Home | Resources > Newsletter | Synergy - June 12, 2003

Synergy, the electronic newsletter
information for people who value arts and culture

A word from the editor.

Tourist season is upon us (if not in full swing!), and the recent Okanagan-like warm weather here in Vancouver certainly made that clear. If you haven't already done so, be sure to drop off a handful of your summer event and festival brochures at the Alliance office (Suite 100 - 938 Howe Street in Vancouver), and email basic event info to Tickets Tonight, our day-of, half-price ticket booth, so that we may include you in our online event calendar. Email your info to: info@ticketstonight.ca. Be sure to send the dates, performance times, prices, venue, website address, phone number and a brief overview.

Allison Markin,
Editor

IN THIS ISSUE:

1. Vancouver's new maritime museum
2. New BC Arts Council chair announced
3. Statistics on the Visual Arts Enthusiast
4. The Woodward's vision
5. Meanwhile in the DTES...
6. CMA calls for national heritage policy
7. MusicPath initiative receives funding
8. Call for annual reports
9. Kudos
10. Media Spin

Editor: Allison Markin
amarkin@allianceforarts.com

---

1. Vancouver's new maritime museum

James Delgado, executive director of the Vancouver Maritime Museum, recently unveiled plans for a proposed new maritime museum in Coal Harbour. The museum currently makes its home in Vanier Park.

Plans for the new facility call for it to not only house the history of the sea, but to reflect the ocean in its design; it will be shaped like a giant shell, following the shoreline of the harbour. The exhibits will include interactive features and well as floating displays, taking advantage of the as-yet-unidentified site's proximity to the ocean. The galleries will tell the stories of BC's maritime history, including immigration, First Nations history, travel and the legacy of the Royal Canadian Navy.

The new facility will be four times the size of the current museum, which opened in 1958, and will cost $20 to $50 million to build. Delgado expects the capital costs to be covered by sponsorships, grants and other funding.

2. New BC Arts Council chair announced

The BC Arts Council recently announced the appointment of Donald Shumka to the position of chair. Mr. Shumka replaces Nini Baird, who has chaired the Council for the past two years.

Mr. Shumka is the managing director of Raymond James Ltd., a major North American investment dealer. He is past president of the Board of Governors of Ballet British Columbia and a governor of the Vancouver Public Library; in the past, he has chaired the Board of Governors for the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.

Michael J. Audain, managing director of the Polygon Group of Companies, was also appointed to the Council. He is currently chairman of the Business Council of British Columbia and is a past president of the Vancouver Art Gallery, currently chairing the Vancouver Art Gallery Foundation.

Robin Hopper continues to serve as vice-chair and Nathalie McFarland continues as a member of the Council's executive committee and as the program committee chair.

Reappointed to the Council are: Christopher Armstrong, John Eggleton, Salvador Ferreras, J. Graham Kelsey, Robert Kerr, Alma Lee, Marianne Nicolson, Linda Ohama, David Ross and Brian Scott.

Read their biographies.

3. Statistics on the Visual Arts Enthusiast
|
Earlier this spring the Canadian Tourism Commission profiled 'Visual Arts Enthusiasts' in two Travel Activities and Motivation Survey reports. A Visual Arts Enthusiast (VAE) is defined as a traveller who visited two of the following during his or her trip: art galleries, international film festivals, or local arts and crafts studios.

Some of the findings from the reports, which compared Canadian and American VAE travel habits:

• VAE's represent the third largest group of travellers to Canada from the United States and the fifth largest amongst domestic travellers.
  
• In Canada, 66 percent of performing arts patrons are also VAE's; the overlap in the US was 77 percent.
  
• Canadian VAE's are over-represented in Ontario (particularly in Toronto) and BC and are under-represented in Quebec and Atlantic Canada.
  
• VAE's who travel to Canada from the US are more likely to live in mid-tier states than the American adult population as a whole. VAE's are more likely to come from southern states than from other areas.
  
• While American VAE's are fairly distributed by gender and age, 63 percent of Canadian VAE's are female.
  
• A somewhat higher proportion of Canadian VAE's were born outside of Canada (19 percent) compared to the general domestic travelling population.
  
• The majority of both Canadian and American VAE's (74 percent in Canada, 75 percent in the US) come from adult-only households.
  

The surveys suggested that the visual arts markets in both countries should expect to grow at rates faster than average in the future, thanks to aging populations in both Canada and the US and increasing immigration to Canada. Since older travellers and new Canadians tend to participate in more culturally-oriented activities, all of the cultural activity-based segments featured in these analyses can expect strong levels of growth.

4. The Woodward's vision

Long gone is the $1.49 day jingle, but the refrain of what to do with the Woodward's site continues to play over and over in the heads of many Lower Mainlanders.

At workshops conducted in late May, hundreds of participants laid down their ideas for the space, working with artists and architects to put their visions on paper. This fall, the City of Vancouver will formally ask for expressions of interest from design and architectural firms on how to redevelop the space.

Fifty-one concepts came out of the workshops, all unique but with some common themes. One of those themes was the need for space for artists to create and showcase their work. Some designs also included a live theatre space (charging $1.49), dance studios and pottery workshops. All of the designs included housing space for local residents.

The Co-Design group, an informal association of artists and architects, worked with participants at the workshops.

5. Meanwhile in the DTES...

Meanwhile, in a Downtown East Side neighbourhood a hop, skip and a jump from the Woodward's site, Interurban, a new artists' space at the corner of Hastings and Carrall, has opened.

Owned by the Fong Luen Tong Society, the property used to house three commercial properties and takes its name from its past life as a BC Electric Interurban Station.

The space came to life through the Portland Hotel Society, with help from various levels of government, the United Way, the Vancouver Labour Council and the Fong Luen Tong group.

The first exhibit, 9E features works from DTES artists, including painter Richard Tetrault and carver Dwayne Dennis. Above the main space are a number of smaller areas for artists to use as studios.

6. CMA calls for national heritage policy

In light of Prime Minister Jean Chretien's recent announcement of a the new Canada History Centre, a museum focusing on Canadian history which will be built in Ottawa at a cost of $90 million, the Canadian Museums Association has renewed its call for a national heritage policy. The CMA supports, in principle, all initiatives that would enhance Canadian's understanding of their heritage, the Association "believes that the federal government should have a more dynamic vision to engage all Canadians in their heritage, in all parts of Canada, not just in Ottawa", according to a CMA document. The Government of Canada has been working on a national heritage policy for several years and has conducted extensive consultations, but has not yet acted.

A recent report from the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance states that "Museums play a valuable role in enhancing the quality of life of Canadians, and also contribute to our tourism industry. In order for museums to maximize their contribution, however, they must be adequately funded through a process that ensures that funds are distributed to institutions in the greatest need." And, a national survey of Canadians' attitudes towards museums, recently commissioned by the CMA found that 78 percent of respondents favour a substantial increase in federal contributions to museums outside the National Capital Region.

There are close to 2500 non-profit museums and related institutions across Canada, which attract more than 50 million visits a year.

Visit the CMA's website for more information (click on Advocacy Alerts).

7. MusicPath initiative receives funding

CANARIE (Canada's advanced internet organization), Acadia University, The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) and Yamaha Canada recently celebrated $365,000 in funding for MusicPath, a unique public-private research initiative that will provide music students and educators from across the country with a revolutionary innovation in music education.

The MusicPath project is designed to connect two Yamaha Disklavier digital acoustic pianos via CA*net 4, Canada's national research and innovation network which was developed and is operated by CANARIE. Through innovative technology, a remote pianist ends up moving all the piano keys in real time in a totally separate location. This technology may revolutionize the way in which piano is taught and how students are examined; for example, a student at Acadia in Wolfville, NS could have his or her music 'played' and heard simultaneously at the RCM in Toronto. An instructor in Toronto could then provide real time comments back to the student via video-conferencing.

The technology will eventually be available across Canada, but for now will operate between Acadia and the RCM.

For more information, visit MusicPath's website.

8. Call for annual reports

The Vancouver Public Library is interested in collecting annual reports from any local arts societies or organizations. The reports will be taken into the library collection to become part of the public record and provide valuable information for people doing related research. Groups wishing to donate a copy of their annual report can send it to:

John Cull
Fine Arts and Music Division
Vancouver Public Library
350 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC
V6B 6B1

9. Kudos

Congratulations to Tourism Vancouver; the organization is celebrating 100 years of service.

10. Media Spin

The Globe and Mail has a new columnist, Lynn Coady, author of Saints of Big Harbour, Play the Monster Blind and Strange Heaven. She is a Vancouver fiction writer and essayist and her column appears every second Tuesday. The first, titled 'A few crass words about the artful poor', can be read here.

ENDQUOTE

Forty-two percent of Canadians are planning a vacation this year, and one third of them favour BC as their destination, according to a recent survey by Ipsos-Reid.

---

Comments? Send a message to:
amarkin@allianceforarts.com

Last Updated: Thursday, July 22, 2004