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When Art Changed a City: Michael Dorf on the Making and Legacy of Chicago’s First Cultural Plan
When Art Changed a City
In 1986, Chicago became the first U.S. city to create a cultural plan shaped by its residents. Developed under Mayor Harold Washington and directed by Michael Dorf, Chicago’s First Cultural Plan redefined the city’s relationship with the arts, treating culture as public infrastructure and inviting thousands of Chicagoans to imagine how art could serve civic life.
Nearly forty years later, this conversation with Michael Dorf, the plan’s director, returns to that landmark moment to reflect on how community voices reshaped access to the arts and what it means for cities to truly “listen” today.
About Michael Dorf
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 citywide plan in the U.S. shaped through grassroots community input, and later chaired the Stewardship Committee for the city’s 2012 Cultural Plan. Earlier in his career, Michael Dorf served as Special Counsel to U.S. Representative Sidney R. Yates, helping to shape national arts funding policy. A practicing attorney, he has extensive experience in nonprofit, election, and arts law and has advised numerous public officials and cultural organizations.
Hosted at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Free admission. All visitors to SAIC must show a state-issued ID.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/3329181-0
Booking: https://go.evvnt.com/3329181-2
