Continuing the practice started with the State election, Back Page will be covering the arts policies of the major parties and other relevant political organizations in the upcoming Federal election, with a particular focus on local candidates.
We begin with the Labor Party’s Policy and commentary on it by NAVA in their Media Release.
Summary of -
NAVA Media Release
18 September 2007
Visual Arts Positive About Labor’s Arts Policy
Today the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) expressed its positive expectations of Labor’s New Directions for the Arts policy, launched last Friday.
Tamara Winikoff, Executive Director of NAVA said, “Though the detail and financial commitments have still to be revealed, with this policy most of the main issues for our sector are on the table.”
Full text of the statement is available at NAVA web site, which also has a link to the full text of New Directions for the Arts.
Back Page Editor's notes:
The document, despite employing the planners favourite term “Vibrant” on its cover, a word made almost meaningless through overuse, does contain some interesting policy and useful perspectives.
Like Coalition rhetoric in the past, it makes a point of pushing for greater private sector investment and corporate philanthropy in the arts. This is of course easier said than achievable in the current cultural climate in Australia, and of course the Big End of Town is attracted to larger arts institutions and prestige events. We look with interest for measures to support small to medium scale art projects.
There is also a question over the future of AbaF (Australian Business Arts Foundation) under the Labor policy.
It is good to see, in the section 'Supporting Australian Artists', that there is recognition of “the arts as a significant field of endeavour, worthy of support in their own right”, as well as the arts having a purpose in shaping national identity through art production and the arts sector giving “an immeasurable, sustaining dimension to the life of the nation”.
Labor will develop ArtStart programs to assist young and emerging artists, and to harmonise current Australia Council, Centrelink and ATO rules for income earned by artists on welfare. This is welcome, but the commitment to “CONSIDER” adding “‘participation in arts projects’ to the criteria for employment and community participation in work for the dole programs where it is likely that such participation will improve a persons prospects of gaining employment or private income”, sounds like a “non-core promise”. Without the contribution of unpaid work in the arts sector, the artist-directed and run initiatives that nurture contemporary practice, and hence the whole food chain, would die. Therefore it would be a positive move to support, rather than “consider” this addition.
New Directions for the Arts states Labor’s commitment to equity of participation in and enjoyment of the arts, and in this regard emphasises “the development of arts in rural and regional Australia as well as outer suburban areas.”
It makes a commitment to examine ways to develop regional arts, and to work with other levels of government to identify local priorities.
For Gosford and the Central Coast this sounds promising, but the area’s status (not really regional, rural or outer suburban) continues to confound programs of support, even when expressed in such general terms as in the Labor policy.
'Arts Education Policy' section of the policy is good in recognising the importance for individuals of arts education beyond the curriculum categories, and of its instrumental value, but does not mention the intrinsic values of engendering the expansion of cognitive faculties and the “technique” of art as a way of knowing.
The strategy of encouraging “artist in residency” programs in schools and universities is useful.
The topic of “Creative Industries” gets considerable attention. There is recognition, at last, of the importance of this sector of the Australian economy in the global mesh, and makes clear that Labor realises that there is a lot to do to catch up internationally.
While there is considerable attention given to Digital Content and New Media, there also seems to be an understanding that these 'creative' industries are built on a necessary foundation of speculative art practice. To quote: “Creative research is central to the growth of arts and innovation, and increasingly draws across disciplines and incorporates emerging technologies.”
In the policy document there remains the usual blurring of the important differences between cultural entrepreneurship, creative industry and art (there are many who think that art is in opposition to the intentions of the others). But to the extent that the Creative Industry argument feeds art funding, it should be welcomed.
In conclusion, New Directions for the Arts, contains many welcome initiatives, and is worth reading more closely. It also has the sense of in insider’s understanding, so one can assume it was well researched in consultation with art industry folks.
Everyone will discover some shortcomings for themselves, as I did, so we look forward to Policy statements by other parties for comparison.
We begin with the Labor Party’s Policy and commentary on it by NAVA in their Media Release.
Summary of -
NAVA Media Release
18 September 2007
Visual Arts Positive About Labor’s Arts Policy
Today the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) expressed its positive expectations of Labor’s New Directions for the Arts policy, launched last Friday.
Tamara Winikoff, Executive Director of NAVA said, “Though the detail and financial commitments have still to be revealed, with this policy most of the main issues for our sector are on the table.”
Full text of the statement is available at NAVA web site, which also has a link to the full text of New Directions for the Arts.
Back Page Editor's notes:
The document, despite employing the planners favourite term “Vibrant” on its cover, a word made almost meaningless through overuse, does contain some interesting policy and useful perspectives.
Like Coalition rhetoric in the past, it makes a point of pushing for greater private sector investment and corporate philanthropy in the arts. This is of course easier said than achievable in the current cultural climate in Australia, and of course the Big End of Town is attracted to larger arts institutions and prestige events. We look with interest for measures to support small to medium scale art projects.
There is also a question over the future of AbaF (Australian Business Arts Foundation) under the Labor policy.
It is good to see, in the section 'Supporting Australian Artists', that there is recognition of “the arts as a significant field of endeavour, worthy of support in their own right”, as well as the arts having a purpose in shaping national identity through art production and the arts sector giving “an immeasurable, sustaining dimension to the life of the nation”.
Labor will develop ArtStart programs to assist young and emerging artists, and to harmonise current Australia Council, Centrelink and ATO rules for income earned by artists on welfare. This is welcome, but the commitment to “CONSIDER” adding “‘participation in arts projects’ to the criteria for employment and community participation in work for the dole programs where it is likely that such participation will improve a persons prospects of gaining employment or private income”, sounds like a “non-core promise”. Without the contribution of unpaid work in the arts sector, the artist-directed and run initiatives that nurture contemporary practice, and hence the whole food chain, would die. Therefore it would be a positive move to support, rather than “consider” this addition.
New Directions for the Arts states Labor’s commitment to equity of participation in and enjoyment of the arts, and in this regard emphasises “the development of arts in rural and regional Australia as well as outer suburban areas.”
It makes a commitment to examine ways to develop regional arts, and to work with other levels of government to identify local priorities.
For Gosford and the Central Coast this sounds promising, but the area’s status (not really regional, rural or outer suburban) continues to confound programs of support, even when expressed in such general terms as in the Labor policy.
'Arts Education Policy' section of the policy is good in recognising the importance for individuals of arts education beyond the curriculum categories, and of its instrumental value, but does not mention the intrinsic values of engendering the expansion of cognitive faculties and the “technique” of art as a way of knowing.
The strategy of encouraging “artist in residency” programs in schools and universities is useful.
The topic of “Creative Industries” gets considerable attention. There is recognition, at last, of the importance of this sector of the Australian economy in the global mesh, and makes clear that Labor realises that there is a lot to do to catch up internationally.
While there is considerable attention given to Digital Content and New Media, there also seems to be an understanding that these 'creative' industries are built on a necessary foundation of speculative art practice. To quote: “Creative research is central to the growth of arts and innovation, and increasingly draws across disciplines and incorporates emerging technologies.”
In the policy document there remains the usual blurring of the important differences between cultural entrepreneurship, creative industry and art (there are many who think that art is in opposition to the intentions of the others). But to the extent that the Creative Industry argument feeds art funding, it should be welcomed.
In conclusion, New Directions for the Arts, contains many welcome initiatives, and is worth reading more closely. It also has the sense of in insider’s understanding, so one can assume it was well researched in consultation with art industry folks.
Everyone will discover some shortcomings for themselves, as I did, so we look forward to Policy statements by other parties for comparison.
BACK PAGE WILL BE CONTACTING LOCAL CANDIDATES FOR A STATEMENT ON ARTS POLICY IN RELATION TO THEIR ELECTORATE.
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