates and contributes to growth in relevance for the individual and institution. It provides a foundation to expand co-ownership and broader based partnerships and impact.”
Mark: “Organizationally, each staff member at the Bemis Center is offered the opportunity to have input into the development of programs and implementation of management… A diverse workplace combines a wide range of skills and experiences to create an environment that encourages growth and learning, while focusing on goals and ‘model’ building.”
What are the challenges to building diversity?
Pamela: “As far as staffing, it is extremely competitive. It is built on the concept of science which many still feel is a white male dominated discipline. Also, we don’t pay that well. We often get artists who are male and white…also mechanistic in their approach. We have to search out artists of different races, ages, and genders.”
Ce: “The biggest challenge is not resistance, as most of the staff and board would readily agree that diversity is important and desirable. The difficulty often arises when it’s time to fill openings on the board or with staff. Suddenly, no one can identify qualified AND diverse people to fill those slots. Building diversity often requires a great deal of prodding, investigating and following through.”
Malcolm: “A marked lack of capacity at all levels. This means that an essential role that we must play is to address succession, not limited to the institution, but seeking to contribute to the growth of skills nationally and in diverse areas. Caversham Centre in its stage of development and capacity differs from the others in many respects. I guess you could say that this is analogous of our country and new democracy as well. Maybe we can contribute a voice for smaller and newer initiatives. Although founded on a 20-year Caversham Press print-collaborative heritage, CCAW still remains largely dependent on the founding passion of myself, assisted in administration by Ros, my wife, and Gabi Nkosi, our Program Manager. We are grappling with the conundrum of growing capacity and clarity in vision and structures whilst addressing funding strategies to implement these in a country and context where there is little precedent.”
Masuoka: “Building diversity into an organization starts with the mission statement. Our objective at the Bemis is to be inclusive while not deviating from our mission. This challenges us to clearly understand and serve our constituency while continuing to build new audiences. The building process must begin with a mindset of conviction, clarity and consistency.”
How do you build diversity with intention and integrity?
Pamela: “I think the main way to build an honestly diverse staff is to recognize everyone as individuals and not as mouthpieces. For example, I recently stopped an advisory meeting process because I saw that the people we had invited lacked diversity. We had an all-white group and one West African drummer (it was a pretty good mix except racially). In order to mix it up a bit, I invited a Latina who had a very female approach to music, a Latino who was a new music composer and used sampled sounds, and an African American who specialized in sound as a cultural and political phenomenon. It totally changed the dialoge for the better. Certainly their contributions racially were important, but more important were the nuances of their characters, their diverse backgrounds and perspectives that truly added an entire new way of thinking. One of the most important thoughts I had was that it is all about the individual…we chose people who were eager to learn and share ideas, people who were more interested in the subject than they were about personal agendas.”
Ce: “With regards to the board, staff and Residency Program, we have built diversity with intention and integrity by developing a list of criteria that all board members, potential employees, and artists must meet, regardless of their race, gender, etc., and adhering to that.”
Malcolm: “You must nurture and cultivate significance—meaning and relevance. There is a traditional African saying called ubuntu, ‘I am who I am because of others.’ This is the underpinning for programs and structures—Umuntu, Ngumuntu, Ngabantu—a person is who they are because of other people… I have attempted to distill accessible methodologies which help contribute significance in institution and individual. We work with such a range of ages, experience, education, language and literacy levels that there is a great need to provide simple (not simplistic) adaptable steps to building self-belief, understanding and ownership. All of this reflects the complementary collaborative role that we have always played, which in essence is what diversity is about. Collaboration is shared responsibility based on trust.”
Mark: “Foremost, organizations must identify individuals that are ‘all in’ with a true understanding of the organization’s goals. It is only then that the question of diversity can be addressed. This process ensures that intentions are placed in context to the organization’s goals and not the reverse. A diverse staff and board is key to throwing a ‘wide net,’ but unless the organization knows what to keep and what to discard, diversity for diversity’s sake only serves to decorate the organization’s surface. Authentic diversity takes into consideration that there may not always be a consensus of opinions, but there will always be acceptance.”