Part 1.
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| Following is this organization’s responses to the Art Spaces Archives
Project (AS-AP) Survey, which in August 2005 was distributed to over
1,000 “alternative” and “avant-garde organizations” to “quantify the
need for archival services to the field.”
1a. Year Founded: |
| 1976 |
| 1b. Primary activity[ies] of the organization. |
| Multipurpose Space [Amalgam of Multiple Artistic Disciplines] |
| 1b. Primary activity[ies] of the organization. |
| |
| 1c. Organization's annual budget. |
| Over $1,000,000 |
Part 2.
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| 2a. Mission Statement |
| Due to Hurricane Katrina we do not have access to all of our records. I can provide the current Vision Statement and Mission Statement.
Vision Statement: Our vision is that the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans be a multi-disciplinary arts center, nationally recognized as a leader in the presentation and support of contemporary arts, artists and emerging art forms. In doing so, it will explore and involve the diverse cultures of our communities.
Adopted October 11, 2001.
Mission Statement
The CAC is a multi-disciplinar arts center, financial stable and professionally managed, which is dediated to the presentation, production and promotion of art of or time. It accomplishes these by organizing curate exhibitions, performances andprograms, educating and enlarging audiences, and encouraging collaboration among diverse artists, institutions, communities and supporters.
Adopted October 11, 2001 |
| Website Link to Mission Statement |
| |
| 2b. Organization History / Organizational Overview. Index of important events in organization's history. |
| Located in a 1905 warehouse in downtown New Orleans, the Contemporary Arts Center is a dynamic incubator of multidisciplinar contemporary art forms and trends in-the-making. Since 1976 the pioneering organization has carried out its mission of serving the public throughan active progamm, which includs music, visual arts, theater, dance, film and video and educatoin for children and adults. In its infanc, the CAC jumpstarted a cultural edvolution in New Orleans by plahying a major role in the re-building of a derelict warehouse district. Today, the CAC celebrates the tenacity it shares with America’s most European of cities as it stands at the gateway of one of our country’s major arts corridors. Dozens of art galleries thrive nearby; the National D-Day Museum is now our neighbor, and the Ogden Museum of Art is across the street. In 1999, Sydney J. Besthoff and his family continued their long dedicated support by donating to the CAC the building we have occupied since our inception. A strategic plan in 2002 points us toward utilizing that facility for fiscal stability. Innovative, quality programs combined with an improved and expanded facility and a commiment to a new endowment will ensure CAC’s future successes.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused considerable damage to our building, and the staff was subsequently reduced from 35 to 8 full-time employees. Most of the building has been repaired (41 windows, the roof, a/c has been restored). In the next two months, the elevator will again be working and offices damanged from an overturned watertower on the roof will be rebuilt. Until then, we continue working on our laptops in our former CyberCafe. Other changes on the road back towards normalcy will occur gradually.
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| Website Link to Organization's History / Organization Overview |
| |
| 2c. Exhibition / Programming / Publishing History. |
| Under the leadership of Curator of Visual Arts, David S. Rubin and CAC Executive Director Jay Weigel, who is Performance Programmer for the organization, the CAC has presented exhibitions of national, international, and regional imporatance over the past six years; solo and group shows have been presented, and all mediums have been represented. Under Rubin, a publications program has been set in place, including hardcover monographs on Douglas Bourgeeois and Willie Birch (the latter due in June 2006). Publications currently available can be found at: http://www.cacno.org/visualarts/publications.html
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| Website Link to Exhibition / Programming / Publishing History |
| |
Part 3.
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| 3a. Names and email addresses of Founders, Board Members, Directors or other key individuals: |
| Don Marshall |
|
| Jeanne Nathan |
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| Robert Tannen |
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| Sydney Besthoff |
| 3b. Could any of these individuals assist in providing an oral history of your organization? |
| Yes |
Part 4.
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| 4a. Is organization currently active? |
| Yes |
| 4b. Year activity suspended if no longer active. |
| Organization Still Active |
Part 5.
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| 5a. Type of organization at its founding. |
| Non-Profit [IRS certified] |
| 5b. Type of organization currently, or at the termination of activities. |
| Non-Profit [IRS certified] |
Part 6.
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| 6a. Does the organization have an archive? |
| Yes |
| 6c. Other threats to the organization: |
| Hurrcane damange |
Part 7.
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| 7a. How important is to the organization to preserve the organization’s historical material. From 1 – Very Important to 5 – Not Important. |
| 1. Very Important |
| 7b. Has planning for the preservation and documentation of archive begun? |
| Yes |
| 7c. Does the organization know how and where to seek expertise and assistance? |
| Yes |
| 7d. Does the organization have specific concerns regarding starting an archive working with its historic materials? |
| Lack of Staff |
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Part 8.
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| 8a. Is the organization's archives in the collection of another institution or promised to one? |
| Yes |
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| Early records are at The Historic New Orleans Collection |
| 8b. Archival materials are also located at: |
| Unknown |
| Where are these locations? |
| |
Part 9.
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| 9. Does the organization maintain archives for any other organization. |
| No |
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Part 10a.
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| 10a. Is the archive accessible to scholars, curators or researchers? |
| Yes |
Part 10b.
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Part 10c.
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| 10c. How are arrangements made for access to archive? |
| Early records can be viewed at The Historic New Orleans Collection by appointment; there are no provisions for more recent records here at the CAC |
Part 11.
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The following questions address the historical materials (type, quantity and storage) of the organization.
11a. Paper Files and Documents |
| Artist Files
Correspondence
Board Minutes
Exhibition or Production Files
Financial Records
Legal Documents
By-laws / Incorporation Documents
Other Paper Files
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| 11b. Artwork and Documentation |
| Audiotapes [Any Format]
Other Audio Recordings (i.e. records, etc.)
CDs / DVDs [Pre-Recorded or CD-R / CD-RW / DVD-R / etc.]
Slides
Photographs
Prints / Lithographs / Etchings / Screenprints / etc.
Videotapes
Unique Art Objects
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| 11c. Press and Promotional Materials |
| Announcements, Mailing Cards, etc.
Newspaper / Magazine / Media Clippings
Posters / Flyers
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| 11d. Printed Publications |
| Brochures
Publication or Merchandise Catalogues
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| 11e. Other |
| Architectural Drawings / Floor Plan
Layouts / Sketches / Instructions for Installations
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Part 12.
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| 12. What years does the materials cover? |
| 1970-1979
1980-1989
1990-1999
2000-2005
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Part 13.
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| 13a. How is the material stored? |
| Banker Boxes
Other Boxes
File Cabinets
Flat Files
Three-Ring Binders
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| 13b. Are some or all of these storage units “archival”? |
| I don’t know |
Part 14.
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| 14a. Estimated Number of Boxes or Milk-Crate Sized Storage Units |
| ---- |
| 14b. Estimated Number of Archive Drawers |
| ---- |
| 14c. Estimated Number of Archive Notebooks |
| ---- |
| Other Archive Storage Units - Please describe below. |
| |
| 14d. Estimated the total Linear Feet. ["Linear Feet" is standard measure of the quantity of archival materials on the basis of shelf space occupied or the length of drawers in vertical files or the thickness of horizontally filed materials. For example, a moderately full manila folder file is typically 3/4 of an inch wide at the bottom. Approximately 16 folders equal approximately 1 linear foot.] |
| ---- |
| or |
| I can’t access the material to determine this |
Part 15.
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| 15. Is the historical materials - or archives - inventoried or catalogued in any way, either formally or otherwise? |
| No |
Part 16.
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| 16a. Is there a key, index or finding aid to the materials inventoried? |
| No |
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Part 16 / Electronic Files & Archival Management
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| 16f. Does the organization have a back-up program, or back-up schedule, for its electronic records and perform monitoring of its removable media (i.e. floppies, ZIP disks, CD-ROMs, DVDs, portable hard drives, etc.)? |
| Yes |
| 16g. Who is responsible for working with the archival material? |
| Other - Please describe below. |
|
| no one |
Part 17.
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| 17. How are new materials processed? |
| No System |
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Part 18.
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| 18. What, if any, conservation methods are in place for both physical materials and electronic data? |
| None or Limited |
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Part 19.
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| 19. What type of climate-controls are present in the area[s] in which the archives are stored? |
| No or minimal climate controls [i.e. in an attic, basement, unheated / uncooled storage area, etc.] |
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Part 20.
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| 20a. What are the goals for the historical materials for the next year? |
| none--we are recuperating and rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina |
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| 20b. What are the biggest challenges to reaching these short-term goals? |
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| 20c. What goals are in place for the historical materials for the next three to five
years? |
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| 20d. What are the biggest challenges to reaching these long term goals? |
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| 20e. Are there any additional goals for the organizations historic materials? |
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Part 21.
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| 21. Estimated cost to achieve these archival goals for the next year. |
| ---- |
Part 22.
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| 22. Estimated cost to achieve these archival goals for the next five years. |
| ---- |
Part 23.
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23. Archival issues visual arts organizations could / should address collectively in the next one to two years? Ranked: 1 (highest priority) to 5 (lowest priority).
Information on conservation / preservation |
| Rank = 2 |
| 23a. Information on cataloguing techniques |
| Rank = 3 |
| 23b. Information on digitizing previously published materials |
| Rank = 1 |
| 23c. Information on digitizing materials |
| Rank = 1 |
| 23d. Other - Please describe below. |
| |
Part 24.
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24. What archival issues could / should visual arts organizations address
collectively in the next three to five years? Ranked from 1 (highest priority) to 5 (lowest priority).
24a. Shared standards / protocols for digitization |
| Rank = 1 |
| 24b. Establish centralized locations for storage of, and access to, historical materials |
| Rank = 2 |
| 24c. Create databases / servers for archived materials |
| Rank = 1 |
| 24d. Other - Please describe below. |
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Part 25.
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| 25a. Is the organization a member of, or in contact with, any organizations concerned with archival issues? |
| No |
| 25b. Who? |
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Part 26.
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| 26. Additional information, comments, observations, and questions. |
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Finish
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| Who executed this survey. |
| David S. Rubin |
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| Contemporary Arts Center |
| Is this survey complete and all appropriate questions answered? |
| Yes |