In a commentary in The Huffington Post, Michael Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, calls for a federal arts policy to replace what he calls a “helter-skelter approach” to cultural financing.

Mr. Kaiser writes that nine government agencies provide support for the arts, but “there is literally no coordination between these agencies on their arts spending, nor is there any central governing philosophy or policy. … This cannot yield the most effective or efficient results.”

The solution, he argues, lies not in establishing a “Ministry of Culture” but in investing authority to a single White House entity to pursue common, multi-agency policies on arts education, cultural diplomacy, and sustaining arts organizations.

In other arts news, Washington’s Shakespeare Theatre Company will furlough its 100-plus staff members in staggered terms over the summer, The Washington Post reports. Stacy Shaw, marketing director for the troupe, said it is “trimming back” amid a slump in subscription sales.

Also, a Los Angeles Times editorial questions the Orange County Museum of Art’s recent sale of 18 paintings to an unnamed collector for $963,000. The Times said the deal “flouted several venerated traditions of the museum world” and that the works could have fetched far more money.

(Free registration is required to view the Post and Times articles.)