Arts & Culture: Au Revoir, Ken Kahn

Remembering the Former Director of the Greater Hartford Arts Council

By Mike McGarry

In these times, our friendship with Ken Kahn might seem a bit unusual. When Ken took over the Greater Hartford Arts Council in the 1990s, your reporter was serving as Hartford City Councilman.

Ken, who passed away last month, was a proud liberal Democrat, having locked horns with many conservative office-holders who did not see the arts as an important part of public policy. This author was, and is, a conservative Republican, pushing for low taxes, sufficient police and economic development. How did this small town, Irish Catholic conservative end up with a buddy who was Jewish, liberal and Brooklyn native who traveled the world?

Well, we did agree, enthusiastically, about the importance of cultural tourism as an asset in improving the lives of Greater Hartford residents and as an economic driver for creating investment and jobs in both the city and surrounding towns.

Action in our part of Connecticut — concerts, historical sites, art shows, live theater, movies –(Ken once said Hartford had a constant film festival going), brought customers to the restaurants, hotels and even retail shops in Hartford and the suburbs. Promotion for all this helped newspapers, radio, TV and social media. Ken saw all this through the prism of his experiences in Maryland, Florida, Texas and Ireland. By raising significant sums for the Greater Hartford Arts Council, he was able to infuse arts organizations, large and small, with the cash to allow them to stretch their aims way past expectations.

The best example of the Ken Kahn magic is the Lincoln Sculpture Walk along Hartford’s riverfront. Working with Joe Marfuggi, then CEO of Riverfront Recapture, Ken was able to get Lincoln Financial to invest $500,000 in a series of artworks based on Lincoln’s life, ideas and beliefs. The sculptures are still there, and still delighting a wide host of hotels guests, convention attendees, school children and attendees of Riverfront’s many events. Your servant even once officiated at a wedding that used one of the sculptures as a backdrop!

“By raising significant sums for the Greater Hartford Arts Council, he was able to infuse arts organizations, large and small, with the cash to allow them to stretch their aims way past expectations.”

Memories of an early conversation come to mind when Ken was advised that his legacy would be best remembered for investments that could stand the test of time and would be used for generations.He took that task to heart, convincing his board and corporate supporters that public art was vitally important to the region’s well-being. As a result, first class artwork was installed all over the region and is enjoyed to this day, 20 years later.

Ken was a true gentleman, growing the community through art quietly and easily, never patting himself on the back. It’s not an easy job to raise money for the arts with all the other needs and wants constantly on the public mind.

His style was best represented by the “Bow Tie Club,” a loose (no budget, bylaws or staff) gathering of friends and associates, most of whom became supporters of his various efforts.

Although he might mind this comparison, we conservatives say, “We don’t need another Reagan, we just need people who would do what Ronnie would do.” The same applies to Kenneth Kahn, 1941 – 2022. Rest in well-deserved peace, old friend.

(Mike McGarry, a former Republican Hartford City Councillor, is a contributing writer to The Hartford News where this column appeared on October 6th: http://hartfordpublications.com )