When Art Changed a City: Michael Dorf on the Making and Legacy of Chicago’s First Cultural Plan
Arts Administration & Policy
In 1986, Chicago became the first U.S. city to create a cultural plan shaped by its residents. Directed by Michael Dorf under Mayor Harold Washington, the plan redefined how Chicago understood the arts. Nearly forty years later, this conversation with Michael Dorf revisits that landmark moment to explore how community voices reshaped access to the arts and what it means for cities to truly “listen” today.
About the Speaker:
Michael Dorf is a nationally recognized authority on cultural planning, arts policy, and political strategy. He directed Chicago’s first Cultural Plan under Mayor Harold Washington, the first U.S. plan shaped through grassroots participation, and later chaired the Stewardship Committee for the 2012 Plan. A former Special Counsel to U.S. Representative Sidney R. Yates, Mr Dorf has helped shape national arts funding policy and continues to advise public officials and cultural organizations on arts and nonprofit law.