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Home | Resources > Newsletter | Synergy - March 2007
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Synergy March 2007 -- Volume 18 Number 2 IN THIS ISSUE: A word from the Executive Director1. Money in federal budget for "strengthening our culture" 2. $1.3 million investment for arts and culture in Vancouver 3. Arts Partners in Creative Development 4. No money for BC Arts Council in provincial budget 5. Innovations and Catalyst update from Arts Now 6. Cultural mapping and planning toolkits available 7. Cultural Human Resouces Council launches new career website 8. Research and literature 9. Member news 10. Media spin 11. Endquote A word from the Executive Director Dear Colleagues, Now that I’ve been in the office for three weeks, and this is the first edition of Synergy since then, I thought I'd take this opportunity to simply say hello, and tell you how delighted I am to be here. After three weeks I realize I have much to learn about the Alliance, its members and my role in it, but I hope my varied background will enable me to bring something of value to the organization. I’m grateful to the marvelous staff here (who are not only really capable professionals but also terrific people) and to many of you for welcoming me so warmly, and I’m looking forward to getting to know the Board better, having just had one meeting with them at this point. I look forward to working with them and all of you to advance the cause of arts and culture, and the quality of life and community in the Greater Vancouver Region. We’re planning a casual social event (Vancouver East Cultural Centre, Thursday, April 5 from 4 to 6 pm) so that I can meet those of you I haven’t already met. That will be followed by a series of smaller group working sessions (schedule TBA) at which we’d like to hear your views on how the Alliance is doing as an advocate, service provider and connector, and your ideas on future directions for the Alliance as well as the advocacy issues that impact your organization. As I came into the office, there was bad news and good news – the former being the lack of increased funding to the BC Arts Council in the Provincial budget, and the latter being the honouring by Vancouver City Council of the commitment to increase the City’s cultural budget by $1 million, and the further commitment of $300,000 for initiatives in cultural tourism; and the announcement by the Arts Partners for Cultural Development of $6.5 million to be made available for the commissioning of new works in all disciplines over the next three years. We will be hosting an information session (Pacific Cinematheque, Thursday, March 29 from 3 to 4:30 pm), which will enable the membership to learn more about the operation of the Arts Partners program from the people who will manage it. One of my first public acts on behalf of the Alliance was a presentation to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage as it reviews the CBC’s mandate. Thanks to those of you who responded to our request for assistance in identifying the key issues for our community. I was able to incorporate most of your ideas and concerns in the presentation, which received what appeared to be a very interested hearing, and elicited a lengthy discussion with members of the committee. Click here to read the presentation. With the buzz around Ottawa recently being all about election – despite the fact that just about everyone says they don’t want one – just in case, the Canadian Arts Coalition, of which we are a part, is preparing a campaign to bring the various issues associated with arts and culture before the competing parties and their candidates. We’ll be in touch with regard to activities in our various constituencies should the need arise. However, with at least one of the federal parties stating it will support Monday’s budget, it now seems less likely that an election will be called anytime soon. With or without an election it is, as always, going to be a busy time. I look forward to meeting and talking with you over the next couple of months. If you want to get in touch, please don’t hesitate to call me at 604.681.3535 x 209, or write me at awb@allianceforarts.com. With very best regards, Andrew Wilhelm-Boyles The federal budget presented on March 19 contains the following items under the "Strengthening our Culture" heading:
Further information can be found on the federal website at www.budget.gc.ca/2007/index_e.html#2 For responses to the budget from national organizations, please follow the links below. Canadian Arts Coalition 2. $1.3 million investment for arts and culture in Vancouver Vancouver city councilors voted on the 2007 operating budget on February 27th and approved an investment of $1.3 million for the arts and culture sector. The total investment includes a $1 million increase to the cultural budget and $300,000 to support, as of yet unspecified, cultural tourism strategies. There has been no confirmation on how the money for each initiative will be disbursed. 3. Arts Partners in Creative Development
A consortium of funding bodies announced on March 5 a joint contribution program called Arts Partners in Creative Development that will see an initial investment of $6.5 million over three years for successful applicants to develop, create or commission original works in the performing, visual, media and literary arts. The funds will come from the Province of BC, City of Vancouver, Canada Council for the Arts, Vancouver Foundation, Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) and 2010 Legacies Now. Eligible arts and cultural organizations may apply for up to 90 per cent of their development and/or commissioning costs, to a maximum of $300,000. The first round of applications will be adjudicated in the summer, with a second round by the end of the year. The Alliance for Arts and Culture will be hosting an information session at Pacific Cinematheque on Thursday, March 29 from 3 to 4:30 pm. The session will enable the arts community to learn more about the operation of the Arts Partners program from the people who will manage it. Please RSVP to rsvp@allianceforarts.com For more information visit www.ArtsPartners.ca. 4. No money for BC Arts Council in provincial budget Despite a recommendation from the Provincial Standing Committee on Finance “for a significant increase to the core funding provided to the BC Arts Council to support arts and culture in BC leading up to the Olympic Games,” the provincial budget released on February 20th offered no new investment for the sector. The Alliance for Arts and Culture, in conjunction with Arts Future BC, will continue to work to encourage Minister Stan Hagen to take action to secure increased core investment in the BC Arts Council, fostering growth diversity and sustainability, values we share with the provincial government. 5. Innovations and Catalyst update from Arts Now
Arts Now has announced that Alice Niwinski has been contracted to undertake the review of the Innovations and Catalyst programs. It is hoped to have the review completed by the middle of May 2007. If the review shows the need for the continuation of these programs Arts Now is hoping to make an announcement in the middle of May with the exact deadline date. An update will be distributed once the review and the results are complete. 6. Cultural mapping and planning toolkits available from Legacies Now and the Creative City Network 2010 Legacies Now and the Creative City Network of Canada have developed two new resources to assist local governments, arts, cultural and heritage organizations plan for the future. The Cultural Mapping Toolkit has been designed to take groups through the entire mapping process, from creating an inventory of cultural resources to drawing and presenting a map. The Toolkit is a guide to assist with strategic thinking, decision-making and community consultation for the cultural planning process. It includes an adaptable model and practical checklists to help create and implement a viable plan. The toolkits are now available in English at www.2010LegaciesNow.com and www.creativecity.ca in PDF format. Print copies will be available shortly. French versions will be available in late spring.
7. Cultural Human Resources Council launches new career website The Cultural Human Resources Council (CHRC) has launched Careers in Culture Online in order to provide the knowledge and cover the skills that are required for a career in the arts and culture sector. The website offers job search strategies, training requirements, job interview tips, interest and aptitude quizzes, examples of cover letters and resumes, instructions on how to create a demo or portfolio, and live testimonials. The CHRC brings together representatives of arts disciplines and cultural industries in the cultural sector to address the training and career development needs of cultural workers - artists, creators, technical staff, managers and all others engaged professionally in the sector, including the self-employed. http://www.culturalhrc.ca/careersinculture/default-e.asp Consumer Spending on Culture in Canada, the Provinces and 15 Metropolitan Areas in 2005
The new report shows that Canadian consumers spent over $25 billion on cultural goods and services in 2005. Some key findings of the report include:
The full report, funded by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Ontario Arts Council, is available free of charge on the Hill Strategies Research website (http://www.hillstrategies.com) and the websites of the funding organizations.
The Magnetic North Theatre Festival will feature four Vancouver productions at the Ottawa event this summer. The festival will include the world premiere of Copper Thunderbird, a play based on the life of Norval Morrisseau, written by Marie Clements and directed by Peter Hinton; Cranked, a hip-hop infused examination of the crystal-meth epidemic among teens, from Green Thumb Theatre; Sexual Practices of the Japanese, a mini-trilogy that penetrates cultural clichés, by Theatre Replacement; and The One That Got Away, a fantastical folk tale set in a swimming pool, co-produced by the Electric Company and the Only Animal Theatre Society. Vancouver New Music is the winner of the 2008 Alcan Award for Music. The $60,000 prize will go towards the production of Counterpoints. Created under the auspices of Vancouver New Music's artistic director Giorgio Magnanensi, the work will consist of four newly commissioned works for a large string ensemble inspired by the paintings, photographs, writings, videos and sounds of the late mixed-media artist Roy Kiyooka. It will be composed by Hildegard Westerkamp, Jocelyn Morlock, Stefan Smulovitz and Stefan Udell, and have its premiere at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre in 2008. Vancouver’s Coastal Jazz and Blues Society has announced the appointment of Julie Smith as its new Executive Director. Ms. Smith has worked for the Society for 12 years in various capacities, most recently as Director of Education, Outreach and Community Programs, where she developed the TD Canada Trust Music High School Jazz Intensive and the Vancouver Creative Music Institute (in partnership with Vancouver Community College). As former Executive Director of the Jazz Institute of Chicago, Ms. Smith served on the programming committee for the Chicago Jazz Festival, and co-produced/co-curated the “Women of the New Jazz” festivals and the “Face the Music” new music series in Chicago. Theatre Calgary and the Playhouse Theatre Company of Vancouver have announced that they will present the world premiere of the stage adaptation of Timothy Findley’s The Wars during their 2007-08 seasons. This is the first adaptation of the great Canadian novel to the stage, and was written by Dennis Garnhum, who will also direct the production. The Wars will open Theatre Calgary’s 40th season on September 18 and run through October 7, 2007. The opening night gala performance will be September 21, 2007 in Calgary. The production will then move to the Playhouse theatre in Vancouver to open the company’s 44th season. Previews begin October 13, the gala opening will be held on October 18 and the play will run until November 3.
Arts purse strings loosened ahead of federal budget Heritage Minister Bev Oda has made a flurry of arts funding announcements in the past week, ahead of Monday's federal budget. On Friday, she had $389,000 for Toronto's Harbourfront Centre and $316,167 for Vancouver record company Mint Records. Read more... Arts Notes: UBC scene shop runs out of money The head of UBC's department of theatre, film, and creative writing has voiced concern over the possible closure of the Great Northern Way scene shop, which is set to run out of funding by June. Read more... Arts Notes: North Vancouver streamlines cultural affairs office Members of North Vancouver's arts community have expressed cautious approval of the March 5 decision to create a bimunicipal office of cultural affairs that will serve both the District of North Vancouver and the City of North Vancouver. Read more... All ready on the reno front - except the money The city of Vancouver says extensive renovations to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre are scheduled to begin in April. But it doesn't yet have the money to pay for them. Read more... The Vancouver Province Thursday, March 01, 2007 Deciding on the kind of society we wish to live in involves a delicate balancing act. If we direct the bulk of our resources toward our police, for instance, we might expect to benefit from less crime. But if as a result we have to cut funds for libraries, the arts and cultural festivals, we cannot argue that we have improved our overall quality of life. Read more... Develop creative neighbourhoods using 'inner artist' Developers need to embrace their inner artist to help build communities where creativity can flourish. That was the message to delegates at the recent Canadian Urban Institute conference, The Path to Culture-led Regeneration: Who's Leading the Way? While new condominium and commercial developments often trade on the creativity of the neighbourhoods in which they're built, they can also destroy the creative character of those communities. Read more... “Major centres of creativity and innovation cannot afford, as they did in decades past, to sit back and watch artists and creative entrepreneurs driven out of the neighbourhoods they helped enliven.” Tim Jones, CEO, Toronto Artscape Inc
Our thanks The Alliance for Arts and Culture gratefully acknowledges the support from the following: City of Vancouver, Service Canada, the British Columbia Arts Council and the British Columbia Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch. Comments? Send a message to: SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE You can subscribe to receive Synergy by emailing info@allianceforarts.com with the “Synergy Subscribe” in the subject line. To remove your name from this email list, please email info@allianceforarts.com with “Synergy Un-Subscribe” in the subject line. We do not rent, exchange, sell or give this email list to any other organization. Unless specifically stated, any part of this newsletter may be reproduced with appropriate credit given to the Alliance for Arts and Culture. If you have any questions about your privacy, please call 604-681-3535 or email privacy@allianceforarts.com. Last Updated:
Copyright © Alliance for Arts and Culture, 2006 |
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