FROM TC:

Email me your prediction for the arts in 200 words or less and I'll share as many submissions as I can in an edition of YCM at the end of this week. In the meantime, here are a few predictions I found online to stimulate your thinking... 

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Commentary: In 2013, a huge power shift in philanthropy

Katya Andresen COO/CSO at Network for Good, posted on LinkedIn.com, 12/11/12

There is a power shift brewing in philanthropy, and in 2013 it will turn old school charity on its head. The consumer, not the nonprofit, will be the source of innovation and growth. Here is why:

1. Consumers have the means. So much of what people want to do is in their hands -- literally -- in 2013. Anyone can rate a charity, fundraise or advocate in minutes with a smartphone. This hand-held power has transformed commerce already. Philanthropy will be close behind, and you'll see the signs in 2013.
2. Consumers have the power. The era of mission-control messaging and fundraising is sunsetting. People who work for good causes no longer exert near-complete control over their message -- or their fundraising. Social media, crowdfunding and the passage of the boomer generation (with its participatory interest in charity) into its giving years has fundamentally altered the balance of power. Consumers, not causes, are gaining sway in the do-gooder landscape, and they expect their share of involvement in the process.
3. Technology trends support this evolution. The way people are using technology has changed. As Mary Meeker put it recently, we're headed into an "asset light" generation. Thick wallets chockablock with credit cards and checkbooks are soon to become digital wallets. All of this will fundamentally alter giving. Just as companies must scramble to adapt to this new world order, charity better too -- or face a serious disadvantage in share of voice, influence and fundraising in the coming decade.

Commentary: In 2013, public schools will become 'creativity engines'

Gerald Richards, CEO of 826 National [a network of after-school tutoring centers], PSFK website

In 2013, schools and educators will start to focus more on creativity and the skills that used to be considered soft - drive, grit, determination. In a world spurred on by innovation, all of these skills are essential to thinking differently and dreaming bigger. The education system will begin to build more opportunities for students to be creative in the classroom. Discussions about adding art to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education are already underway. At 826 we piloted STEM and Creative Writing workshops at our New York and LA chapters. Other organizations are doing the same understanding that the next breakthrough in any of those fields will come from a creative young mind. Public schools and after school programs will start being looked at as 'creativity engines.' We keep talking about people thinking 'outside of the box' but for kids there is no box. The next Steve Jobs or Bill Gates won't be coming out of Harvard or Princeton, they will be coming out of an inner city school or after school program.

Commentary: In 2013, the democratization of art fully begins

Marshall Sponder, Web Metrics Guru blog, 12/12/12

Technology has freed [the arts] - and the arts are redefining themselves, yet again. In teaching at Rutgers University, I have come to see a real dilemma that students and, by extension, the arts are having with the technology/art mix.  For one thing Instagram has challenged our notions of what is and isn't serious photography. I predict by the end of 2013 technology and various mash-ups that museums and galleries are doing, along with many of the artists will create a new cultural awakening, and a redefinition of the role of art in society and daily life.   One of the leading indicators of an imminent change is the era of democratization of 3D printing and printers that is just at the beginnings of a much larger movement and will become very popular in 2013 and it may be that, in 5 years, one out of 60 people will either own a 3D printeror have access to one directly.

Commentary: ...and some predictions for classical music in 2022

FROM TC: A special report on the Musical America website (11/29/12) looks a decade ahead to imagine the future of the classical music industry. They wrote: "What does the future hold? Fewer orchestras? IC-chip playback for the eardrum? We asked some of the field's best and brightest to predict The State of the Art in five to ten years." Here are two excerpts:

Self-governed artist ensembles will replace some traditional institutions

David Stull, Dean of Oberlin Conservatory

I am excited about the success of artist-driven ensembles. Their new organizational models emphasize adaptability, a sustainable financial model, and a vision of how to produce art that is is special for audiences - something they can't get from an electronic device. While these new entrepreneurial endeavors will not necessarily dominate the classical music landscape, they will fill in the spaces where traditional models are no longer working.

New operas about current issues will lead to more diverse audiences

Timothy O'Leary, General Director of Opera Theater of Saint Louis

One of the great things that is happening is the exuberance for new work. Another hopeful sign is that much of the new work addresses contemporary questions and topics. I feel like we have finally moved out of the 19th century and that we don't have to tear it down to be in a new era. Successful companies can avoid the audience attrition we've seen in other art forms; we can tell stories that are relevant and moving. I think companies are waking up to the idea of lots of cultural influences and diversity among both creators and casts, and that this will, with a genuine [commitment], lead to vibrant, diverse 21st-century audiences.