Ottawa, Friday October 17, 2008Well, the ice is broken! On Friday, we held in Ottawa the first of our Regional Forums: only 13 more to go before mid-December… I must say that if they are all as animated and stimulating as this first one, my tour of the country promises to be rewarding.
About twenty-five people gathered at Arts Court on this brisk but beautiful autumn afternoon to discuss the questions put to them by the Canadian Conference of the Arts: how can we best work together to put arts and culture permanently on the public agenda? What should be our collective priorities for the next couple of years? What strategies should we develop to ensure these priorities get the attention they deserve?
It was noted that while there were reasons to rejoice that for once, arts and culture had figured prominently during an election campaign, this was done in a way that proved divisive within Canadian society. Apart from the rhetorical excesses which sometimes characterized the debate, the most worrisome aspect of all this was that there obviously still is a large number of citizens who view arts and culture as a luxury and an elitist concern, and perceive artists as eternal whiners never satisfied with the handouts the government gives them.
It was pointed out that we are partly to blame for this perception. It is true that, as was the case during the campaign, artists and culture professionals make themselves heard mostly when they clamour for more subsidies or protest against something (e.g. Bill C-10). The sector has an image problem which must be addressed and we must find ways of re-branding it by showing not what we ask or demand from society but rather all the things we give to it.
Participants have invited the CCA to put this item on its list of priorities and be at the centre of such a reflection to help craft a message and a strategy to help Canadians understand that artists and cultural workers make an important contribution to society, beyond the economic one highlighted during the federal campaign. It was noted that while important, economic arguments are fraught with danger in that they may support the view that the only art worth having is the lucrative one. Measured by that yardstick alone, van Gogh would never have achieved the status of one of the main painters of the 19th century!
Next Forum, Vancouver on October 23rd!
1 comment:
Thanks, CCA and Alain, for this great forum for discussion in Ottawa. It's an excellent time for the CCA to be crossing the country "taking stock" and, for all Canadians who value Canadian arts and culture, a fine opportunity to talk and listen to one another.
I look forward to hearing what you hear across Canada.
Jocelyn Harvey
Post a Comment