“talk about how the remarkable mobilizing power of community arts can be used by the Obama administration as a tool and a pathway for national recovery.”
Funny stuff. I talked to an old guy who was part of a crew that created “art” under FDR. (Forgot the name of the program.) Anyway, he and a large crew of “artists” created literally tons of art and paintings and especially sculpture work. He told me to take a trip to a warehouse in Milwaukee, and inside were hundreds of pieces of art, collecting dust and forgotten.
In Phoenix, the city paid a couple hundred thousand for some concrete “pots” to adorn the tops of the freeway walls. I don’t even know if these are there anymore. It was a big waste of money and a lot of the talk radio hosts were making fun of it. This happened at least 10 years ago if not more.
When I was in high school, I did a Federal Program over the summer called YCC, Youth Conservation Corp. We made concrete picnic benches and tables for a soon-to-be park. The park never was and the next year when I drove out to look at it, the stuff was destroyed. One of the leaders of our group said that the Federal Govt. came in and wrecked it. Figures.