Posted by Steve Dietz on September 21, 2004 7:58 PM
Like the Valley itself, local philanthropy will be innovative
By Gordon Knox
Dana Gioia's recent essay (Perspective, Aug. 22) presented a timely challenge. Gioia compares Silicon Valley in the past 20 years with Florence or Flanders in the 14th and 15th centuries, during periods of global transformations in technology and finance.
But Gioia also asks where is the support for the arts that should flow from the wealth and vision of today's entrepreneurial leaders. He points to the absence of a world-class opera, orchestra or museum in San Jose as signs of a failed philanthropic spirit.
I disagree. Why would today's innovators recreate familiar institutions born centuries ago? Philanthropy will flow from Silicon Valley, and it will do so in ways that reflect and support the dexterity of thought that created the wealth in the first place.
We can expect that the cultural organizations emerging in Silicon Valley will themselves be innovative. The Valley's view is that innovation, exploration and expression are linked and that the confluence of technical, creative and scientific genius sustained and energized the global transformations initiated by the Valley.
The cultural terrain is not as bleak as Gioia believes. There are a number of hopeful developments, and it appears that the Valley is preparing to put its philanthropic money where its heart is -- into innovation, exploration and the re-integration of art and science.
San Jose is fortunate to have one of the nation's most talented public arts commissions, which is currently working on a large public art project at the new San Jose airport terminal.
Another hopeful example is the San Jose Museum of Art's initiative to open an entire building exploring the intersection of art and technology. In addition, the Tech Museum and Zero/One will bring the International Symposium of Electronic Arts to San Jose in 2006. Initiatives such as these suggest what the Valley's enduring philanthropic contributions will look like.
Not the largest, but perhaps the most striking example of the Valley's emerging cultural philanthropy is on a hillside in Saratoga. It is the result of extraordinary initiative, persistence and vision. A handful of passionate individuals and a wide group of supporters have built at Villa Montalvo the world's newest and perhaps finest facilities for an international artist residency program anywhere.
Artist residencies provide time and space for energetic, creative minds to develop their work, and the new $10 million facilities at Montalvo provide the ideal setting. They also embody the new philanthropy of the Valley. Artist residencies support the creative process by encouraging new collaborations. They provide an opportunity for creative minds to experiment, to return to an old problem, to turn to something new, to hunker down and focus, away from the distractions of daily life.
The international multi-disciplinary program at Montalvo places this creative brainpower in the cultural and technological context of one of the world's most diverse and creative communities and will provide connections to its businesses and educational and cultural institutions.
Gioia is correct, we should expect major cultural contributions to flow from the wealth of the Valley. It should surprise no one that cultural developments that first take hold here are those that support innovation and the creative process. As with technology, the global impact follows.
GORDON KNOX is director of the Sally and Don Lucas Artists Programs at Montalvo. He wrote this column for the Mercury News.
