Mixed Media

Jane Chu discusses arts in America

Jane Chu, former chair of the National Endowment for the Arts and now an arts advisor to PBS, discusses the state of the arts in America, as well as women in arts and leadership, in the keynote presentation at the Women of Distinction leadership initiative presented by Santa Fe Pro Musica, Lensic Performing Arts Center, and New Mexico PBS on Sunday, Nov. 21, at the Lensic Performing Arts Center (211 W. San Francisco St.).

Chu said that in her prepared remarks, she will talk about the nonprofit philanthropic sector of society, in which she has spent most of her professional life. “It’s not just a single concert or a single performance or a single exhibition or a single artist. It’s how did that philanthropic nonprofit sector create an environment not only where arts could thrive but where arts could be connected to the community and in so many different ways,” she said. During her four-year tenure at the NEA, which ended in 2018, she visited all 50 states and found that people expressed their different perspectives through art no matter where they lived. “The arts are everywhere. When you’ve seen one community, you’ve only seen one community. When you’ve seen one state, you’ve only seen one state.”

Following her address, Chu is joined by Thomas O’Connor, music director of Santa Fe Pro Musica, to talk about women in the arts. The Women of Distinction Leadership Initiative is inspired by Pro Musica’s Women Composers Project, which aims to bring attention to underrepresented voices in classical music. Chu’s talk begins at 5 p.m. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online at ticketssantafe.org or by calling the Lensic box office at 505-988-1234. — Jennifer Levin