To Our Greater Lansing Community:
It comes as no surprise to us at the Arts Council of Greater Lansing to see our community facing this challenge with all the grit, strength and creativity it is known for. As we slowly emerge from this crisis, we will be proud of how we stood strong and supported one another.
During this crisis, artists in our community have leaned into creativity, lightening our hearts with humor, brilliance and messages of hope as well as sharing their creative endeavors while they continue practicing their craft. We are inspired by all of you. From around the world we have seen that creative thinking and expression are critical during these trying times — for healing, for learning, and for lifting us out of the darkness and bringing us joy.
Here at the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, we have been deeply engaged in supporting our local arts community, keeping you informed of financial and creative opportunities, sharing your projects and virtual offerings and looking for ways to continue providing the service, support and arts events you have come to expect from us.
We believe it will be the creative thinkers and artists that will help lead us into our new “normal,” whatever that looks like. It will mean new ways of teaching, learning, participating, collaborating and celebrating. We know the artistic community is up to the challenge — the foundation of art is in the connections it can build and the emotions it can convey, without explanation.
We want you to know that we will be here when the new normal begins. It is our job to support artists and organizations in their work, to provide resources where we can so they are ready to move forward and to ensure that Greater Lansing can continue to provide quality arts experiences and education to our region and be a premier arts and culture destination for visitors.
It’s important that we instill creativity in each other — keep creating and brainstorming and making things happen. We ask that you also support each other in ways that you can. Keep buying local art, sharing and attending local program offerings and virtual events and giving to your favorite arts and culture organizations. When this is over, we want to make sure that our local arts organizations are still going strong and able to bring us concerts, art openings, festivals, theatre productions and all the things that our region is known for and takes pride in.
We also ask that you continue to take advantage of the programming we have available for you. Make sure to renew your membership, so you can keep receiving all of the excellent benefits it provides. Join our advocacy efforts by becoming a member of our Articulate Activators group — strong voices that uphold the arts are as crucial as ever. And please consider making a donation to our organization through our Circle of Giving Program. Your generous contributions to the Arts Council have been the foundation of our organization for nearly 55 years, and we hope that you will keep that support coming for another 55 and beyond.
Take care, be well and stay creative.
Meghan Martin
Executive Director