21 May 2007

Community-Engaged art research

Three to refer to:

IMAGINE: An External Review of the Canada Council for the Arts’
Artists and Community Collaboration Fund
by Laurie McGauley (February, 2006) click here

The City of Rich Gate: Research and Creation within Community-Engaged Arts Practices by Rita L. Irwin, Principal Investigator, Ruth Beer (Emily Carr Institute for Art and Design), Kit Grauer (CUST), Stephanie Springgay (Penn State), and Gu Xiong (UBC Fine Arts), Co-Investigators (2004-2007) click here

Whose voice is this, anyway? Exploring Artistic Control and Issues of Ownership in Community Arts Practice by Douglas David Durand click here

R

18 May 2007

The Nature of the Beast: Cultural Diversity and the Visual Arts Sector.

There's a new book out called The Nature of the Beast: Cultural Diversity and the Visual Arts Sector by Richard Hylton, a UK curator and art critic. It's a a study of diversity policies in UK arts between 1976 and 2006. The Spiked Review of Books reports it to be a "thoughtful, thorough and searing critique of the introduction of divisiveness into the visual arts in England" click here to read the full review.

Looks like a good book to read alongside its US counterpart The Trouble with Diversity: How we learned to love identity and ignore inequlity by Walter Benn Michaels.

-R

17 May 2007

Speaking up, speaking about

The recent reading I've been doing about artists and artists' voices was mostly published in the 70s - views of critics, views of artists, views of scholars. Yesterday on New York Sun's website, Kate Taylor published Artist's Own Words Can Drown Out Scholars', raising the question of roles in speaking:

The deluge of available information on American artists from the 1960s on
is both a blessing and a curse to art historians. Since the 1960s, most artists
have been audiotaped or videotaped talking about their work; because of changes
in how they are trained, artists have become increasingly sophisticated in
talking about their work and cooperating with critics to shape the
interpretation of it. But where does this leave the historian?

Not only is this an issue about who is or feels entitled speak about art and artists, or who can hold the attention of listening ears, but also, what is the current-day role of an artist and a system of people that surround artists (critics, presenters, historians, scholars, managers, funders, etc)? In an environment in which people speak for themselves (reality-tv led/followed), what is the place of disciplinary expertise in a network system of art? And what of the emerging problem of 'qualification overinflation' - what results is a confusion in conferrance and entitilement.

Ongoing determinations about what makes a dance artist 'professional' (and what professionalism is) fuels a whole other set of related questions.

Rolling it all around my mind...

15 May 2007

Flexible Management Models report

Jane Marsland created a report on Flexible Management Models for the Canada Council in 2005. It offers some material to think about when feeding back to the Council's stragetic plan, and their questions about it.

Find the whole report: click here.

Here's the briefest excerpt.
Three critical aspects emerged from the review:

1. Nonformal or alternative producing entities require new supporting administrative and management structures.
2. The increasing deficit of trained administrators, managers, producers, agents must have training/development/mentoring programs in place to alleviate the impending crisis.
3. Changing the ‘institutional lens’ as the primary way of seeing arts organizations – for both the funders and artists, will take time and the building of trust.
- R

14 May 2007

Department of Canadian Heritage's 2007/08 priorities

The federal Department of Canadian Heritage put out a report on their cultural priorities.

Click to see: 2007-2008 Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) Provides Further Clues to Federal Government’s Cultural Policy

Here are some key excerpts from the report:

Priority - Canada's Cultural Interests Abroad

The arts and cultural industries play a vital role in our economy, engage Canadians, and
represent the face of Canada abroad. The Department has identified three key initiatives that
collectively serve to promote Canada’s cultural interests abroad.
These include:

  • taking an active role in Canadian trade policy, delivering the cultural trade development program, sharing Canada’s expertise in cultural trade with developing countries and expanding on an international level to strengthen industry at home;
  • promoting the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, an instrument that reaffirms the right of countries to take measures in support of culture, while recognizing the economic nature of cultural goods and services; and
  • managing Canada’s participation in international expositions - events that promote Canadian interests and strengthen bilateral business relations with host countries.

Priority - An Inclusive and Participatory Society

Canada’s ability to leverage the benefits of diversity depends on its success at ensuring that all citizens have the opportunity to participate economically, socially, politically and culturally in Canada. The Department aims to identify and work towards addressing the barriers to full participation in Canadian society through targeted interventions.

Canada Council is all ears

The Canada Council for the Arts has a discussion paper out called "Creating our Future" and it's looking for feedback.

Don't be slow about it - they want to hear back by July.

It's a strategic plan, with questions imbeded. A historical overview is provided, for a bit of depth.
Read it with a thoughtful mind... it's policy in the making.

http://www.50.canadacouncil.ca/Downloads/Discussion_paper.pdf

Artists as entrepreneurs

There was a conference on social theory, politics and the arts (the 32nd Annual STP&A Meeting) held in Vienna in July 2006 with some heafty topics. Going through some of the transcripts (I wasn't there for the conference) I found this one quite interesting, it's by Elmar D. Konrad. Artists as Entrepreneurs acknowledges the skills, talents, and contributions of artists to society, as entrepreneurs. It's a pdf done in the format of powerpoint. Read the document at www.culture.info/images/stories/konrad.pdf.

The main conference listing website is stpa.culture.info/listings... it's worth a look.

03 May 2007

Building Bridges - Strengthening Provincial Government and Community Voluntary Sector Relationships in British Columbia

Building Bridges - Strengthening Provincial Government and Community Voluntary Sector Relationships in British Columbia
This is a paper that addresses the volunteering sector - related to but different from the non-profit sector. Sometimes they get confused, and also confusing.
Anyways, as this paper says, despite the significant role of the community voluntary sector in society and economy, and the vast numbers of community organizations delivering public programs, there are far fewer examples of relationships between government as a whole and the sector overall. Where those links have been made they rely on:
• structures supporting alliances,
• policies guiding and sustaining relationships, and
• knowledge and capacity building initiatives increasing understanding about the sector
and the capacity of community voluntary sector organizations.

I believe we need to develop these relationships for the goodwill, in the interests of, and to benefit the arts sector. Here's a line from the executive summary:

"Over the past five years, there has been much work done to promote positive relationships
between government and the community voluntary sector. This paper, commissioned
by the Centre for Non-Profit Management, outlines what has been learned from this work and describes examples of relationship-building initiatives linking the voluntary sector and both federal and provincial governments in Canada. It also discusses the relationship between the Government of British Columbia and the province’s community voluntary sector since 1998 and proposes actions that could be taken to strengthen that relationship."

The report's conclusions?
  1. A sound relationship between government and community is critical for developing effective public policy and the management of programs.
  2. Mutual understanding between government and the community voluntary sector is vital.
  3. It is important to continue building a body of research and capacity.
  4. Structures in both government and the community voluntary sector are critical for the development of relationships.
  5. An accord sustains the relationship between government and the voluntary sector.
Read the full report - click here.

- R

02 May 2007

Economic Contribution of the Culture Sector

Economic Contribution of the Culture Sector to Canada’s Provinces by Culture Statistics Program

A Statistics Canada report that provides a descriptive analysis of the economic contribution of the culture sector to the Canadian economy. Culture sector output and employment levels are measured for each province, for the years 1996 to 2003.

The results of the study demonstrate that, on average, the culture sector accounted for 3.8% of national output and 4% of national employment, over the period under investigation. Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia were among the largest contributors to the culture sector in Canada, accounting for more than three quarters of total output and employment.

Read the report online by clicking here.

Canadian report on Mental Health and the Arts

No joke, this is hot stuff. Everyone's after the not-so-elusive connection between mental health and dance, and it's top of the charts for today's research.

In September 2006, the National Arts Centre held the second in its series of three roundtables on healing and the arts. The roundtable addressed the interconnections between the arts and mental health. A report, The Roundtable on Mental Health and the Arts, provides an overview of the day’s dialogue, including information on some of the current research being undertaken in Canada in this field.

Check out the report - click here to download your copy.

New online network for emerging arts professionals

Mentor of the Month?! Great idea!


The Emerging Arts Professional Network is a new online community network, podcast, blog magazine, discussion forum (coming soon) and career resource for Canadian arts professionals.

The blog-magazine will be dedicated to articles written by arts professionals across the country. Each month will feature a new Mentor of the Month and the discussion forum is on it's way to provide another outlet to share ideas and communicate. Visit the EAP at http://www.eapnetwork.ca/blog/archives/welcome/

EAP is looking for writers with all levels of experience and insight, is seeking more article submissions for a monthly blog magazine and also seeking emerging arts professionals from across Canada to interview seasoned arts leaders. See www.eapnetwork.ca/pages/submit/ or contact Blair Francey editor@eapnetwork.ca for more details.

- R

City of Vancouver reviews funding approach for grants


Is Vancouver is poised to be a world leader for arts and culture, or, just like everyone else will it keep plodding along at the usual speed? Which will it be? Don't get me wrong, I am for funding reviews. Who doesn't like time to reflect, review and respond to current opportunities? Thought the last - about responding - is the clincher. The Creative City Conversation that happened in Vancouver on April 23rd wasn't the response I was looking for when all the promo material focused on contributing my point of view as an arts worker living here. I spent the whole day listening to other people: people on stage, people who were facilitating, people who felt more entitled to interject... I barely got a word in edgewise. To my mind, a review should host many views, it should consult by listening with an ear open to multiple perspectives, it should take into account (and in order to take into account, it needs to encourage) others' innovative ideas in transforming the way things are now into *the way things could be*.

That's not even taking into consideration the fact that the Creative City Conversation was predominantly foolscap white... in this day and age, this makes me ask how the event was marketed and, because of this, who was excluded. We all missed out big time.

Okay, so the Creative City Conversation has nothing really to do with the funding review. The only thing is, it occurs around the same time, things are interlaced in time, and a pattern is being woven.

Here's the blurb from the Alliance for Arts and Culture - for the original click here.

"On April 3, Vancouver City Council unamiously supported a motion brought forward by Councillor Elizabeth Ball that will have city staff report back to council in three months with plans to develop a collaborative, comprehensive, streamlined and multi-year funding approach for grants that will include:

• Consultation with Corporate Services (Budgets/Finance) and Law to review the city’s legislative framework and budgetary process;
• Review of funding models and cycles utilized by other funding organizations, both public and private, in the non-profit sector;
• Consultation with community groups and other funders;
• Cost/benefit analysis;
• Development of funding guidelines;
• Potential alignment or augmentation of existing evaluation and monitoring mechanisms;
• Identifying any additional resource requirements to conduct the above noted work."
...
"At the April 17 Vancouver City Council meeting, Ference Weicker & Company were awarded the contract to provide consulting services for a comprehensive review of the city’s current arts and cultural grants and support programs administered through the Office of Cultural Affairs, at an estimated cost of $75,000 plus GST, with funding to be provided by the 2007 cultural budget."

Planning process underway for Cultural Tourism Strategy

"On April 3, Vancouver City Council approved the planning process, outlined in the report Cultural Tourism Strategy – Planning Process (click here to read), for the development of a Cultural Tourism Strategy to be presented to city council in the fall of 2007 at a cost of $65,000. The approved process includes the creation of a temporary Cultural Planner I position at an estimated cost of $45,000 with the source of funds to be Cultural Tourism Strategy planning funds, budgeted in the 2007 contingency reserve. Council also approved an additional allocation of $300,000 per year for four years starting in 2008 in order to leverage support from other funders, agencies and organizations towards the implementation of the Cultural Tourism Strategy. The source of funds will be a $300,000 increase to the 2008 through 2011 operating budgets.

City staff were also directed to review and report back in the fall with potential funding implementation partners and in particular, potential funding support for the City’s 125th anniversary celebrations through the federal government’s Cultural Capitals of Canada program."

This was listed in Synergy, from the Alliance for Arts and Culture.

England cuts arts to pay for Olympics

Controvercy over Olympic wangling here in Vancouver is at the forefront of many dance artists' minds, as the 'cultural olympiad' dribbles by without much ado.

England has taken the bull by the horns:

"To pay for the 2012 Olympics, the culture secretary, Tessa Jowell, is taking another £675m out of the national lottery fund. This comes on top of the £410m she already plans to withdraw. The losses will hit a raft of good causes: not just arts and heritage, which will give up at least £273m, but also community projects. Even local sports groups are losing out to the 2012 celebration of athletics." Read more on The Guardian website.

Artists in England are rallying around, creating petitions, fighting for their survival. Check out Dance UK for details.

These cuts also affect Humanities Research in England (often underpinning and reinforcing art processes and products) - for more on this, check out Shirley Dent on theblogbooks.

As my favourite fortune cookie aptly says: the future is uncertain.

- R