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Home | About Us > Annual Report 2004
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Alliance for Arts and Culture, Annual Report 2004 Report from the President The measure of a strong, vibrant and established organization is its ability to weather major change while continuing to service its clientele without skipping a beat. I believe that 2004 put the Greater Vancouver Alliance for Arts and Culture to the test and it passed with flying colours. In June, 2004, Lori Baxter, who had been executive director for the last ten years and who had built the organization to a position of prominence in the community, submitted her resignation in order to pursue a new career path. Lori had worked tirelessly to strengthen the organization both financially and within the community and one of her lasting legacies is the establishment of the Arts and Culture Legacy Fund, an endowment that will cover the operating costs of the 938 Howe Street Arts Information Centre starting in 2013 when the Alliance becomes responsible for the location allotted to it by the City of Vancouver in 1991. On behalf of the Board of Directors, staff and members of the Greater Vancouver Alliance for Arts and Culture, I would like to once again publicly thank Lori not only for her dedication and hard work over the last ten years but also for her graciousness during the transition to a new executive director. Following an exhaustive national search, the board of directors was pleased to offer the position to Heather Redfern who was selected for her extensive experience in arts administration, theatre and festival production, as well as her passion for the cultural sector. She has spent most of the last three decades working in, and for, the arts. Heather has quickly integrated herself and her strength in advocacy issues is already making its mark. The Greater Vancouver Alliance for Arts and Culture continues to grow and build on what has been previously established. In this time of political turmoil it becomes even more important to the arts community to have a united, powerful voice that speaks for all of us. Advocacy was one of the founding purposes for the Alliance and I believe that it continues to be one of the most crucial undertakings of this organization. In closing, I want to acknowledge the efforts and dedication of the staff who have weathered the last year with aplomb, patience, tears and laughter. It can’t be said often enough that we simply could not do this without them. I took on the position of chair in the latter part of the year and have been greatly impressed by the work undertaken by the members of the board who have been instrumental in decision-making and fundraising. Kudos to them all! Respectfully submitted, 2004 resulted in a relatively modest deficit, in comparison to budget, of roughly $9,000. There were several reasons for this, including slightly less revenue than expected from various programs including Tickets Tonight and S.E.A.R.C.H., and the unanticipated costs associated with finding and hiring a new executive director. Another large contributor to the deficit was the transfer of almost $14,000 to the Arts and Culture Legacy Fund, reflecting our continued commitment to the long-term stability of our organization. It is our belief that the deficit has been addressed in the 2005 budget, and results to date are promising. A concerted effort is being made to review all of our programmes and to modify or eliminate those that are not cost effective. While cashflow management continues to be problematic, the burden is considerably lighter than in past years, thanks in large part to the tireless efforts of our previous executive director Lori Baxter. I’d like to express my thanks to both Lori and to Heather Redfern, who has filled Lori’s metaphorically large shoes admirably, to the rest of the dedicated staff who work so hard all year, to Quantum Accounting’s Nigel Jones for his diligence in keeping the books straight, and to the finance committee for its insight, commitment and resolve. Respectfully submitted, Change is challenging but it is also an opportunity for renewal and this year has certainly been both for the Alliance. 2004 laid the groundwork for the Alliance to move forward with purpose and direction. The board of directors made a decision to prioritize advocacy activities and I have been moving the Alliance in that direction since I took on the position of executive director in September. I can’t speak for the first eight months of the year, but certainly from September to December the advocacy highlight was the renewal of the federal Tomorrow Starts Today program. Not only was the program renewed but the national arts community worked together in a way it never had in the past, broadening its reach to include the full spectrum of society. Behind the scenes, lobbying efforts to increase funding at both the provincial and civic levels intensified. While experiencing the spills and chills of personnel changes and political uncertainly, the Alliance staff worked hard to ensure ongoing programs continued with a minimum of fuss. Tickets Tonight underwent an extensive review and plans were made for 2005, members were provided with services and information, S.E.A.R.C.H. continued to grow and our staff did a marvelous job planning and overseeing a myriad of workshops and issues of Synergy. and Alliance News. Special mention must be made of the first ever Vancouver Arts Awards, which were produced by the Alliance in March. This was hugely successful and involved a heroic effort by all. Congratulations to each of you who made this event such a success. You have set a high standard for the second Awards, which take place in September 2005. I would like to extend a special thanks to Lori Baxter for all of her exceptional work on behalf of the Alliance membership and for her role in building a creative and vibrant organization. I would also like to thank the Alliance staff for their dedication and hard work. They made the transition from one ED to another productive, expedient and a valuable learning experience. The board of directors has been incredibly supportive and I feel blessed to be working with such extraordinary people. I especially have to thank the executive and committee chairs, Hazel, Ian, David, Duncan, Barb, Paddy and John for their mentoring and support and for introducing me into this community in an enthusiastic and positive manner. They have been my touchstones, my reality check, my peers and my support network and I thank them. Finally I’d like to thank the membership for their support throughout this time of transition. I have been impressed by your willingness to work together to strengthen the position of arts and culture in our society and to ensure it is for the benefit of all. I am looking forward to working with you all in the future. And finally my deepest thanks to each of you who has taken the time to make me feel welcome here. I am really proud to be a member of this community. Respectfully submitted, Executive President, Hazel Currie Vice-President, Ian Forsyth Treasurer, Barbara Clausen Past-President, Paddy Macleod Directors Corrine Corry Merrill Fearon Francesca Fung John McLachlan David Shefsiek Kirsten Schrader Jim Smith Lori Baxter, Executive Director (January to August) Contractors S.E.A.R.C.H. Facilitators Visit our programs and services page. In 2004, the Alliance had more than 300 members, and we continue to grow. Our 2004 Membership List is available in PDF format; your browser will open a new window.
Our 2004 Auditor's Report and Financial Statements are available in PDF format; your browser will open a new window. Advocacy In 2004, the Alliance advocated for the arts and culture community in the following areas:
Alliance representatives sat on the following committees:
Connection In 2004 the Alliance was a member of the following organizations:
Together with our members, we also moved forward with the Alliance for Arts and Culture Marketing Council, chaired by Jonathan Harrison, Marketing Manager for Vancouver Opera, and facilitated by staff member Allison Markin, Director of Marketing and Communications. The Council meets every second month to discuss joint marketing initiatives, listen to guest speakers, and pursue professional development activities. In addition, we maintained reciprocal memberships with:
Information In 2004 we provided information to our membership and the community by:
Government Relations - Municipal In 2004, we continued to work with Vancouver City Council to ensure and the City of Vancouver's Office of Cultural Affairs, to ensure long-term funding for Cultural Presentations for Council Meetings, which gives artists an opportunity to perform at regularly scheduled Council meetings, receiving promotion through the Alliance, the City, and visibility on Shaw TV as part of its Council broadcasts. In addition, the City of Vancouver renewed funding for the second Vancouver Arts Awards, and we began discussions to create a new cultural task force for the City. Government Relations - Provincial The Alliance continued to monitor changes in funding at the provincial level, alerting members to new requirements for Direct Access applications, and the availability of funding through 2010 Legacies Now and the Spirit of BC Arts Fund. 2004 saw the continuation of ongoing advocacy work in developing a sectoral approach to human resource development in arts and culture in BC, through the continued work of the BC Cultural Sector Development Council. As well, we prepared our advocacy efforts for the 2005 provincial election. Government Relations - Federal We worked with members of the cultural community to advocate for the arts during the 2004 federal election, and created an online resource with comprehensive election information and tips on how to advocate for the arts. Tickets Tonight With our partner Tourism Vancouver, we celebrated the one million dollar mark in total sales at Tickets Tonight, our day-of, half-price and full service ticket outlet, in November. As we continued to grow, we hired Stevie Jackson as assistant manager, allowing our manager, Paul Sontz, to focus on recruiting more producers and seeking new revenue sources for the booth. Among these was our successful application to Vancity's Enterprising Non-Profits grant program. The funds from this grant are being put towards the hiring of a marketing consultant to help us identify our key market segments. The Pacific Newspaper Group and Visa Canada continued on board as sponsors and we continue to work on developing further partnerships and marketing opportunities. During 2004, the booth sold nearly 30,000 tickets. Vancouver Arts Awards On March 19, 2004 we held the first-ever Vancouver Arts Awards at the Vancouver Public Library. The Awards honour Vancouver's established artists, who in turn present commissions to emerging artists. Our first event was very well received, and through our partnership with CBC Vancouver, was heavily promoted on CBC Radio One and Two, and broadcast on CBC Television. The Awards were supported by a number of partners and sponsors, and will become an annual event. The 2005 Awards will be held on September 23. Our inaugural honorees were:
And they presented commissions to:
S.E.A.R.C.H.: Self-Employed Arts-Related Contractors for Hire S.E.A.R.C.H. is a program that was designed to target the key barriers that prevent creative people from achieving the level and consistency of income that will allow them to thrive as artists and members of the community. Funded as an employment assistance program for unemployed cultural workers by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, the program has thus been able to include people who do not qualify for employment insurance (an overabundance in our labour force). We continued to work with a broad range of creative people from all disciplines and walks of life, and several from areas outside Vancouver who found ways to be here for the four intense weeks of the program. Applicants to the S.E.A.R.C.H. Program continued to fill our monthly orientation sessions and compete for the 18 seats in each of ten sessions during the year. Word-of-mouth from past participants is our primary source of applicants, with some coming from Employment Centre info sessions. Between January and December, 179 people participated in 10 sessions of the program. Of the 1,391 participants in S.E.A.R.C.H. (as of year-end), an average of 600 people are still actively connected to the network through the self-managed group email system (SEARCHgrads, a Yahoo Group). Contact with past participants reaches back as far as Session 1 (December 1996), as people continue to keep us in their network and report on their success. They also come back to participate as presenters and facilitators. Past SEARCHers make up about 90 percent of the exemplary guests at the Artist-In-Business Round Tables, which are a highlight of the first week of the program. In 2004, HRSDC implemented some changes to its policies which were incorporated into the program intake and delivery model in August – the start of a new contract. Persons wishing to apply to S.E.A.R.C.H. must now have a referral from an employment consultant employed by another agency. This has put an additional step into the intake process for applicants, but has increased our contact with the Employment Resource Centres in the Lower Mainland and, as a result, has enabled our staff to deliver information about the sector and its labour force to a broader audience. Increasing the knowledge base of professionals working in employment centres about the nature of work in our sector, and creating more understanding of the transferable skills of cultural workers has been the reward for the increased administrative effort required. The Alliance for Arts and Culture gratefully acknowledges the following support:
Vancouver Arts Awards partners
Member Advantage Program partners
We are an alliance of arts and culture organizations and individuals drawn from all artistic disciplines. We lead Greater Vancouver’s arts and culture community by advocating for our sector, facilitating connections within the arts and with other sectors, and providing information to and about our community. We strive towards an environment that recognizes, respects, and responds to the contribution our sector makes to society’s well-being.
Copyright © Alliance for Arts and Culture, 2006 |
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