(Prime Minister Stephen Harper, September 23rd)
I think Prime Minister Harper's statement shows a limited understanding of the arts in Canada. So I got into my gala gear to show everyone where arts funding is really going and why it is important to our community.
The Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Ontario Arts Foundation (among others) distribute funds among our arts organizations to keep these companies alive and thriving.
The average income for an artist is $23 000 (compared with the overall average of $40 000)
La Petite Mort Gallery showcases unique and often controversial works by local artists in a downtown studio.
The Saw Gallery also gives opportunities for artists to display their work...
...whether strange and grotesque...
... or just plain beautiful.
This art both reflects and challenges our urban mentalities, our multiculturalism, our childlike impulses, our morality, our sensibility...
...and even our sexuality.
The musically talented appear at arts events in venues like the Mercury Lounge, contributing to our vibrant nightlife.
There are approximately 1.1 million jobs in the arts sector - not just for artists, but for those working backstage or in administration. Like any other business, the arts are providing jobs for all types of people.
Theatre groups rehearse in church basements, preparing to delight you with their theatrical innovations. The cast of Gladstone Productions' "Rabbit Hole" even shared their chocolate cake with me!
Members of Le Groupe Danse Lab are already creating their interpretive vacuum dance.
Artists are creating new work all the time, whether in their private studios...
... or out in the street where the entire world can see it.
Opera Lyra's "Cinderella" will delight children of all ages, inspiring them to create and get involved.
We have to fund programs for our children so they have the opportunity to pursue their talents and increase their knowledge of the arts.
We also have to encourage writers to publish their works locally and support them in their endeavours. We should be proud of our Canadian artists.
And don't forget about our national museums: scientific and cultural learning stems from the arts and is an important part of any community.
The Oz Cafe supports local artists by displaying their work on the walls. What a treat for the patrons!
The Capital Poetry Collective sparks discussion and encourages people to speak their minds onstage through poetry.
It is said that every government dollar spent on the arts goes back into the economy tenfold. But the economy aside, the arts are essential to the general well-being of a nation. We should support our artists as we support our athletes because they all represent us; they challenge us and they inspire us.
On October 14th, consider the role the arts plays in your daily life. Art is your story. ~~ concept and photographs by Jessica Ruano ~~ gala models: Jessica and Jadis
You’re awesome.
Jess I just looked at your “this is my Gala” photo shoot… well done. Very well done.
Protesting and looking hot. Jesus Jess, is the anything you don’t do? As always, I am jealous of your involvement, of your style, and mostly the thing I lack… organization. Keep rocking Jess, you will bring Harper down single handedly.
Jess, the series is exquisite. i am continuously impressed and inspired by not only your passion, but your ability to see your visions through. i doubt very much that anyone who looks through your photo series will be voting for the heartless, art-less Harper
bravo!
hey
brilliant photo album.
did you manage to catch the wrecking ball tonight? we had to leave early.
Congrats Jess! I’m glad you were able to bring this project to life!
great series.
now, about the government subsidies…
This was fantastic – I’m inspired by your series of pics and I want a fringe show or web series documenting local art communities across Canada doing exactly this: showing their love for the arts by seeking it out and showcasing it with honesty. Thank you!
really great work. from someone who maybe isn’t quite as passionate about the arts, this series really touched me. again, great work.
The Oz!! My most favourite place of all… this series of photographs has rocked my world.
Great cause, great concept (and great dress).
oooohhh !! *clap clap clap*
brava, Jessica. this is a wonderful presentation. you’re a great inspiration and initiator. keep up the good work.
Jessica, you are like the Joan of Arc of art! I really enjoyed your gala. It showed that art is everywhere and in the everyday, and that it is being produced by artists out of dedication to their medium and their need for creative self-expression and not to “get rich.”
Everyone – get off your couch – participate in art – and vote (wisely.)
Well done, Jess.
Hey,
Wonderful work. What are you going to do with it next?
You are an amazing talent Jessica!
This is brilliant Jessica–well done!
Lovely photographs. But I’ll support more funding for the arts when I can afford a formal gown. And when there are a few non-artists involved in the decisions about which projects get funding. And after we’ve paid for regrettably unartistic things such as second-stage housing for battered women, affordable day care for the working poor, and affordable dental care for everybody, to name only a few. If our artists are so committed to the pursuit of their art, they can do what artists have done for centuries: find a wealthy patron, or work at a secondary occupation until they can support themselves solely through the exercise of their talent.
Of course, that would necessitate an objective view of both one’s talent and the value to the world at large of one’s particular talent. And that would preclude the belief that having or believing oneself to have an artistic talent entitles one to a share of the money earned by someone else’s work. As to our artists expressing our collective spirit, there is no such thing as a collective spirit: there are only individual spirits, and no person should presume to dictate what should or should not express or nourish another spirit.
Hi Kim,
Thanks for your response. I didn’t actually buy this gown. It was a gift from my parents for my high school graduation. I thought I should make good use of it.
I think you make some good points in your comment. The government should be putting time and energy into helping battered women and into affordable health care. But I do wonder if you think that – if we cut money from the arts – the funds would go directly into these other things? If we cut money from the arts, would everything else get better? Are you also upset that the government is spending so much money internally, and putting a lot of money into the war? Because I am. I would rather that money be spent on health care and education.
I focus on the arts because it is a subject on which I am very well versed. The arts are important to me because I’ve seen the good it does to people around me: artists and non-artists alike. But just because I choose the arts as my focus, it does not mean that these other issues aren’t important to me. Of course they are.
The purpose of this little pet project of mine (which, by the way, I did in my spare time — not for money) was simply to raise awareness about arts in Ottawa, to show the good it is doing. I am not suggesting it is a higher good than health care, or any of the other issues you mentioned. I am only suggesting that perhaps the arts are affecting us more than we know.
Arts spark discussion. They spread new ideas. They help us develop as a society: creatively and otherwise. I don’t think I would have used the term “collective spirit” because although Jung had some interesting ideas, I didn’t think they related quite to the topic at hand.
Yes, in some periods of history, artists were supported by patrons. But that was when we were living in a feudal society; our capitalist lifestyle is an entirely different story. And, from what I’ve read, it seems that arts have, in fact, been funded by some governmental power since the Ancient Greeks. They considered arts and culture an essential part of their existence — have we really changed so much?
Just wanted to add one more thing: my response was not intended to discourage your opinion, but rather to clarify some things I believe to be true. It is my hope that my efforts in regards to arts funding (however frivolous some people might think them) inspire you to make similar efforts in regards to the causes you mentioned.
Please find out what kind of funding is going into housing and daycare. If you find that resources are lacking due to lack of funds, make this clear to your political representative – and hopefully that will make a difference. It might not, but there’s no harm in trying.
Cheryl Binning (Canadian arts reporter) just wrote a great blog post on the National Screen Institute website (we’re one of the four national training schools whose funding has been slashed by Harper). It focuses on the economic impact of the funding cuts to the arts.
http://www.nsi-canada.ca/mr_harper_you_re_wrong_cheryl_binning.aspx