Making Waves Blog

For more than 20 years, Heather Hallenberg has been “the best friend small arts ever had.” Heather has consistently lead from behind to foster momentum and change.

ArtWorks’ Summer Celebration took place on Friday, August 5 at Union Hall, celebrating the murals and projects created and in progress over 2016.

I was delighted to see Cincinnati arts organizations jump on the Pokémon GO bandwagon last week and encourage players to come inside to visit Pokéstops and collect characters. Pyramid Hill and the Cincinnati Art Museum were two enterprising cultural destinations that embraced the game. In the case of Pyramid Hill, they were rewarded with an 18 percent increase in visitors!

The Cincinnati Opera, with "Fellow Travelers," is just the latest of our region’s amazing arts assets to shine the national spotlight on our region.

CAALA is letting convention attendees know about all the amazing arts experiences exploring the African American experience that are happening while they're in Greater Cincinnati and throughout the next year.

Have your cake and eat it, too, when concert:nova ends its 2015-16 season July 19 on a sweet note with "Bon Appetit!"

Started as a wine promotion in select restaurants downtown, ArtsWave’s Toast to the Arts campaign has grown into a year-round, city-wide campaign by cocktail lounges, breweries and restaurants that invite guests to enjoy Greater Cincinnati’s finest libations while supporting the arts that make the region amazing. In July, Taste of Belgium and Fifty West Brewery each will Toast to the Arts.

June is almost gone, summer is heating up, and there’s no more time to waste. Here are five arts events to do – all supported with the generosity of tens of thousands of donors to the ArtsWave Community Campaign – while the days are still long.

LUMENOCITY, the annual light projection festival accompanied by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, returns Aug. 5-7. Tickets go on sale July 5, so we spoke with Sherri Prentiss, vice president of marketing at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, to get the inside scoop on the fourth and final LUMENOCITY.

Conventions for the NAACP and the Church of God in Christ will bring thousands of people to Cincinnati in July, and the banners that welcome them will feature the work of local artists Annie Ruth and Joyce Phillips Young.

More than 40 arts organizations helping to build a more vibrant economy and connected community across Greater Cincinnati will receive operating support grants thanks to the thousands of contributors to the 2016 ArtsWave Community Campaign, chaired by Jill Meyer and Awadagin Pratt.

Diverse audiences start from a culture of diversity. That was the message delivered byDonna Walker-Kuhne, a national arts marketing and community engagement expert, to 100 Greater Cincinnati arts and culture leaders who attended an ArtsWave workshop on leveraging the arts to bridge cultural divides.

Art, artists, and the act of engaging in the arts can build understanding between people who are fundamentally speaking different languages. And if that is true, then the work of artists and arts organizations has never been more important, and increasing opportunities for all people to engage in the arts has never been more critical.

The oldest baseball team in the country – our beloved Redlegs – and the oldest united arts fund in the country – yours truly, ArtsWave – are at it again.

Last week, I had the opportunity to present two award checks to individuals in our community making a difference in the arts. Honoring the annual Sach Prize Fund winners made me stop and think about the power to make a difference. The power a Life Plan can inspire.

Through a collaboration with Music Theatre International and iTheatrics of New York City, Educational Theatre Association has created JumpStart Theatre, a three-year pilot program to start and support theater programs in middle schools that have none.

For their artistic achievements, particularly in the area of social justice, conductor James Conlon and writer Kathy Wilson have been awarded the 2015 Sachs Fund Prize.

Procter & Gamble has earned national recognition as a BCA 10: Best Businesses Partnering with the Arts in America honoree for 2016 by Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education.

Ensuring a thriving cultural mix and a diverse artistic menu is a powerful differentiator for our region. And it’s this impressive mix, supported by tens of thousands of contributors and volunteers, that will keep Cincinnati’s arts scene at the forefront of innovation for the next century and beyond. Find out how ArtsWave is making sure those things happen.

CincyDance! returns for the third year to Washington Park at noon May 18, when Cincinnati Ballet brings more than 1,000 third-graders out for an interactive dance performance. Read more to find out how you can be a part of the fun!