Guest Editorial: "A Matter of Choice" by Judith Marcuse
/Most of you know that the BC Alliance has been advocating for a more inclusive definition of art – one that celebrates everyday creativity and acknowledges the significant contribution the arts make to our well-being and the prosperity of our communities.
As we reflect on how best to rethink the roles of arts and culture in a post-pandemic Canada, Judith Marcuse advocates for a ‘whole systems’ approach. This short article is offered to stimulate exchange and encourage the creation of policy across current silos that more completely reflect the needs and perspectives of all citizens in our plural society:
A Matter of Choice
Judith Marcuse
Judith Marcuse.
By now, we all know we will not return to the old normal. There is growing agreement that our recovery must lead to greater inclusion, justice and sustainability – to a Canada where everyone matters.
We have created a hierarchy of values in the arts. Major arts and entertainment products in our country are delivered by for-profit businesses, most of them foreign-owned. Large arts institutions, many of them grounded in Western European cultural values, provide top-down versions of an “art is good for you” message along with excellent outreach activities such as backstage tours for donors, pre-performance talks, free entrance on Thursdays and drawing lessons on Sundays. These institutions are important for their consumers, audiences, artists and administrators.
But to create cultural democracy, in which every culture is acknowledged for its contributions to society, and all are treated equally, we must reframe policy decisions within the whole ecology of the arts. We must value every aspect of creative expression… from your three-year-old singing about her dog in the bathtub to arts education in schools; from pottery classes at the community centre to celebrating cultural heritages and work for social justice. Artmaking is not exclusively the territory of professional artists. Nor is it a frill but rather an essential element of healthy, cohesive and innovative societies.
Why is this important? Artmaking then becomes an inclusive way of exploring, validating and sharing what matters. Image, sound, story, movement allow us to express, process and share our thoughts and feelings about our lives now.
While there is lots of rhetoric about “community participation”, we don’t hear much about an entire arts sector – hundreds of organizations across Canada – which operate on the premise that cultural expression is a basic human right. In community-engaged art (CEA) and art for social change (ASC), groups of people who may not self-identify as artists co-create art in any of its forms about what matters to them, this process facilitated by specially-trained, professional artists. Participants are collaboratively engaged in the work of weaving social fabric, supporting visions and problem solving for an equitable future, bringing people into connection across all kinds of barriers. This is artmaking that is both enjoyable and purposeful.
This work takes place in every corner of the country – with youth, seniors, immigrant, BIPOC and other marginalized communities. It addresses racism, intergenerational issues, decolonization. It is present in diverse mental and physical health agendas, for poverty reduction, community development, environmental education and in strategic planning. Or it can share what it’s like to be a teenager today.
People are the experts of their own lives. Whether in the form of a play, a mural, a cell film, a dance, a song or stories, this art can be remarkably relevant, beautiful and moving because it expresses lived realities and dreams in a plural society.
Practiced worldwide, ASC has its own, unique goals, methods, pedagogy and scholarship. Collective creation and dialogue lead to empathy and insight, as well as solutions to often-complex problems. But this practice is much more. Image, sound, movement become reflections of what citizens are thinking and feeling now – and validate the creative voices of all participants, everyone whose perspectives and vision must become part of recovery conversations.
After providing tailored funding programs for the sector since 1997, the Canada Council for the Arts has eliminated community engaged art/ASC as a unique arts discipline, subsuming it under other art forms. Funding goes to a small number of organizations and individual artists but, just when their work is most needed, the vast majority of artists have given up trying to access support from Canada’s major arts funder.
Many local governments and foundations recognize the powerful impacts of this work, referencing international research and local experience – but have far fewer resources. A few federal departments are starting to bring ASC into their programs. Yet, as coming economic challenges will result in funding triage for the whole arts sector, many organizations are facing legitimate fears for their survival.
It’s past time to mobilize the power of art in a more holistic and cohesive way. Creative citizen engagement and dialogue across difference is critical for our recovery. We have a choice. Imagination and innovation live in us all.
Find out more about art for social change at https://icasc.ca.
Judith Marcuse has worked in the arts for over five decades. Trained in dance in Canada and abroad, she performed with Canadian and foreign companies spanning 20 years. As a choreographer/director, she has created more than 100 dance/theatre/film works. For the last 20 years, her internationally-recognized work has focused on community-engaged art for social change (ASC). She teaches, speaks and consults internationally.
Marcuse is Founder of the International Centre of Art for Social Change and has led a recently-completed, six-year national study on ASC while establishing a two-year graduate program in the field, the first of its kind in Canada. She is a recipient of major awards, including an honorary doctorate, and, most recently, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Network of Arts and Learning.
[Cut image: Collaborative art by fifth graders. Shannon la Bounty on Pinterest.]
