Julius Karash

Julius A. Karash is a freelance writer, editor and public relations person. He formerly was a business reporter for the Kansas City Star and executive editor of KC Business magazine. He devours business and economic news, and is keenly interested in the relationship between arts and economic development in the Kansas City area.

KC Maintains Some Arts Funding but Eliminates Office of Culture and Creative Services

After weeks of uncertainty, the Kansas City Council on March 26 approved a budget that maintains the city’s commitment to fund arts programs. At the same time, however, the Fiscal Year 2020-21 budget does not provide funding for the city’s Office of Culture and Creative Services (OCCS), which is being eliminated. Concerns over the city’s […]

April 1, 2020
0

Kansas City Performing Artists See Incomes Trending Upward, But Community Support is Needed More Than Ever

As new technologies wreak creative destruction in our nation’s workplaces, many Kansas City performing artists are making a good living doing what they love. For example, dancers at the peak of their careers can make between $1,200 to $1,500 a week at the Kansas City Ballet. But not everyone thinks that’s enough. “I wish I […]

March 12, 2020
0

KCI Airport Art Project Moves Ahead Led by Public Art Consultant Community Arts International

Representatives of the recently chosen public art consultant for the KCI single terminal project introduced themselves and asked for input at a Feb. 3 meeting of the city’s Municipal Art Commission. “We are in the process of reaching out,” said Elsa Cameron, president and chief curator of Community Arts International (CAI), a San Francisco-based nonprofit.

March 3, 2020
0

Municipal Art Commission Endorses KCI Public Art Consultant

Efforts to hammer out a public art selection process for the new Kansas City International Airport terminal advanced Jan. 14, when the Municipal Art Commission (MAC) voted to endorse a recommended consultant. MAC endorsed Community Arts International (CAI), a San Francisco-based nonprofit, as the public art consultant for the project. CAI was recommended in December […]

January 14, 2020
0

Amid Controversy and Opportunity, James Martin Enters the Picture as Kansas City’s New Public Art Administrator

James Martin, Kansas City’s new public art administrator, has accepted a big challenge amid high expectations. Martin was hired in October for the position that had been vacant since April 2018. He came onboard as controversy raged over the city’s One Percent for Art program and its application to the $1.5 billion Kansas City International […]

January 3, 2020
0

As an Older Generation Passes, Who Will Carry on Their Legacy of Art Philanthropy?

Marc Wilson, the former director and CEO of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, recalls a pivotal conversation that occurred at a meeting of museum supporters in the 1990s. “We were completely out of space, and were setting out to build the Bloch Building,” Wilson said. “Morton Sosland turned to Don Hall Sr. and said, ‘It’s our turn, for our generation.”

December 30, 2019
0