ARCCO e-Bulletin |
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+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Important Member Dates and Information February 15: Operating Grant Deadline - Ontario Arts Council February 25 to 29: InFest: International Artist Run Culture in Vancouver March 1: Operating Grant Deadline - Toronto Arts Council
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| Leaping into 2004 The holiday celebrations are behind us and the new year is off to a running start with our members mounting exhibitions, launching programs, organizing events and gearing up for grant deadlines in February and March. Thank you to all our members for your continued support, and welcome to all of the new ARCCO members. 2004 will definitely be an exciting year for ARCCO as our organization will move into a new phase in its development. Thanks to a province-wide 3 year grant of $157,000 awarded from Ontario Trillium Foundation, Jewell Goodwyn our ED can now begin equipping and staffing ARCCO's office. Although I personally will miss the involvement I had as President of ARCCO, I am pleased to continue with the development of ARCCO's communication tools. Over the next few months, we hope to make some significant changes to both the e-bulletin and ARCCO's web site in order to increase our ability to provide important information to our members. ARCCO really got the ball rolling when we mounted the national conference in Ottawa in 2002. Subsequently the RCAAQ held a very successful conference in Quebec city in October and now the InFest conference in Vancouver is just few weeks away. I urge you all to take the time to review the update from Keith Wallace, book your registration and travel arrangements, and read the information on travel subsidy. Thank you to all the contributors to this issue. We look forward to providing more opportunities for members to exchange information. Happy Leap Year! Gary Hall Editor
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ InFest: International Artist Run Culture February 25 to 29, 2004 in Vancouver It's January and all is coming together for InFest. This event is creating lots of interest from across Canada and around the world, and will prove to be a great opportunity to discover international artist run activity and to make contacts for future projects and collaborations. We encourage you to register soon for the Discussion Forums (February 26, 27, 28) as we anticipate they will be sold out. Go to our website at www.paarc.ca/infest for registration information. Please note that registration for one individual from an organization is $75, a second or third individual is $25 each. Registration also includes entry to the Artist Run Centre Presentations and the closing party. For the Discussion Forums, we have invited speakers from Canada, USA, England, Sweden, Hong Kong, Korea, Australia, Argentina, Mexico and South Africa. They will provide a diverse range of voices addressing issues focused on what constitutes an Artist Run Centre, differing funding models, the importance of writing and criticism, internationalism and international exchange, and the artist as curator. The Artist Run Centre Presentations will be extended to Sunday in addition to the Saturday afternoon session. We hope that participants will bring material about their organizations that can be presented at the Networking Session on Wednesday afternoon. In early February, we will inform you of the format of this session and the kind of material that would be useful. Special thanks are extended to our funders; Canada Council for the Arts, Andy Warhol Foundation, Vancouver Foundation, British Council, Prince Claus Fund, City of Vancouver, British Columbia Arts Council, Hamber Foundation. See you in February. Keith Wallace Coordinator, InFest: International Artist Run Culture
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Travel Subsidies for ARCCO Members Good news! ARCCO has received a travel assistance grant from the Outreach office at the Canada Council, for Full Members to attend the InFest conference, February 25-29, 2004. ARCCO's request was based on lowest economical fares! This means that if your centre is a full member you can receive travel subsidy monies to assist one representative per centre. The subsidy goes toward economy air travel only (and not any form of ground transportation). ARCCO anticipates that you may receive at least 50% subsidy for your air travel. In order to be re-imbursed for your travel, please mail in your receipts, after attending the conference. We look forward to seeing you at the conference in Vancouver! Jewell Goodwyn
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Off Printing: Report on Québec Conference The Off Printing conference descended on the Méduse centre in Québec City in October, 2003. Unfortunately there were only two weeks to buffer the new Canada Council grant deadline for Operational Support to Artist-Run Centres, making it difficult for organizers and attendees alike. In spite of the timing the conference was a success and proved to be a valuable educational experience and networking opportunity. Like the Convergence conference one year previous, Off Printing brought together delegates from across the country representing the interests of artist-run centres, collectives, independent artists, writers and curators. And while the subject of what makes artist-run culture a valued locus of cultural production and dissemination was a constant touchstone, the RCAAQ decided to provide a sharpened focus for the conference, namely of the problems related to dissemination and publishing in artist-run culture. It may be true that divining a particular subject area from all possible topics related to ARCs has the potential to lend proceedings a very sophisticated dialogue. From the onset I was concerned that, as a Director of a small "regional" artist-run centre, the dialogue would not have relevance to the brochures and ad-hoc publications that constitute our limited contribution to artist-run literature. Nevertheless the conference proved to be quite relevant. Panels such as Publications for Whom? (Keith Wallace, Lesley Johnstone and Ahasiw Maskegon-Iskwew) posed important questions pertaining to audience, surely an important consideration for all those centres that have forgotten boxes of dusty catalogues taking up storage. Strategies revolving around collaboration and distribution were also discussed, such as the focus provided by the Networking and Distribution Panel (Esther Vincent, Bookmobile and Giles Hebert). In both cases specific examples of successful projects, as well as certain undeniable pitfalls were brought forward. Collaborating with a distributor on a large-scale catalogue may address key issues around budget and distribution, however, give the devil his due, you may also have your cover picked out by some multinational conglomerate pencil-neck. For most of us this is not a concern, but it remains true that we must forge alternatives to accommodate our marginal practices, and often not without compromise. Perhaps the international panel Alternative Publishing Abroad (David Platzker, Christoph Keller and Nathalie André) best illuminated the importance of advocacy for publishing. On the panel David Platzker of New York based Printed Matter Inc. (one of the most prestigious artist-run publishers in the world) related the struggle that they grapple with due a lack of government support. By contrast, the German delegate Christoph Keller spoke of publishing over 250 projects in a single year. As a striking addendum to the proceedings, a national advisory committee was formed to examine the possibility of founding a new National Arts Service Organization. Hence the legacy of Off Printing, in carrying forward the momentum of the Convergence conference last year, will be developed with much anticipation at the InFestconference this spring. I can't wait. David LaRiviere
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Mercer Union at ART FORUM BERLIN 2003 Art Forum Berlin is an annual international contemporary commercial art fair. In October 2002 the Canadian Embassy, Berlin organized a Canadian cultural tour of German curators and directors, and Mercer Union was one of the visited galleries. Following, Sabrina van der Ley, Artistic Director, AFB invited us to participate as a special institution. We chose to participate in the fair because of the focus on Canada through "Berlin in Dialogue with Canada," a series of panel discussions and events focused on Canadian art and the art market. We received funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs, in addition to our own funds and Berlin-based friends to finance the international project. Our interest in participating in AFB was to highlight Canadian art and artists, promote Mercer Union, and meet with an audience of international visitors of directors, curators, collectors and the general public. We exhibited the work of three Toronto-based artists who have exhibited at Mercer Union within the past year, to reflect the standard of our programming and production, including: James Carl, Derek Sullivan, and Jennifer Murphy. For our booth we created an installation environment to highlight our non-commercial status. Sullivan and Carl also worked collaboratively to create functional modular furniture for our booth, creating chairs, a bench and display tables that successfully displayed our products, and welcomed viewers to sit down, relax and hangout. As one of only two Canadian artist-run centres (along with OPTICA from Montreal), we were the only non-commercial galleries and received particular attention. While in Berlin, we also coordinated visits to contemporary art galleries, and met with several Berlin-based artists. We hope that several of our contacts will develop into long-term relationships and cultural exchange. As a result of our participation in AFB, we were invited by Sparwasser HQ (a Berlin ARC) to participate in an international exhibition of video that coincided with AFB. In addition, impressed by our participation as an institution and the impact we made on AFB, Mercer Union has since been invited to participate in ARCO International Contemporary Art Fair (and conference) in Madrid in February 2004. Natalie De Vito Administrative + Platform Director Mercer Union, A Centre for Contemporary Art
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Media Arts Study and Profile, Phase 1 - Final Report Following is a summary of the Final Report entitled Media Arts Study and Profile, Phase 1 prepared by Hill Strategies for the Canada Council for the Arts, Department of Canadian Heritage and the Independent Media Arts Alliance. The report was completed in May 2003 and the complete document is available at http://www.canadacouncil.ca/artsinfo/research/ This recent report, prepared by Hill Strategies, uses 71 interviews with media artists, arts organizations and funders to examine the realities, functioning and importance of Canada's media arts sector. This study marks the first phase of research into an under-researched areas of the arts, with the next phasefocussing on data development and analysis. The authors found that the media arts sector comprises a broad range of artistic work in film, video, audio and new media. The sector was found to be "rapidly changing, difficult to define, very active and struggling to find money for its activities". Interviewees indicated that the production and exhibition of works by Aboriginal and culturally diverse artists are key to the development of the media arts. The report notes that the development and adoption of digital technologies has been the biggest change in the media arts sector in the last ten years. There has been an increase in the number of artists owning their own equipment, leading to the sense that the media arts sector has become a "more scattered community, making it harder for organizations to attract members and to provide networking opportunities and a sense of community". While many artists, especially younger artists, are turning to the media arts to explore their creative vision, many interviewees expressed concern over the exhibition opportunities for their works. In particular, many interviewees expressed the need for "more permanent venues and a better-structured, cross-country exhibition circuit for media artworks", "a more active and better funded distribution network in Canada", as well as better communication among artists, service organizations and government agencies. Some respondents spoke of the need to improve the visibility of the sector, including more media literacy work in schools, universities and museums. The report recommends priority areas for action to meet the challenges, needs and gaps identified in the interviews, including recommendations concerning: distribution and exhibition opportunities; information sharing and networking among artists, arts organizations, service organizations and government agencies; increased funding for media artists and media arts organizations; the development of ways to "manage the landscape, address competing priorities and manage the varied and diverse set of practices within the sector"; raising the profile and recognition of the sector; and improving artists' remuneration across artistic sectors." Hill Strategies Research Inc. | Recherche Inc. http://www.hillstrategies.com info@hillstrategies.com
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ A Letter from the Canada Council In case any of you have missed this letter in the onslaught of post holiday snail mail here is a recent letter from the Canada Council, regarding the supplementary funds in the Assistance to Artist-Run Centres Program. -JG
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARCCO AGM - We thank the following
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+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARCCO's New Members At the AGM in September 2003 ARCCO experienced a dramatic increase in membership with five Full Members (3 new and 2 that upgraded their status from Associate Members to Full Member) as well as 1 new associate and 1 affiliate. New Full Members: Charles Street Video, Toronto LIFT - Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto, Toronto SAW Video Association, Ottawa Change of status from Associate to Full: SAVAC - The South Asian Visual Arts Collective, Toronto HOT- House of Toast, Windsor >New Associate Member: IFCO - Independent Filmmakers Cooperative of Ottawa, Ottawa New Affiliate Member: RCAAQ - regroupment des centres d'artistes autogérés du Québec, Montreal Québec
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ARCCO Board of Directors 2003-2004 Danielle Tremblay, Président, (Galerie du Nouvel-Ontario) Paul Couillard, Vice-président (FADO) Christine Burchnall, Treasurer (Artcite) Laura Margita, Secretary (Galerie SAW Gallery) David LaRiviere, (Artspace) Greg Woodbury, (Charles Street Video) David Poolman, (Forest City Gallery)
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