Co-Director of Arts Inform. arts consultant, writer and musician
As every agony aunt knows, almost every problem boils down to relationships – and usually to communication within relationships. Arts organisations are finding that the relationships they have had for so long – whether with funders, clients, audiences or partners – are now in a state of flux. The sustainability, solvency, relative status and web of loyalties of any of these entities are thrown into uncertainty, and in many cases are likely to remain so for some time. Some issues are beginning to clarify: some arts organisations have decided, in the wake of the loss of RFO or local authority funding, to close, while others are downsizing their teams, their plans and their budgets to fend off oblivion. Even those who have been blessed with the NPO halo may be struggling with the changes wrought upon them.
It is not so much that the sector is subject to a succession of changes, but that we are trapped in a state of continuous flux, like a ‘Space Quest’ trooper caught halfway between beaming down and beaming up. Will the result be a horrible wobbly mess on the floor of the space ship? Or will we re-form into a viable entity and live to make another voyage? Unfortunately, we have no CGI magic to see us through.
The state that rural touring finds itself in is typical, though perhaps at the extreme end of the funding hoo-hah (pp5–7). A many-armed yet strangely unco-ordinated pincer movement is depriving it of a range of funding streams, while other pressures (for example the financial woes of attenders or potential school participants) add to the anxiety. Collaboration and innovation would seem to be the key – exhausting, but if our Icelandic friends are to be believed, worth the effort (p13). Moving into a position where collaboration and innovation are possible is a huge challenge – many arts organisations will feel that being in a vacuum leaves no foothold from which to step out.
Some small islands may be emerging from the swamp, though it’s still difficult for many of us to tell yet whether the ground will remain firm enough to support our weight. The potential of the Localism Bill to galvanise people into supporting local arts and culture may offer some solid ground. The Theatres Trust – in line with the oft-expressed hopes of Culture Minister Ed Vaizey – is banking on the idea that local pride and interest will come to the rescue of arts organisations which are truly valued by the community. Whether this is realistic in an age when many households are beset by more basic worries, such as how to pay their ever-rising fuel bills, remains to be seen.
In hard times, it’s also hard to know whether to feel optimistic, fed up or downright jealous to see so much money being spent on yet another huge, controversial and much-delayed arts mega-project. Southampton’s travails (p1) – and its potential for longer-term success or failure – should however remind us again that it’s not only the money: it’s the relationships that count. But it also highlights once again the fact that so many of our political leaders are choosing to turn their backs on: that the arts creates jobs, develops valuable new networks of relationships and nurtures local economies and local cultures.