… and that’s the point too.

To have space to reflect, in a deep back of the brain kind of way. The kind of reflection that happens from playing in park, in actually reading some of the books I buy, in letting mind wander in a way that doesn’t just mean hitting the refresh button. These seem to be uneasy times and maybe Toronto is an uneasy city. Or at least the way I’m dealing with it is.

But it is sunny when I look past my computer monitor. And yet, here I am, inside, wearing jogging pants and a hoody, complaining about being busy and overwhelmed.

I’m stepping away from the computer. To see if that helps.

So – there are many things to discuss. Let’s do it in the streets, in the theatre, and in the bars. Let’s do it in person.

I hope to see you soon.

Posted: April 17th, 2009 under April Newsletter, DISCUSSION CORNER.
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… (continued)

The fear is that these large institutions, who should be the bookend of a line that starts at at somewhere like the Fringe, are set to bypass this healthy continuum completely. Tied to their success is this new formula, and within the formula, completely new indicators are being considered. Scale, reach, economic impact, and growth of the tourism industry are now deeply tied to arts funding from public sources, and connected in the minds of many private donors as well. Success in these indicators comes with serious risk-aversion. This risk-aversion results in many things – most concerning is the interruption of the line between the independent artist’s voice and the resources that could empower them to speak louder. This is not to say that these organizations don’t WANT to participate in the cultural continuum – we know that their ranks are made up of our peer artists and thinkers – but that their ability to engage with us, to share their hard won resources, is being diminished by culture policy set outside our community.

As the independent community continues to grow in sophistication and to mobilize, we must act in support of these large institutions to make sure that they remember us, share with us, and most importantly know that they have the backing of their community to include in their measurements of success (and what they report to their funders) the qualitative value of their artistic endeavours. In turn, they must share with us some of their political capital, their expertise, and their resources to make sure that as Toronto’s cultural rejuvenation grows, the artists who planted its seeds are still there to reap some of the fruits of their labours.

Posted: March 12th, 2009 under DISCUSSION CORNER, March Newsletter.
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Hill Strategies Research has recently released a report on the status of Canadian artists; the report includes ten key facts about the average earnings and employment of artists.

Click here to see full article.

Posted: February 6th, 2009 under DISCUSSION CORNER.
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