Ventura City Council Candidates Arts Forum Invites Dialogue on Importance of the Arts to the Community, Oct. 5, 2011
"Speed Dating" format makes for unscripted interaction instead of canned answers

Ventura, CA - San Buenaventura Foundation for the Arts (SBFA), a non-profit organization that provides marketing support to performing and visual arts organizations in the Ventura area, will be hosting, for the seventh consecutive election cycle, the Ventura City Council Candidates Arts Forum on Wednesday, October 5, 2011, from 6:30-8:30pm. The event will be held at the Museum of Ventura County's Martin V. and Martha K. Smith Pavilion, 100 E. Main St., Ventura.

The Arts Forum has consistently been the most well-attended candidates' forum in the City since its launch in 1999. Hundreds of arts supporters have turned out each time, far out-stripping attendance at other forums. "The terrific attendance at these past forums is a telling indication of the level of support for the arts in Ventura," says Betsy Chess, President of SBFA. "Ventura bills itself as 'California's New Art City' and it is important to gauge the level of commitment new City Council candidates have to this ideal."

Nearly sixty different organizations representing the visual and performing arts from throughout Ventura County have lent their names in support of the Arts Forum along with co-sponsors Museum of Ventura County, and The VC Reporter.

This year, SBFA is reprising its successful "speed dating" format. After an opportunity for candidates to deliver a short statement on the importance of the arts, the audience will break up into groups around separate tables and the candidates will rotate among them. Each table will be hosted by a prominent artist or arts executive from City and County arts organizations. Confirmed table hosts include Margaret Travers, Executive Director of the Ventura County Arts Council, Donna Granata founder and Executive Director of Focus On the Masters, Josh Addison, founder of the Bell Arts Factory, and Karyl Lyn Burns, co-founder and Artistic Director of Rubicon Theatre Co., among other.

The arts organizations in the Ventura area recognize that city leaders are needed who will commit to the following principles: 1. A healthy arts community means a healthy economy. 2. Education in the arts enhances our children's lives. 3. The Arts improve the quality of life for all our citizens.

The Forum will provide an opportunity for the artistic community and city leaders to meet, mingle and share ideas. Refreshments and information on local arts organizations will be available.

Jordan Laby, Founder and Chairman of the Board of the Foundation, sees this kind of direct approach on behalf of the arts community as a model for political action which could be replicated across the country. For additional information, contact Sharon Taylor, Director of Operations and Community Outreach, SBFA at (805) 312-4405 or
e-mail: info@venturaarts.org.