Education Secretary Nicky Morgan recently claimed at a science and technology event that “arts subjects limit career choices”. Poet Jo Bell takes issue with the minister’s assumptions and argues that, on the contrary, art is what makes our lives ‘possible and meaningful’.
The issue of artists’ pay and exploitation in the US is prompting a variety of responses that question what it means to be an artist in the current economic climate. Abigail Satinsky, associate director at Chicago’s Threewalls gallery, surveys the landscape and asks whether we need to look at how we value and define art and artists.
Good things are happening in Cardiff’s visual arts scene, with an energy and momentum that can be seen in the current Cardiff Contemporary festival. But, argues former Artes Mundi director Ben Borthwick, there is much that needs to be done if the biennial event – and Wales’ contemporary art scene generally – is to really fulfil its potential.
As the controversy around the staging of Brett Bailey’s Exhibit B at The Barbican reaches a climax, with the London run now cancelled due to protests from anti-racism campaigners, Index on Censorship’s associate arts producer Julia Farrington explores the issues around the presentation of this live installation.
If artists regularly self-qualify themselves as ‘starving’ in such a casual and off-handed way, what kind of respect can they expect to gain? Margaret Lam thinks it’s time tell a different story about what it means to be an artist.
The current British Folk Art exhibition at Tate Britain provides a timely reminder of art as an expression of creativity and emotion. It is, argues Alistair Gentry, a compelling alternative to a ‘sick and twisted’ contemporary art world.
Can art be truly contemporary if it doesn’t embrace and address the digital world? After hearing strong and polarized reviews from friends, Linda Pittwood visits the Serpentine Sackler’s current digital installation by Ed Atkins and finds something genuinely original.
Following last week’s announcement by Arts Council England of its new National Portfolio of funded organisations, Mark Robinson takes a closer look at the figures to find that, whilst the portfolio has many of the same strengths and weaknesses as the first one created in 2011, ACE has failed to significantly redress the funding imbalance between London and the regions.
With less than three months to go to the Scottish independence referendum, what does Creative Scotland’s recently published Annual Plan 2014-15 say about the country’s approach to public investment in the arts? Johnny Gailey argues that it represents a significant divergence from the UK narrative of funding cuts, economic benefits and philanthropy.
The recent AD:uk/NCVO conference, Public Services: The Value of Cultural Commissioning, asked important questions about public sector commissioning of artists and arts organisations. Chris Bailey reports from Doncaster and adds a few questions of his own.
The shortlist for the inaugural East London Painting Prize didn’t represent the ethnic and cultural diversity of the area and, argues Gillian McIver, this reflects the UK art world’s stiflingly restrictive approach to artistic practice.
Glasgow-based artist Ally Wallace asks: Why is ageism seen as an acceptable form of discrimination by so many in the art world?
As national portfolio organisations in England wait for news on their funding applications to Arts Council England, Three Johns and Shelagh argue that the system is flawed and that it’s time to rethink both what ACE is and what it is for.
The recently published Arts Council England report, The Value of Arts and Culture to People and Society, has been attracting criticism from academics for the quality of its research and its subsequent findings. Mike White, Research Fellow in Arts in Health, is unimpressed by its ‘holistic case’ for arts and culture.
Liz Hill, editor of Arts Professional, concludes that Arts Council England’s This England report is based on a carefully constructed analysis designed to disguise a London-centric funding strategy.
As part of the recent No Boundaries conference in York and Bristol, Arts Council England made two major presentations about regional investment in the arts and the ‘wider benefits’ of arts and culture to society. Chris Bailey was in York and assesses the significance of the ACE reports.
Why do so many artists get asked to work for free, so often? And what’s the best way for an artist to deal with these requests, and ensure they’re financially secure and their work is valued? Michelle Aldredge explores the problem and encourages ‘mindful decision-making’ as a way forward.
A new report urges those working with arts and culture to rethink their contribution to a vision of sustainable development that benefits the whole of society. Report co-author, Mark Robinson, introduces the provocation and identifies three vital ‘practices’ that can only be achieved by collaboration between artists, institutions and an intelligent funding ecology.
The Ask The Audience debate in Leeds was conceived as a challenge to the arts funding status quo and featured a panel of arts professionals including a-n’s director. Co-organiser Phil Kirby reports on how the event went.
The Warwick Commission on the Future of Cultural Value has embarked on a two-year project to gather ‘evidence and arguments’ about investment and engagement in our cultural lives. We report from the first of the Commission’s ‘provocation events’ and ask why, despite a growing consensus around the importance of culture, cuts and more cuts are still the order of the day.
Does joining with higher education institutions bring a promise of financial stability for cash-strapped arts organisations, alongside an increase in audiences? a-n Director Susan Jones reports from an Arts Council England conference that sketched out a new landscape for the contemporary arts.
Disabled artists organisation Shape and Artsadmin have been awarded £1.5million by Arts Council England to deliver Unlimited, a new three-year programme of commissions. With the launch of its Unlimited Allies scheme, it’s now looking for help and support so that the scheme can deliver a long-term legacy.
It’s been a week that has seen a multi-million pound sponsorship deal at Tate Modern and controversy and column inches about a chair, a Russian socialite and a publicity picture of questionable taste. But is there a link between the two stories?
The idea of an ‘American Model’ of arts funding is gaining traction in the UK along with growing calls for artists to be ‘entrepreneurial’. But, writes American critic and curator Andrew Horwitz, the funding system in the US is deeply problematic, while those who espouse entrepreneurship miss the point that the real ‘business of art’ is not for profit.
A year on from the implosion of Creative Scotland and a year before the independence referendum, where do things stand at the funding body? Johnny Gailey attends a recent Open Session event in Glasgow hosted by CEO Janet Archer, and finds the organisation caught in a curious state of flux.
Alternative insights into the visual arts, with fast-paced news, comment, debate.
Get in touch
[email protected]
a-n offers a range of memberships for individuals and groups – from £38 annually – find out more.
Supported by:
