As a lifelong resident of Guthrie I have to admit that I had rarely considered what a rich Arts Culture we have here. As a matter of fact, although I knew that we had fabulous venues and events such as The Pollard Theatre and The Oklahoma International Bluegrass Festival, I never considered Guthrie as an arts place. It wasn’t until I began working with individuals, businesses, and non-profits in the community that I realized the depth and quality of our Arts Community. We are amazing!
In 2013 I was honored to be accepted into the Oklahoma Arts Council’s Leadership Arts program where I learned just how special Guthrie is when compared to other places. We would visit an area and while they extolled the virtues of the area I would be thinking, “We have that, we have more than that, we have better than that. Plus we already have a foundation established on which to build!” (Ok, I really thought, “…a foundation to build on.”) I began to wonder why Guthrie wasn’t considered an “Arts District” considering the number of arts related assets we have. Soon, I was asking around to see if anyone else agreed with me. It turns out that many people did agree, and were eager to help me do something to change that! That’s when we formed The Arts in Guthrie – TAG to begin the task of bringing the awareness of this unique arts community to others.
Since those early get-togethers we have accomplished quite a bit. We have had a series of pot luck suppers to give our diverse arts community an opportunity to meet and collaborate. John Vance Auto Group has donate a box truck to us to be converted into a mobile art gallery so that we can take Guthrie’s Arts to other communities, events, and festivals across the region. We have received a grant from The Oklahoma Arts Council for 2 years now for Cultural District Development and with it a consultant was hired to help us create a 5 year plan for the development of our district. TAG was represented at Arts Day at the Capital this year with a beautiful table display created by Hancock Creative and with Byron Berline and Donna Hilton coming along to let folks get a taste of what they will find when they come visit us. We look for ways to promote and support our arts community whenever we can. Local businesses and corporations have stepped up to support us through their contributions and in-kind donations. Businesses such as Air Med Care are giving us a donation for every new membership that they get using our code number – 713. What a great community player!
After all of the work we have been doing the reward is bound to come. Right? Yes! Just last week we were chosen as one of the inaugural group of official Cultural Districts to be certified by the Oklahoma Arts Council! That means that we have been recognized as a particular cultural arts asset by The State of Oklahoma! This is the first time that such a designation has existed, and we are honored to have been recognized amongst a stellar group of other districts such as The Paseo, The Plaza District, and The Brady Arts District in Tulsa among others. This is hardly a singular recognition of our arts community; it is a way of opening doors to economic development and community development as well! With state recognized recognition of our arts culture, investment in Guthrie will begin to grow.
I’m excited about the possibilities! The Arts in Guthrie has achieved one of its primary goals – to be recognized as a Cultural Arts District. Now we need to bring that good news to the rest of the state! #GuthrieCoolness #GuthrieArts
- Lucy Swanson, Executive Director, The Arts in Guthrie
In 2013 I was honored to be accepted into the Oklahoma Arts Council’s Leadership Arts program where I learned just how special Guthrie is when compared to other places. We would visit an area and while they extolled the virtues of the area I would be thinking, “We have that, we have more than that, we have better than that. Plus we already have a foundation established on which to build!” (Ok, I really thought, “…a foundation to build on.”) I began to wonder why Guthrie wasn’t considered an “Arts District” considering the number of arts related assets we have. Soon, I was asking around to see if anyone else agreed with me. It turns out that many people did agree, and were eager to help me do something to change that! That’s when we formed The Arts in Guthrie – TAG to begin the task of bringing the awareness of this unique arts community to others.
Since those early get-togethers we have accomplished quite a bit. We have had a series of pot luck suppers to give our diverse arts community an opportunity to meet and collaborate. John Vance Auto Group has donate a box truck to us to be converted into a mobile art gallery so that we can take Guthrie’s Arts to other communities, events, and festivals across the region. We have received a grant from The Oklahoma Arts Council for 2 years now for Cultural District Development and with it a consultant was hired to help us create a 5 year plan for the development of our district. TAG was represented at Arts Day at the Capital this year with a beautiful table display created by Hancock Creative and with Byron Berline and Donna Hilton coming along to let folks get a taste of what they will find when they come visit us. We look for ways to promote and support our arts community whenever we can. Local businesses and corporations have stepped up to support us through their contributions and in-kind donations. Businesses such as Air Med Care are giving us a donation for every new membership that they get using our code number – 713. What a great community player!
After all of the work we have been doing the reward is bound to come. Right? Yes! Just last week we were chosen as one of the inaugural group of official Cultural Districts to be certified by the Oklahoma Arts Council! That means that we have been recognized as a particular cultural arts asset by The State of Oklahoma! This is the first time that such a designation has existed, and we are honored to have been recognized amongst a stellar group of other districts such as The Paseo, The Plaza District, and The Brady Arts District in Tulsa among others. This is hardly a singular recognition of our arts community; it is a way of opening doors to economic development and community development as well! With state recognized recognition of our arts culture, investment in Guthrie will begin to grow.
I’m excited about the possibilities! The Arts in Guthrie has achieved one of its primary goals – to be recognized as a Cultural Arts District. Now we need to bring that good news to the rest of the state! #GuthrieCoolness #GuthrieArts
- Lucy Swanson, Executive Director, The Arts in Guthrie
