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Home | Resources > Newsletter | Synergy - March 2008
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Synergy March 2008 -- Volume 19 Number 3 IN THIS ISSUE: A word from the editor A word from the EditorGreetings! I’m thrilled to be taking over from Laurie Guy as Director of Communications for the Alliance and editor of Synergy. Most of my life so far has been spent doing theatre - I trained at Studio 58 here in Vancouver and have worked across the country as an artist and administrator - so I am sometimes led to wonder how I ended up at the Alliance. Why is arts advocacy important? Here are a few statistics I’ve come across that have helped me answer that question:
Margaret Mead once famously said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” I have no doubt that thoughtful and committed staff here at the Alliance can play a measurable role in turning some of the above statistics into a cause for celebration. And I’m honored to be a part of them. I look forward to getting to know you all in the coming weeks and months. Until then, if you have any questions or concerns, or simply want to say hello, please do not hesitate to contact me. Peter Boychuk There are still spaces left for our popular workshop “Conducting a major gifts campaign: A step-by-step guide”, which will take place on Tuesday, April 8 from 9am to 12pm here at the Alliance for Arts. The workshop is facilitated by Andrea Seale, a Certified Fundraising Executive, who will walk you through how to make a case for your financial need, create a gift chart, recruit a campaign team, identify prospects, develop effective solicitation tools and make “the ask.” Cost for members is only $75 (+GST). For more information, visit our website or email info@allianceforarts.com to register. 2. CBC to dismantle the last of the radio orchestras
The CBC has announced at a meeting in Vancouver on March 27 that they would be dissolving the 70-year old CBC Radio Orchestra. “Really, it’s a case of straight up economics,” said CBC spokesman Jeff Keay. “We couldn’t afford to maintain the orchestra.” The CBC has promised that the funds saved by the decision will go towards commissioning works from other orchestras across the country. Many in the arts community are concerned about what they perceive as the progressive “dumbing down” of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and are working to ensure that an opposing voice is heard and that the CBC is made aware of the public’s concern. The CBC Radio Orchestra was founded in 1938 by John Avison and originally consisted of 25 musicians. It now consists of about 45 members and plays approximately 8 concerts per year. Its disbandment is set for the end of November. 3. Ottawa increases funding to two Vancouver arts festivalsJosée Verner, federal Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages, announced on March 27 that the Coastal Jazz & Blues Society will get $300,000 towards producing the 2008 Canada Trust Vancouver International Jazz Festival, and the Vancouver Summer Festival Society will receive $185,000 for this summer’s Festival Vancouver. The funding is part of the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Arts Presentation Canada Program, which had an extra $7 million to allocate. 4. Program director reports on 2008 Cultural Olympiad
The first Cultural Olympiad drew slightly higher than expected numbers – 170,000 as opposed to the 150,000 organizers expected – but festival director Robert Kerr admitted that there’s much work ahead in raising the public’s awareness. “I think we still have a lot work to do about informing and educating people about the Cultural Olympiad and the role of culture in the games,” he said. “We knew it was not going to happen overnight.” The Olympiad was designed as a three-step process, with two more Olympiads happening in 2009 and 2010. Next year, the budget will grow from $750,000 to $1.25 million. “We’re looking to do things on a larger scope and scale,” says Kerr. The Olympiad will culminate in 2010, when the budget will rise to $12 million. For more information, visit the Cultural Olympiad website. 5. Artists at 901 Main Street offered new studiosA tentative agreement has been reached between the artists inhabiting 901 Main Street (now 190 Prior Street) and developer Amacon, who applied for a permit to turn the space into private residences. Amacon has offered to give the artists first dibs on a minimum of 5,000-square feet of studio space to be built on an old brewery site at 299 East 7th Avenue. There are several issues to be addressed before a deal is struck, however. “The artists are currently paying $1 a square foot,” said city councillor Heather Deal. “Amacon came back with $2, and we’re looking for something in between - the lower the better.” In the meantime, the artists have been given a one-year lease on the space until the deal is finalized. 6. BC domestic film production reaches five-year high“B.C. continues to perform well in the face of a ‘perfect storm’ of global industry challenges,” said Tourism, Sport and the Arts Minister Stan Hagen, referring to the rising Canadian dollar, the prolonged WGA strike, the lack of local studio space, and aggressive new tax incentives in the U.S. “The decrease in foreign production activity was offset by the dramatic rise in homegrown production.” According to statistics provided by the BC Film Commission, film and television production contributed $943 million to the provincial economy. 7. Museums and artists reach landmark agreementFor the first time in 40 years, the Canadian Art Museum Directors Association (CAMDO), Canadian Artists' Rights/Front de representation des artistes Canadiens (CARFAC) and le Regroupement des artistes en arts visuels du Quebec (RAAV) have reached an agreement regarding exhibition fees for professional artists. The streamlined fee structure went into effect on January 1st, 2008, and can be found here. As part of the agreement, all parties have committed to establish a new Exhibition Right Fund, which provides compensation to authors of books used in public libraries. 8. Help catch a thiefWest Vancouver police are asking for the public's assistance in catching an art thief who stole six paintings from a gallery last week. According to a media release, the paintings were by Vancouver Artist Craig Yeats, who also owns the store. "A male was seen loading paintings into a dark coloured station wagon," said the release. "The window of the store had been smashed. The vehicle was seen leaving at a high rate of speed." Anyone with information is asked to call the West Vancouver Police Department at 604-925-7300. 9. Controversial sculpture homeless once more Vancouver now joins the legion of locations who have deemed Dennis Oppenheim’s sculpture of an inverted church “too controversial”. Device to Root Out Evil was installed spire-down in the Harbour Green Park as part of the Vancouver Biennale in 2005. According to Vancouver Parks Board coordinator Jill Weaving, the seven-metre sculpture has received “mixed reviews”, and their recommendation is that it is taken down. Oppenheim originally intended to install it near his studio on Church Street in New York City but the director of New York's Public Art Fund thought the piece was "too controversial." Stanford University then agreed to purchase the piece, but withdrew their offer after the sculpture was deemed not "appropriate". 10. Research and LiteratureFrom Economy to Ecology: A Policy Framework For Creative Labour This document is a comprehensive examination of the concept of the creative economy and more particularly of how the current labour policy framework should adapt to the realities creative professionals. Greener EventsBC Arts Council http://www.bcartscouncil.ca/pdf/Green Festival Practice.pdf With climate change becoming a hotter and hotter issue everyday (no pun intended), the BC Arts Council has released this publication on how arts organizations can reduce their waste and carbon footprint in simple and affordable ways. 11. Kudos“Dr. Brute” receives Governor General’s AwardVancouver-based artist Eric Metcalfe, once widely known as Dr. Brute, is one of eight winners of the 2008 Governor General’s Award in Visual Art. The avant-garde artist and founder of the artist-run Western Front will be presented with the award at a ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Friday. Award recipients receive a $25,000 prize along with original artworks created by furniture maker and designer Peter Fleming. Stan Douglas wins Bell Award in Visual ArtThe Canada Council for the Arts and Bell announced today that Vancouver-based artist Stan Douglas is the winner of the 2008 Bell Award in Video Art (formerly the Bell Canada Award in Video Art). The $10,000 prize has been awarded annually since 1991 for exceptional contribution by a video artist or artists to the advancement of video art in Canada and to the development of video practices (videotapes, installations or web-based video art). Douglas was born in Vancouver and has exhibited widely since his first solo show 1981. 12. Calls and OpportunitiesProvincial Government announces BC150 Community Arts GrantA partnership between BC150 and the Assembly of BC Arts Councils is offering a $190,000 grant program to support community and regional arts activities. BC150 Community Arts Grant funding is available to community and regional arts councils and Aboriginal cultural centres. Deadline for applications is April 18, 2008; projects must be completed by Dec. 31, 2008. The grants will provide a maximum of $10,000 and up to 75 per cent of total project costs. For further information, including guidelines and application form, visit www.assemblybcartscouncils.ca. Vancouver Film Schools and YouTube create online scholarship programVancouver Film School and YouTube have announced the Vancouver Film School (VFS)/ YouTube “What Matters to You” Scholarship Competition. People from around the world will have the opportunity to share their film, animation, or creative pitch in a 3-minute video to win a full-tuition scholarship. Artists from the 19 regions where YouTube has local sites will be eligible to submit their original videos from March 18 to May 9. VFS will then narrow the field to 10 finalists. Between May 20 and May 27, the YouTube community will vote to pick 3 winners. On May 30, the winners will be announced and will receive scholarships to VFS worth from $17,000 up to $52,750. Banff Centre Production Residencies for B.C. Artists The Banff Centre and the British Columbia Arts Council have announced a new production residency offering B.C.-based professional artists the opportunity to create a new work in dance, music, opera, theatre or interdisciplinary practice. For further information on the program and details on how to apply, visit www.bcartscouncil.ca. CBC scraps radio orchestra Members of the soon-to-be-dismantled CBC Radio Orchestra emerged disgusted from a closed-door meeting with CBC executives at a Vancouver hotel last night, where they were forced to face the music over the orchestra's future. Once prized as the last radio orchestra in North America, the Vancouver-based orchestra will be disbanded at the end of November. Read more… Arts Notes: Granville’s Vogue Theatre on shaky groundThe Georgia Straight March 20, 2008 By Jessica Werb The future of Granville Street’s Vogue Theatre hangs in the balance as Vancouver city council wrestles over whether to grant its owner a liquor licence. Council considered the liquor-licence application on March 13 but deferred its decision for 60 days. Read more… Three Roys Don’t Make It RightThe Globe and Mail March 25, 2008 By John Doyle We are one cozy little nation of cracked, confused hypocrites. Two, four, six, eight - what do we hate? Violence! Three, five, seven, nine - what do we call fine? Consensus, peace and reconciliation! Yeah, right. Read more…
14. Endquote“Culture is the sum of all the forms of art, of love and of thought, which in the course of centuries have enabled man to be less enslaved.” - Andre Malreaux, French author, adventurer and statesmanOur thanks
The Alliance for Arts and Culture gratefully acknowledges the support from the following: City of Vancouver, 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:
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