Maine's creative economy council
Message from John Rohman, Chair

Déjà vu. Remember all the community visits that occurred prior to the successful Blaine House Conference on Maine's Creative Economy in May 2004? Well, many of those same communities will be hosting the newest round of visits that are part of Governor Baldacci's ongoing creative economy initiative.

The Governor has embraced the vision that was conveyed at the May 2004 conference and has, by Executive Order, established a permanent Maine Creative Economy Council. The full executive order can be found at the Governor's website.

All of the new council's agenda items relate to the work that we are involved in at the Maine Arts Commission. Some of the most important tasks set out for the council are creative economy asset mapping, public education and cultural tourism development.

Mapping Maine's creative economy assets is similar to creating a cultural directory for creative and cultural resources in the state. The asset mapping initiative is a direct result of the hard work the Maine Arts Commission has done, through its Discovery Research program, to promote cultural asset mapping over the past 10 years.

This edition of the MaineArtsMag is focused on arts in education, which has always been a strong emphasis within the agency. Not only does the Maine Arts Commission support Maine students in K-12 programs, but also through grants and partnerships with institutions of higher education such as the Maine College of Art, the University of Maine System and the extremely successful programs at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts (which you can learn more about by clicking here), Roundtop Center for the Arts and more. We are very fortunate in Maine that this list of quality programs could fill this entire page and more.

Cultural tourism development is certainly not the least of the tasks set before the Creative Economy Council. The arts and culture are being woven into the Maine Tourism Program in a more vital manner. Next to lobsters and lighthouses, we see Portland Museum of Art and the Farnsworth Art Museum, not to mention the American Folk Festival in Bangor and the Bates Dance Festival in Lewiston.

I believe what we are experiencing with the creative economy is a sea change in our thinking. As a state, we are recognizing all of our resources and putting them next to each other to advance the opportunities in the State of Maine. Clearly, the attractions that bring tourists into our state all year are now also being used to entice business interests and innovative workers.

Maine's beautiful seasons (yes all of them), our historic towns and cities, our cultural facilities, our skiing, biking and kayaking, all plug into the tourism appeal. Combine that with safe communities, excellent school systems and a way of life that other states only wish for, and we have a great story to tell for economic development. Arts and the Maine Arts Commission will continue to play a significant role as Maine works to realize its substantial creative economic potential.

As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, communities will again be hosting meetings on this topic. This time with a greater understanding of the concept and with an expectation of answers to questions posed last year. Notices about these meeting will be available online, and also through the creative economy listserve, which you can sign up for by clicking here.

Yes, the tasks put before the council are significant, but based on what we have accomplished so far we are confident is achievable. Thank you for your strong support in the recent past and for the support that I know will be forthcoming.

John M. Rohman
Chair