New local arts campaign provides daily online content

The Whatcom Arts Project is a new initiative involving more than 30 nonprofits, venues and organizations from Whatcom County’s vibrant arts scene. The campaign is providing free, daily online content to help ensure that county residents continue to have access to the arts during the statewide stay-home order.

The Whatcom Arts Project created its new Facebook page, facebook.com/whatcomartsproject, on March 19 and shared its first post on March 29, a video of the Bellingham Symphony Orchestra’s music director playing Bach on guitar.

Since then, the page has shared content from the Jazz Center of Bellingham, local filmmakers, Western Washington University’s Western Gallery, the Pickford Film Center, the Cascadia International Women’s Film Festival, the Jansen Art Center, the Downtown Bellingham Partnership and other local arts institutions and supporters.

In just a few days, the new Facebook page earned more than 1,300 likes and followers. As growth continues, the new campaign will keep sharing the “gift” of free online performances, interactive tours, classes, narratives and other arts experiences from local artists, musicians, actors, storytellers, dancers and other performers.

“The main idea was the idea of this being a gift,” explained Valerie Dalena, who helped organize the new campaign. “It’s a way of telling people: You supported us for so long, so this is what we can do to support you.”

Dalena said the idea for a new collective arts campaign had been floating around for quite some time. “I know that people have made efforts to bring the arts community together several times, and it just doesn’t quite happen, because people are busy,” she said. “Everyone who’s running an arts organization has a lot on their plate.”

Dalena is on the advisory board of the Cascadia International Women’s Film Festival, and the idea for a joint initiative came up again when the board met around March 11 to discuss what to do about their own festival, which was supposed to take place from April 16 to 19 in Bellingham and has now been postponed.

John Purdie, interim executive director of the Mount Baker Theatre, and Dan Larner, a member of Cascadia’s board of directors, quickly jumped on board. So did Gail Ridenour, executive director of the Bellingham Symphony Orchestra; Alex Bruner, founder of Bellingham digital marketing agency Intellitonic; Annette Bagley, director of marketing for Bellingham’s tourism bureau; Shu-Ling Hergenhahn-Zhao, one of the founders of the Sylvia Center for the Arts; and many others.

A Zoom conference call took place with about 60 participants from local libraries, arts organizations and WWU. Following the call, a Facebook page was created, a name was chosen and a logo was designed. “We were trying to come up with something short and snappy that really stated our mission,” Dalena said.

Meanwhile, mural artist Gretchen Leggitt contributed artwork. Organizers also put together a calendar, consisting of daytime educational content and an evening program for stay-at-home date nights and family time. To view the calendar of upcoming content, visit bellingham.org/whatcom-arts-project.

Dalena said she hopes the Whatcom Arts Project will continue to thrive even after the stay-home order is lifted and life gradually returns to normal. While the magic of gathering together in a theater, concert hall or gallery can never be equaled, she said the project will explore new ways to present recorded and interactive presentations, help the local arts community engage in cross-promotion and market the Bellingham area as an arts destination. “It will be a great way for us to continue to work together,” she said.