Triangle arts in 2009: Still thriving

In a lousy economy, the arts could be the first to go. But 2009 seems to promise that they will continue to thrive in the Triangle.

The cultural landscape will grow, literally, with major construction projects wrapping up and others in the works. Innovative shows are coming.

And there are signs that policymakers will bring renewed commitment to redefining the arts as an economic engine and finding creative funding.

It won't be easy -- many organizations don't have strong endowments, forcing them to rely on short-term fundraising and the hope of selling enough tickets. Yet as far as we can see, the Triangle is in no danger of becoming a cultural wasteland.

Here are some changes in the landscape:

Raleigh rolls with the punches

Two years ago the N.C. Museum of Art in Raleigh broke ground on a striking new galleries building. It's finally taking shape and should be finished by the end of the summer, but it won't open until April 2010.

Long overdue for a makeover, the Frank Thompson Building at N.C. State University is expected to wrap up renovation by the fall semester. The building, where Benny Goodman once played, will open with a new sound and lighting system for what will be its plush main stage and black-box theaters.

The crashing housing market took a toll on what was to be a new building with condos, shops and a visual arts center in downtown Raleigh's warehouse district. Instead, backers of the Contemporary Art Museum scaled back their ambitions in favor of remaking an old warehouse as a gallery and classrooms. So far they have raised more than $3 million toward a $5 million goal, and construction could begin in late April.

Still up in the air: an outdoor amphitheater for concerts in downtown Raleigh near the new convention center.

Durham gets cooler

It seems there has been a steady shift in Triangle culture toward Durham, now home to a big, new performing arts center and a budding downtown gallery and stage scene.

While the CAM multiuse development never got off the ground in Raleigh, a more ambitious project did in the Bull City with the Golden Belt complex: seven acres of artists' studios, lofts and retail in a restored textile mill. If it weathers the economy, look for some interesting work to come out of the Belt, beginning with Friday's timely exhibit "The Bailout Biennial." It's the kind of nimble response to cultural and political events for which the complex hopes to be known.

Government giveth?

France and Germany recently increased their cultural budgets -- any chance of it happening here?

Well, President-elect Barack Obama (who apparently reads poetry) included increased support for the arts in his campaign platform. (Novelist Michael Chabon, stage director Hal Prince and violinist Pinchas Zukerman were on his advisory team.) Last month, music legend Quincy Jones said he hoped Obama would appoint a secretary of the arts, which prompted an online petition drive in support of that idea.

In North Carolina, the Department of Cultural Resources has a new director. We don't know Greensboro fundraiser Linda Carlisle's plans yet, but she'll be supervising the N.C. Arts Council, which will distribute more than $7 million to local artists and programs this year. Last month, the council released a strategic plan that recommends tripling investment in the arts.

On a local level, Chapel Hill will have two smaller public art projects finished this year in advance of a major sculpture by Mikyoung Kim that will be finished next year, thanks to the city's Percent for Art assessment on development.

On the arts horizon

One of the highlights in area museums this year will be "The Record" at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, exploring the culture of vinyl discs and the artists who use them. Artists include Laurie Anderson, Jean-Michel Basquiat, David Byrne and Jasper Johns. The museum commissioned several works for this show, resulting in some eye-popping concepts. That starts in October.

The N.C. Symphony's collaboration with Durham's Branford Marsalis is expected to be released on CD early this year.

Next month, the Carolina Ballet will again team with the Ciompi Quartet and bring to town Jerome Robbin's "Fancy Free" for the first time.

The Opera Company of North Carolina will present three Italian operas: "Cinderella" in February, "I Pagliacci" in September and "Rigoletto" in October, and an outdoor concert at the N.C. Museum of Art in May.

The New York Philharmonic plays at Memorial Hall at UNC-Chapel Hill in March, followed by the Bolshoi Ballet in June.

-- Craig Jarvis