As technology becomes an increasingly distracting force, it’s down to live entertainment to tempt people to set aside their devices and be present with each other, says Dave Wakeman.
Art can ask difficult questions and help people engage with complex topics. With conflict and political divisions spreading across the globe, it’s vital arts producers find new ways to bring people together, says Daniel Gorman.
Joe Hallgarten proposes a new solution to the uncomfortable fact that attendance at taxpayer-subsidised arts events remains stubbornly skewed by social class.
Liz Hill tells NPOs, ‘just say no’ to a fundamentally flawed scheme that will reveal more about the nature of the audience than the quality of an arts organisation’s artistic work.
No wonder there is so much talk about the death of opera when people are excluded from it all the time, says Bill Bankes-Jones. But are attitudes finally starting to change?
UK cities must be granted freedoms to attract inward investment and build the country’s reputation as a creative powerhouse, or risk being left behind, argues Councillor Phil Bale.
Angry at the continuing discrimination against disabled people as well as the inadequate access in many venues, Andrew Miller reflects on the challenges disabled people need to overcome to make it in the arts.
Tired of seeing classical music magazines filled with middle-aged white faces, James Fleury proposes four ‘mental makeovers’ that could help increase diversity in the sector.
Will Donald Trump, a liberal arts graduate, be enamoured by an industry with an envious return on investment? Or will his government continue a history of half-hearted federal support, asks Craig W Johnson.
Working in local authority arts development was where Martin Cox learned to listen, understand and value people as much as he valued artistic outcomes. He shares his views on audience development.
The Creative People and Places scheme should prompt new thinking about the role of communities in delivering arts programmes in areas of least engagement, according to a new study.
Adam Taylor, an organiser of the NewHorizons16 conference on diversity and inclusion, responds to one of the day’s themes: opportunities are not open to everyone in the arts because white, middle-class, middle-aged men stand in the way.
Following AP’s coverage of Arts Council England’s plans to impose a standardised system for measuring artistic quality on its National Portfolio Organisations, hundreds of artists, academics, arts professionals and other commentators across the world have taken to Twitter to share their views. The overwhelming majority are not impressed, as shown in this small but representative selection of comments…
Will Jeremy Corbyn’s promise to “restore” Grant in Aid to the arts councils help reinforce Labour’s reputation as a supporter of the arts? Liz Hill has her doubts.
