Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) is in disarray. At least 18 staff members—around 25% of the department—have left since Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed a former legislative aide, Clineé Hedspeth, to replace ousted Cultural Commissioner Erin Harkey last year. (In February, Harkey was named the new chief executive of Americans for the Arts.)
“The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events and Commissioner Clinée Hedspeth are committed to filling departmental vacancies and have successfully brought in new talent as positions are posted,” Bria Purdiman, the department’s deputy commissioner for marketing and communications, tells The Art Newspaper. “Our department continues to operate at a high level and remains intensely devoted to the Chicago arts and culture community.” Hedspeth did not respond to The Art Newspaper‘s inquiries.
In mid-March, DCASE announced the appointment of six new members to its Cultural Advisory Council, including Tony Karman, the president and director of Expo Chicago.
DCASE is based out of the Chicago Cultural Center, a neoclassical architectural treasure with Tiffany mosaics and stained-glass dome that was built to house the central library in 1897. It took over the entire building in 1991, and the majestic space was activated, under the leadership of the late Lois Weisberg, with free programs and exhibitions. As a visual art venue, it provides space for emerging local artists as well as important traveling exhibitions. For instance, it was the first institution to show the street photographer Vivian Maier’s work. While the Cultural Center is a vital hub, DCASE’s main mission is to provide arts programming throughout the city, and support artists and organisations with funding and professional development workshops.
With so many departures at DCASE, there is growing concern that the turmoil is affecting the department’s ability to do its job. There have been at least four formal complaints filed against the current commissioner that include, in part, allegations of bullying. There have been only two all-staff meetings since Hedspeth took charge, and one was virtual where the commissioner spoke for only two minutes.
“There has been no clear communication or strategy regarding the funding crisis we face,” says one current DCASE staffer who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal. “We are left without guidance on how to navigate this challenge, and that lack of direction is deeply concerning for our staff, community partners and cultural leaders.”
A new advocacy group, Artists for Chicago, has formed in response to the troubles at DCASE. On 14 April, the group delivered a letter with 270 signatures to Mayor Johnson that outlines concerns about the dysfunction at the department.
“Our sector depends on DCASE to be a partner in local government that is available and responsive to the community’s needs and a strong advocate for the economic and civic power of the arts,” the letter reads in part. “Last month marked the first anniversary of Clinée Hedspeth’s appointment as the City of Chicago’s Commissioner of DCASE. Over the last year, through revelations in the media, reports from DCASE staff and statements from the community, it has become evident that the urgent needs of the arts and cultural sector are not currently being met.”
Key ingredient in the art community’s ‘secret sauce’
The department has been a well-oiled machine for years, with a history of dynamic and informed leadership. The current situation has reached such a crisis point that leaders in the arts community are speaking out—through the letter to the mayor and other channels—largely in response to so many current and former department staff reaching out for advice.
“The first thing to note is that Chicago’s secret sauce is its arts community,” says Angelique Power, who spent nearly 40 years working in the arts in Chicago and now leads a foundation in Detroit. “It is the crackling energy that powers the 77 communities across the city. Every culture, every medium, traditional to contemporary. This is why the role of the Commissioner of Cultural Affairs is not an ordinary position that anyone can fill.”
Among the staffers pushed out in mid-December was Deputy Commissioner Jonah Zeiger, who had led the Chicago Film Office since 2022. That position, which also serves as a point of contact for crews, had not been filled as of this writing.
Zeiger commented on an opinion piece about DCASE in the Chicago Sun-Times in February by Elsa Hiltner, the programme director of Lawyers for the Arts, who posted it on LinkedIn.“Thank you for raising your voice and speaking out in support of the deeply important work that DCASE staff do every day to support the arts, culture, film and TV in Chicago,” Zeiger wrote. “Thank you for raising these concerns about the risk of disinvestment in our vibrant creative sectors.”
The staff exodus is problematic due to lost institutional knowledge and the slowness with which municipal job vacancies tend to be filled. A former high-ranking official in the city’s cultural scene said that losing people means losing everything they knew about how to do the job, including their relationships with disparate organisations. “If you are hired in any other culture-related job, you have to learn the ropes of the institution you are co-working with,” they said. “If you are hired by the city you have to learn how the city works.”
Still many ‘champions’ on staff
The cultural commissioner is an appointed position and Mayor Johnson had every right to change commissioners after coming into office, though no administration in the past has bothered to do so.
“There were a lot of questions, but it is the mayor’s prerogative to change commissioners, so we knew that was a possibility,” says Coya Paz, a writer and theatre director who chairs the department’s Arts Advisory Council. “Erin is well-respected… so a lot of people were very concerned about the shift and whether shifting commissioners meant a shift in priorities.” That concern, Paz adds, has been overblown. While there are problems with communication, a lack of clear vision and underdeveloped relationships in the communities, she says, many initiatives are doing well.
“There is a danger right now of creating what is a hostile relationship. I don’t think it needs to be that way. We do have an amazing scene,” Paz adds. “DCASE staff are champions. They are really working hard and a lot of initiatives are doing great. There is less staff, but [Hedspeth] has hired new people. She has assembled a good team.”
There is consensus within the department and beyond that the situation at DCASE can be turned around.“It is critical to honour the unwavering commitment of the staff who are there now,” Power says, “many of whom have been through multiple administrations. These are the people who continue to do the hard work each day, despite the uncertainty, turbulence and lack of clear direction caused by the current leadership. They are the ones who show up, even when the Commissioner does not. They are the ones filing complaints, speaking up when they can, and continuing to give everything they have—because they believe in this city and the arts community so deeply.”
