Picture Perfect Opportunities

Have you ever wanted to produce a new brochure or other marketing piece but didn’t have exactly the right photo?  You could hire a professional photographer, but that takes money most arts groups don’t have in the budget. Fortunately, there are a couple of resources you may find helpful.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) maintains an extensive photo library of high quality photographs taken for the department, as well as for state travel/tourism publications such as Texas Highways magazine. Copies and color separations are available for the cost of reproducing the image. Shots of many Texas museums and arts festivals are included in the library. Visit the website or contact Ann Cook at 512/486-5838 to learn more about this great resource.

Cadillac Ranch Photo Courtesy of TxDOT

Texas Tourism (Office of the Governor Economic Development & Tourism Division) also offers access to a variety of photos used in tourism promotions. Many of these images may be used at no cost. To learn more go to http://tximages.picturetrax.com.

Photo of Luis Jimenez Sculpture at El Paso Museum of Art Courtesy of TxDOT

Both of these resources make it possible to include high-quality photos and images in your marketing materials and on your websites. The Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) has made use of these photography resources, and you will find images from the TxDOT library on TCA’s website.

October is National Arts and Humanities Month

Americans for the Arts is asking arts organizations and individuals to join them in recognizing National Arts and Humanities Month (NAHM).  National Arts and Humanities Month presents the opportunity for everyone to experience the arts this October, whether it’s attending the theater or other cultural event, taking a ceramics or dance class, or singing songs with your kids. NAHM encourages all of us to recognize the many ways the arts and culture enhance our lives. Check out highlights of this year’s event on the NAHM website.

National Arts and Humanities Month - Participate Locally

Texas Tourism Receives Awards

The Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism Division recently announced that Texas Tourism was presented with two prestigious Mercury Awards for Best Broadcast TV and Best Overall Program, which includes the advertising campaign, TravelTex.com website and Texas on Tour.  The awards were presented during the U.S. Travel Association’s Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO).

The NCSTD Mercury Awards were created in 1985 by the U.S. Travel Association’s National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD) to recognize members for excellence and creative accomplishment in state/territory tourism marketing and promotion.

“We are honored that our program was selected for such distinctive awards,” said Julie Chase, Chief Marketing Officer for the Texas Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism Division. “Our team worked hand-in-hand with TM Advertising to develop a tremendously successful campaign for the Lone Star State.”

Julie Chase, Chief Marketing Officer for the Texas Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism Division

In related news, the Texas Tourism 2009 Market Briefings will be held today at the Texas Travel Industry Association (TTIA) Travel Summit.  Check out their website at www.travel.state.tx.us for details.

October Arts Events Easy to Find in Texas

The month of October brings many arts events to Texas, including fairs, festivals, exhibitions, and performances.

No matter where you live in Texas, chances are you’ll have easy access to an Oktoberfest celebration featuring German food, drink and music. Texas’ rich German heritage explains the numerous Oktoberfest events across the Lone Star State.

Dancers at an Oktoberfest Celebration (Photo Courtesy of Texas Tourism)

Along with cooler temperatures, fall brings arts events in all disciplines throughout the state.  If you are interested in the literary arts, check out the Lone Star Storytelling Festival in Frisco, Texas Book Festival in Austin or the George West Storyfest in George West.  Worldfest in Addison allows you to experience a global festival without ever leaving the state and features performances by TCA Touring Arts Roster Artists Brave Combo.  Other diverse offerings include the Virsky Ukrainian National Dance Company in Dallas, the Chopin Music Festival in El Paso, and Peter and the Wolf in Galveston.

Brave Combo, TCA Touring Artists

Art events can be found in both rural and urban communities.  You may want to check out the Turkeyfest Celebration in Cuero, the Fire Ant Festival in Marshall, or the Rockport Seafair in Rockport.  Of course, there is always the State Fair of Texas in Dallas.

So where to you get details on these and hundreds of other events?  At www.traveltex.com in the “Activities and Events” area.  You can search events by a variety of criteria including Books and Literature, Ethnic Celebrations, Music and Concerts, Performing Arts, Visual Arts, and more. The TravelTex website makes it easy to find out what’s going on across the state.

The website also allows organizations to submit events for inclusion on the site.  It’s a great way for arts and cultural events to get free publicity and increased visibility for their events and performances.

TCA encourages everyone to make the most of the TravelTex website.  It’s a great resource for cultural tourists wanting to see what’s happening around the state.  It’s also a great way for arts and cultural organizations to build audiences and promote their events.

CraftTexas 2010 Call for Artists

The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft just announced its call for entry for CraftTexas 2010, the sixth in a series of juried exhibitions showcasing the best in Texas-made contemporary craft. The exhibition is open to artists currently residing in Texas who work in clay, fiber, glass, metal, wood and found/recycled materials.

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft - CraftTexas

This unique show provides Texas artists the opportunity to be considered for inclusion in major national museum and private collections. The exhibition is also intended to help the general public appreciate the depth and breadth of art being made in our own communities and across the state.

The entry fee is $35, and applications must be must be completed and submitted online via the CaFÉ^TM system at www.callforentry.org by March 1, 2010. For full details, visit www.crafthouston.org or www.callforentry.org. Questions may be emailed to crafttexas@crafthouston.org.

The craft arts play an important role in preserving and advancing the culture of our state. Texas’ craft artisans work in a wide variety of mediums, and they live and work in rural and urban communities throughout Texas. TCA’s Texas Original program showcases some of the best our state has to offer. You can find these artists and learn more about their work by visiting the Texas Original website which features a map to help travelers visit these artists in their studios. Additionally, portals to each individual artists’ website make it easy to view and purchase work by these talented artists.

Texas Original Logo

Texas Travel Industry Association Announces New President/CEO

The Texas Travel Industry Association (TTIA) recently announced that David Teel will succeed Paul Serff as its President/CEO at the end of this year. David has a long history with the Texas Commission on the Arts.  Prior to joining TTIA, David served as the Director of Tourism for the Governor’s Office of Economic Development and Tourism, one of TCA’s tourism industry partners.  David understands and appreciates the contributions our arts community makes to Texas tourism.

David Teel, Texas Travel Industry Association

Paul Serff, who has headed TTIA for the last 12 years, announced his plans to retire earlier this year. He will step down at the end of December.

TTIA’s annual Travel Summit will be held in Arlington, TX on September 27 – 30, 2009.  During Summit, the Texas Cultural and Heritage Tourism Council is scheduled to meet to discuss the upcoming Cultural and Heritage Tourism Seminar.  Be sure to save the date for the Seminar that will be held in April 2010 in Corpus Christi (details coming soon).

Texas Tourism Marketing Plan Opportunities

The FY 2010 Texas Tourism Marketing Plan is online at www.travel.state.tx.us. The plan details advertising, trade and public relations programs and cooperative opportunities for the new year.

"Texas. It's Like a Whole Other Country." logo

The FY 2010 Texas Tourism co-op advertising print plan is also now available online for you to view and start planning. Just click here to see the opportunities available for your destination. Co-op advertising is available on a first-come, first-serve basis and becomes available for purchase on September 29th at the TTIA Travel Summit in Arlington. If you are unable to attend Summit, you may purchase co-op insertions online starting October 1st.

Co-op print advertising partners may participate individually or as a group (three or six partner options) and may earn discounts by purchasing multiple insertions. There are over 160 publications from which to choose

The Public Relations and Travel Trade co-op opportunities are currently available for sign up here. Opportunities include participation in trade shows, sales and media missions, and familiarization tours.

Interested in advertising on TravelTex.com?  Just visit the co-op page on October 15th for more details on website advertising opportunities.

Cultural Tourism Educational Opportunities

If you’re looking for more information on how to develop and promote your arts venues to cultural tourists, there are some upcoming educational events you may want to check out.

The Texas Leadership Institute (TLI) presents The Tourism Equation: How Tourism + Your Town = A Strong Local Economy. The seminar will be held on Wednesday, September 16th at LCRA’s Riverside Conference Center in Bastrop, TX.

Attendees will learn how to work with travel writers and travel bloggers to promote their towns, create travel packages, use social media to market their destinations and develop partnerships. There will be interactive/online components to some of the sessions, so attendees should bring their laptops and take advantage of the Wi-Fi access.

You can register online for course #1304, and visit http://www.texasleadership.org for more information about Texas Leadership Institute

The Texas Travel Industry Association’s (TTIA) Travel Summit will be held in Arlington, TX on September 27 – 30, 2009. This annual event provides a great networking opportunity along with top-notch educational workshops. Topics range from marketing on a shoestring budget to email marketing strategies to using technology to build audiences to a briefing on the H1N1 flu. A complete agenda and registration information is available at www.ttia.org.

Texas Travel Industry Association Logo

On November 4^th, TCA executive director Gary Gibbs will be a featured speaker at TTIA’s tourism development workshop in Rockport. Gary’s presentation, titled Hey Big Spender: Facts About Arts Tourism, outlines the characteristics of a cultural tourist and ways to attract them to local communities. He’ll also discuss how to qualify for Texas’ official Cultural District Designation status and how to access other resources available from TCA. Workshop details are available on the TTIA website.

Gary Gibbs, Texas Commission on the Arts Executive Director

Galveston Artist Studio Tour

Galveston Island is hosting the 1^st Annual Artist Studio Tour presented by Artist Homestead Galveston Island.  The event runs from 1:00 to 5:00 on Saturday, Sept. 12^th.  Billed as “an event of revival and reflections,” the tour marks the first anniversary of Hurricane Ike.  Tickets are available online at www.galvestonhistory.org and at each studio on the tour.  The Galveston Historical Foundation in sponsoring the event.  Participating artists include Janet Y. Hassinger, Stephanie Thomas, Sallie Anderson, Jul Kamen, Gayle Reynolds, Rene Wiley, Virginia Starke, and Martha J. Terrill.

Revival and Reflections

TCA Announces Largest Grant Awards in Over 20 Years

Last week, the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) approved the investment of more than $5 million in grants to arts and cultural organizations statewide. These are the largest grants the agency has awarded in more than two decades.

TCA Logo

The reason for the increased grants budget is the passage of H.B. 2242 last session. That bill dissolves the Texas Cultural Endowment Fund. The bill stipulates that public funds in the Endowment will be placed in TCA’s operating budget and private funds will be returned to donors. The result is TCA’s grants budget is more than double from last year ($2.9 million in FY 2009 compared to $6 million in FY 2010).

You can view a complete list of grants awarded so far this year on TCA’s website. TCA will invest additional funds in the Arts Respond grant category throughout the coming year. For information on upcoming grant opportunities and deadlines, check out TCA’s Guide to Programs and Services.