Arts and Everyone

I’ve got form with museums. But it fell considerably short of the
knowledge that I needed to develop about a whole new aspect of
professional life. So, I spent quite a lot of time over summer and
autumn with museum folk - learning, listening, debating, thinking,
coming to some early personal conclusions on differences and
synergies with the much more familiar (to me) arts world.

The Aycliffe and District Bus Preservation Society wasn’t, in all
honesty, the visit that I was most looking forward to. Buses have no
real locus in my life. But what I saw of the craft, the commitment,
the voluntary effort and the enterprise was a revelation, even to my
slightly jaded eyes, almost too used to meeting people acutely
passionate about their subject.

The society gets those bus beauties in full working order (and
starring in heartwarming historical dramas amongst other things) and
last year the volunteers also took part in a local school history
project. No doubt there were talks and expert advice from the bus
chaps, a bit of intergenerational interviewing and a number of
animation workshops. The result is this cute claymation about the
Aycliffe Angels, local female wartime munitions workers.

Not earth-shattering, not meant to be, but an example of the local,
engaging, participant-inspiring one-off creative project that happens
in communities everywhere.

I put it under the new heritage section in my mental ‘stories that
make the case for culture’’ file. The arts section is in overspill,
I’ve been collecting material for 20 years. 20 years.

And yet, 2 decades on and somehow the cumulative effect isn’t enough.
Creative work within communities (of geography, or interest or both)
has evolved; in the late 80’s, quality or innovation wasn’t
always an outcome that was given any credence - those artists who
produced the game-changing, creative and inspiring work often didn’t
(wouldn’t) get involved, and in the 90’s instrumentalism still skewed
the starting points. That didn’t stop some amazing stuff happening
and building body of evidence, knowledge, practice

But the potential for communities to really power up through culture
has still to be realised. It’s partially a result of the
short-termism caused by politics or under-funding or lack of tenacity,
or, just occasionally, a lack of authenticity, or humanity or
brilliant ideas.

The newly announced £37 million Arts Council Creative People and
Places fund with it’s ten-year planning context is a definite step in
the right direction (and a north/midlands direction at that). But I
think the step-change will be the changing face of community activism
and the place of artists and creatives within that. There’s a palpable
difference in the political, social, civic awareness and activism of
both artists and institutions. It was an artist Dan Thompson who led
the riot cleanup campaign, and catalyses the creative role of empty
shops in failing high streets, a cultural activist Emma Bearman who
nurtures and drives a blog platform for improved life in Leeds, and
my twitter feed is full of cultural leaders with both a mandate and an
active voice in the wider (non-cultural) development of a city or
region.

The power of social media to mobilise, inform, catalyse can and should
scale up localised, active creative, networks with goals of long-term
change, where artists are as as much intervener as interpreter, as
much citizen as producer. It puts the unflinching commitment of
long-running community connecters - like bus preservers – in an
entirely different context.

The local authority areas in the lowest 20% of arts engagement
highlighted in the Creative People and Places information correspond
largely, with an equally low position in most other social or economic
indices. While culture isn’t necessarily the answer, it can
definitely, defiantly ask bigger questions.

I bang on about resilience, collaboration, generosity quite a lot.  And even as I’m doing it, I’m a bit afraid that they’re becoming public sector buzz-words , and on the verge of losing their basic truth and authenticity.  And then things like Globe Gallery’s auction come along and the words regain their meaning.  Globe, a contemporary  gallery in the centre of Newcastle is pretty determined about surviving  hard times and funding changes:  their generosity, energy and  commitment to art and artists over many years is being paid back.  Many hours of volunteer time spent getting a new space ready,  an eclectic mix of donated furniture that manages to look like an knowing version of an early 70’s Heal’s window display, 3 exhibitions opened....and  for some creative fundraising, a stunning array of donated artist works  (Douglas Gordon, Jane & Louise Wilson, many more) that are being auctioned live in about half an hour.  If you’re in Newcastle, or anywhere near, go now. If you’re on the way, and bidding, be generous. 

I started working on a post about SIRF11,(formerly known as Stockton
international riverside festival before the fashion for acronyms as
words) Its now its 24th year, bringing the best* in international
street theatre, to the streets (and river) of Stockton. Its sometimes
bemusing, occasionally shocking but always exhilarating, and its grown
and flourished here in small-town north east.
*and yes, that's the actual best, not what's 'good-enough' or 'on its
way somewhere else better'. 

But instead I'm glued to rolling news on telly and twitter, as the
incomprehensible but somehow always-going-happen scenes play out.

So for now, just 2 images

the finale of the festival (watch the last minute or so)

and below, a screen grab from some of Carol Alevroyianni's (@calevroyianni) footage of the night

No parallels drawn, no spurious conclusions arrived at, except that primal thrills can take many forms, including art

In the early days of the Olympic announcements, there was some
cynicism from those in the arts and cultural sector, a doubting of its
relevance to the UK beyond London, questions about affordability, all
fuelled, perhaps, by a few misconceptions. There’s a really old
French and Saunders sketch, where the two play a couple of art
students on holiday, all severe hair and black polo-necks, making
pretentious observations while naive-but-happy holidaymakers frolic
around the beach in early forms of lycra. Switch the beach for the
athletics field, and you have the old stereotypes of art and sport,
and the distance between them. They’re out of date, culturally and
also personally – speaking as an avid arts consumer, an arts
bureaucrat, a regular runner and competitive* rower.
Pierre de Coubertin, The founder of the modern Olympics was a sports
all-rounder and the son of an artist, and his original vision was for
an inspirational international event that showcased the best in art as
well as sport. In fact, up until 1948, there were medals awarded for
art. Would today’s artists welcome a gold medal on top of critical
acclaim? I’m not sure, but I can picture a public art podium with
Antony Gormley, Anish Kapoor and Claes Oldenburg all of who have
created some of their best, if not their greatest work for the North
East.
The 2012 Olympics will be accompanied by a year long celebration of
the best in arts and creativity, and the north east can both inspire
and be inspired by this. We have one of the finest examples of mass
participation in sport and arts here in Tyneside. The Great North Run
has a hugely ambitious cultural programme attached to it,
commissioning dance, music, visual art and film. The artists involved
always visit, and in some cases actually run the half-marathon,
before going on to create a response to the extraordinary energy and
emotion of 50,000 runners, an iconic route and the world’s elite
alongside the first-time entrant fulfilling an incredible personal
achievement.
It’s that sense of being part of an inspirational event on a very
personal level that’s both the challenge and the opportunity for the
cultural sector as we approach 2012. There are brilliantly
imaginative ideas coming through from communities and artists that use
the games as a catalyst, and build on some of the pioneering festivals
and events on Tyneside. At the same time, arts organisations in
Newcastle and Gateshead are undertaking some fascinating research that
adds to the body of evidence that shows, ultimately, its personal
relationships that help us make that leap to try out something new.
Those networks of personal relationships are the key to unlocking a
more authentic and equal relationships between art and communities.
Creativity on an international scale connected to people at the most
local level possible? Sounds like a winning aspiration to me
*Competitive* doesn’t equal *winning* in my case

And if you want to experience the artist bringing history to life,
whilst making you weepingly grateful that its consigned to the past,
The Unthank's heartbreaking reworking of testimony from Lord Ashleys
mines commission of 1842 should do the trick:

Wikipedia has this to say about book clubs:

'One of the problems with these clubs is that some members regard them
as opportunities for social contact and conversation veering off onto
a wide variety of non-literary topics, while others hope to engage in
serious literary analysis focused on the book in question and related
works. Still others suggest a book not because they are interested in
it from a literary point-of-view but because they think it will offer
them an opportunity to make points of personal interest to them.
Different expectations and education/skill levels may lead to
conflicts and disappointments in clubs of this kind'

My book club met this week (The Best of Everything, Rona Jaffe’s
Madmen-inspiring story of creative career girls in 50’s Manhattan
since you ask). We’ve been meeting every month (with a short break
for regrouping, see below) for seven years, and while we’ve avoided
literary-based conflicts and disappointments, the life-based ones add
up to a very human story: two babies born, a baby died, two
separations, one divorce (followed by a reduction in membership, one
of those his friends/my friends situations) and maybe it was even
cover for an affair, we never knew, but she was called away
suspiciously early, suspiciously often. All human life (or the bits
of it associated with a bunch of 30/40-something women) is here

But mostly, we read books, - sometimes great books - and we talk about
them, and we have a drink, and we drift between literary criticism and
gossipy critique of people we know and films and families and men.

If I was at work, maybe I’d be thinking about how we’re engaging with
great art, and the impact of the Richards and the Judies and all the
book club machinery on the production, distribution and consumption of
literary (ish) fiction. But I’m not, so I don’t. We do do great art:
Tolstoy, Coover, Murakami. But its not curated or co-ordinated or
evaluated. Its not for everyone, it’s just for us

And, with no literary merit whatsoever, here's some interesting, generally idiosyncratic book facts from the
last seven years:

Book which caused the most unbookish debate: John Irving,: A prayer
for Owen Meany “would you get off with Owen Meany?” (8 to 2 against
if you’re interested)

Book that got my son back into reading, after I artfully left it open,
(so Oprah, I actually I don't care if its true or not): James Frey, A
Million Little pieces.

Book which made us think that the reading public might be poor foolish
dupes: Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code

Ditto: Paul Coelho: The Alchemist

We haven’t picked next month’s yet. Any ideas?

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This year’s Sunday Times rich list shocker – apparently even more comment-worthy than the fact that the very wealthy are getting even more so - was that for the first time ever, there were 100 rich women amongst the 1000 richest people.  That’s 10%.  Not a large figure compared to the number of women that make up the workforce/society - the population equilibrium figure of (about) 50%.

If entrepreneurship is one of the best ways to make your first million (the marriage/divorce route taken by a couple of those 100 women is just too much like hard work), is the picture any better at the start-up/small business end of things?   Marginally, but still a way off equality: the most recent BIS Small business survey reports that only 14% of SME’s (businesses between 1 and 250 employees) are led by women.

 And how does that translate itself in the north east, traditionally that most macho of places, where it’s actually true that we don’t hold with coats, much business gets done at the footy (see previous post), 8 am breakfast meetings are alive and well, and lots of chaps still bother with a suit and tie and opening the door for the ladies?

In the arts, it translates remarkably successfully.

There’s a north eastern trait that I think is stronger and deeper than the (not always altogether unpleasant) remnants of any Gene Hunt-style modes of behaviour:  a proper respect for hard work, passion and principle.  And so, almost counter-intuitively, here there’s an embarrassment of riches in women arts leaders: 50%  of the future Arts Council  national portfolio-funded organisations  in the north east are led by women: 20 creative enterprises*, perhaps not making £millions, but managing all of the small business concerns of bottom lines and bureaucracy while making a uniquely creative product,  including Erica Whyman at Northern Stage creating world class theatre and generously nurturing new talent,  Geraldine Ling developing an authentic artistic voice with learning disabled actors at Lawnmowers, Su Jones  combining commercial acumen with the strongest belief in the necessity of the visual artist at A-N,  and Annabel Turpin at Arc, raising the game in the creative and community role that an arts centre plays. And in the wider arts landscape, Clymene Christofourou and Sharon Bailey leading Isis are the go-to people for international collaborations, and from Sailor Girl to Wunderbar to Unfolding Theatre, a new generation of women are the powerhouse behind newer cultural start-ups. 

Making a living as an artist or in the arts world has never been straightforward, and that underpins much of the drive in the sector. And the arts have always attracted women:  we like subject matter that stimulates both intellect and emotion, independence, flexibility and being part of a network of like-minded people. But that doesn’t entirely explain the high level of female leadership here, and I think that comes back to being part of a sector that places the highest value on creativity, in a place that backs a strong work ethic and principled leadership: in the face of that, the glass ceiling is flimsy at best.

*the list in full...A-N, Arc, Audio Visual Arts North East, Ballet Lorent, Berwick film and Media Arts, Design Event, Inpress, Lawnmowers, mima, New Writing North, Northern Architecture, Northern Stage, November Club, Open Clasp, Seven Stories, Great North Run Cultural Programme, Theatre Hullaballoo, Theatre Sans Frontieres, Zendeh Productions

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