"The DCCAH", or "What Rich Culture?"

( click for gigantic version)

The district of columbia commission on the arts and humanity.

here is the first sentence from the about section on their website:

Since 1968, the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH) has developed and promoted local artists, organizations, and activities.


one would think that sentence would guide them to foster and ultimately choose local artists for public commissions. Sometimes they do, ( i felt the panda-mania, didn't you? I wanted to party like an animal!) but when it comes to a project that may be the most visible, the Bridge Tenders House Project on the 14th street bridge, no DC artist ( that applied ) was deemed worthy enough to represent our powerful city.

There were five finalists hailing from Baltimore, Tucson, Providence, New York and Brookline Mass.

It seems to me that the DCCAH fails to live up to what they say they are "about". From the about section again:

The Mission of the DCCAH is to provide grants, programs and education activities that encourage diverse artistic expressions and learning opportunities so that all District of Columbia residents and visitors can experience the rich culture of our city.

Is the rich culture of our city to be found in Rhode Island?
Seems contrary to their stated mission, no?


It very well may be, that the finest artists in the country (or those that applied) do not live in dc. But, what then is the "rich culture of our city", if it's not good enough to represent our city?

Perhaps our artists are really section 8 artists, and the mission of the DCCAH should be changed to promote the "welfare culture of our city", since the riches are buried beyond our borders.


It's quite sad when none of us are good enough for our own city.