August 13, 2015
Dear Sonoma Tourism Improvement District Board,
On behalf of the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art (SVMA) Board of Directors we are
pleased to submit this grant proposal to the Sonoma Tourism Improvement District
Corporation for your consideration of funding for promotion and marketing of our
museum exhibitions and programs during the tourism “off-season” months of
January, February and March 2016.
Enclosed please find:
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Grant Proposal
Sonoma Valley Museum of Art Board Roster
Two Exhibition Reviews
Exhibition Postcard announcements 2014-2015
Please let us know if you need any further information. Thank you for your
consideration of our grant request.
Sincerely,
Kate Eilertsen
Executive Director
Sonoma Valley Museum of Art Proposal to
Sonoma Tourism Improvement District Corporation
Date: August 13, 2015
Contact: Kate Eilertsen, Executive Director, keilertsen@svma.org 707-939-7862x12
Proposal Summary
The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art (SVMA) Board of Directors respectfully requests
a grant of $5,000 from the Sonoma Tourism Improvement District Corporation to
help support promotion and marketing of the museum’s exhibitions and public
programs during the months of January through March 2016. Since its founding
seventeen years ago, the museum has attracted tremendous local, county and
national appeal through its marketing and advertising efforts, while enhancing the
cultural life of Sonoma and attracting visitors to the area.
The museum presents rotating exhibitions of modern art with consistent, record
breaking attendance every year. Visitors come from all regions of California and
beyond who stay in Sonoma hotels, enjoy the restaurants, shops and tasting rooms
as part of their visit. The exhibition schedule features artists in a range of disciplines,
who are local as well as from the Bay Area, throughout the United States and the
world. By utilizing these artists’ networks the Museum is able to reach a
geographically diverse audience and attract new visitors to Sonoma throughout the
year.
The museum has a strong reputation for providing exceptional exhibitions that have
featured internationally recognized artists including Richard Diebenkorn, Eleanor
Coppola, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Pablo Picasso, Francisco de Goya, Robert
Rauschenberg and William T. Wiley. It also presents important emerging artists,
including Eric Castro, Peter Hassen and Jane Baldwin.
During the Sonoma tourism “off-season” SVMA will be presenting unique and
important exhibitions including Modern Twist: Contemporary Japanese Bamboo Art
which features the mastery of the supreme technical skills inherent in the artists
innovative and beautiful sculptures. Along with Modern Twist will be a second
exhibition, which presents contemporary calligraphy: Thomas Ingmire:
Contemporary Calligraphy. Ingmire is one of the most prominent practitioners of
contemporary calligraphy today and is based in San Francisco. His beautiful
collaboration of writing and painting shows his ability to transgress the boundaries
of painting as well as the beauty of language. Contemplative Elements: Danae Mattes
and Frances McCormack along with Between Technology and Nature: Works by
Courtney Egan and David Sullivan will also be seen during this period. These artists
explore nature’s elements using paint, clay, animation, sound and photography.
In addition to its exhibition program, the museum hosts a variety of events and
public programs that attract attendees from the greater Bay Area. We anticipate this
exhibition and its complementary events and programs, will draw hundreds of out
of town visitors, who will patronize Sonoma hotels, restaurants and local businesses.
Some of the programs currently planned for January-March include:
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Two “Artist Conversations” with Danae Mattes, Frances McCormack,
Courtney Eagan and David Sullivan.
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Performance with San Francisco based Left Coast Chamber Ensemble in the
museum
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Lecture by Art Historian and Curator of Modern Twist, Andreas Marks
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Art History Lecture Series-Japanese Art of the 2oth Century with historian
Ann Wiklund
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Contemporary Calligraphy lecture by artist Thomas Ingmire
Advertising, Marketing and Promotion
Requested funding from the Sonoma Improvement District Corporation will
augment the marketing and advertising efforts for the museum. Funding will
support SVMA’s marketing and advertising program that includes the design,
production, distribution and mailing of four-color postcards and exhibition
invitations sent to over 1,000 members, community partners, media and out of town
contacts. Funding will also support SVMA’s print advertising in local and national
newspapers, magazines and tourism publications. Exhibition advertising is placed in
the San Francisco Arts Monthly, running in the San Francisco Chronicle and New
York Times, and local papers including the Sonoma Index Tribune and Sonoma
Valley Sun. General museum advertising is placed in visitor guides and maps
produced by the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau.
The location of SVMA, one half block up from the historic Plaza makes it an ideal
visitor destination. The museum markets its exhibitions and events to out of town
attendees through advertising, email marketing, its website and the distribution and
mailing of collateral materials. In recent years, the museum has targeted its
advertising and increased its distribution and mailing lists significantly. The
museum’s presence online continues to improve with our interactive, visitor
friendly website, an active Facebook page and advertisements using social media
(Google ads). We are increasingly using social media platforms for outreach,
program updates and announcements including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest,
Instagram and YouTube where we post videos and/or information reaching an
increasing number of viewers. SVMA exhibitions receive substantial word of mouth
press, and consistently receive reviews in local and regional papers and visitor
centers websites.
We collect visitor information through feedback from Museum front desk
volunteers, docents and by tracking zip codes. We always keep count of the number
of visitors and program attendees. This information tell us that we have increased
visitor numbers from a variety of zip codes and a variety of cultural and ethnic
backgrounds and guests from Japan, France, Spain, England, Cuba and South
America.
About Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art is a magnet of creative energy and cultural
inspiration with exhibitions and educational programs that engage the community in
the art and ideas of our time, encouraging curiosity and innovation.
–SVMA mission statement
By the mid-1990’s Sonoma had been known for its rich cultural life, but was in need
of a central gathering place where artists, collectors, residents and visitors of all
ages could gather to broaden and deepen their experience in the arts and build a
more cohesive arts community. SVMA was founded and incorporated in 1998 to
meet this need. That same year, SVMA held five exhibitions, attracting more than
700 members, 100 volunteers, 18 school groups and 3,000 visitors. Community
involvement and receptiveness to this new cultural center led to the purchase of the
current facility at 551 Broadway and a renovation of the building to meet
professional museum standards.
Today, with a membership of over 1,000, SVMA is the largest membership based
organization in the North Bay region. The museum presents 5-8 exhibitions a year.
Educational opportunities are available to adults and youth through lectures, handson classes, public programs, art history classes, a travel program, docent tours and
an out reach program to Sonoma Valley elementary schools. Since 2000, the Sonoma
Valley Museum of Art has been the leading source of arts education through its
successful Art Rewards the Student (A.R.T.S.) program. Based on the understanding
that arts education has a significant effect on social, cognitive and language skills,
the A.R.T.S. program sends skilled teaching artist into all Sonoma Valley Elementary
Schools to provide innovative studio art instruction to all 4th and 5th grade students.
Conclusion
It is our sincere hope that Sonoma Tourism Improvement District Corporation will
partner with Sonoma Valley Museum of Art to promote our exhibition and program
activities during the tourism “off-season” months of January, February and March
2016. Thank you for your consideration.