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Sketchbooks ready: The Big Draw 2010 has officially launched and is inviting individuals and organisations to register their events and receive guidance, publicity and the chance to win one of 16 Drawing Inspiration awards. Organised by the Campaign for Drawing with the patronage of artist David Hockney, The Big Draw aims to boost public participation in drawing in museums, schools, libraries, galleries nationwide. The Big Draw Day is pencilled in for 9 October but events will run throughout the month.
http://www.campaignfordrawing.org
A tiny majority of votes has secured a move from full to part-time contracts for members of the orchestra of Scottish Opera. The Musicians’ Union (MU) has negotiated terms following the Company’s unpopular proposal to reduce the working hours of its players. A significant number of MU members believe the new settlement is artistically damaging and does not represent a viable form of employment for orchestra players beyond the medium term.
As maximising and exploiting all avenues of income is a hot topic on both sides of the Atlantic (AP225), an ambitious new website has launched to “disseminate thinking and practice that will benefit individual organisations, as well as exploring the cutting edge ideas that may shape the future of income generation”. Led by an international research consultancy Baker-Richards, the site has gathered strategies, ideas and best practice useful to cultural organisations worldwide.
http://www.thinkaboutpricing.com
Culture makers in Scotland are being invited to submit details of any and all international work – be it touring outside the UK, international exchanges, collaborations, residencies and more – to Creative Scotland. The body has partnered with the British Council and the Scottish Government to collate information in order to build on opportunities for Scottish arts abroad and boost the country’s profile as “a creative nation”. Information should be submitted in 250 words and sent to [email protected]
While the Government considers a further review of live music, possibly leading to broader and more radical de-regulation, the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) and Jazz Services have expressed fears that tourism minister John Penrose’s desire for further consultation on ‘alternatives’ will delay much-needed support for musicians (p7). The Live Music Bill was introduced in the last parliament by Lib Dem Lord Clement-Jones, to allow venues holding less than 200 people (schools and village halls) to hold concerts without an entertainment license. It also exempted venues that serve alcohol from needing an entertainment license where only one or two musicians might perform without amplification. Pending the outcome of any further review, the ISM is calling for the Bill or similar Order to be introduced as soon as possible.
An evaluation of the success of ‘Artist Links’ – a three-year, £450,000 programme to develop artist mobility, international exchange and collaboration – has been published by Momentum Associates and New Media Networks, on behalf of Arts Council England (ACE) and the British Council. Recommendations for the future include having a “clear, consistent and reliable” selection process, including contingency budgets and expect currency fluctuations, and fostering a closer working partnership between the two councils. The full evaluation can be found on ACE’s website.
Culture can help break down class divisions and inequalities – if people are empowered to create and consume it, according to a paper from Counterpoint, the thinktank of the British Council. Author John Holden argues that we need a new and more democratic definition of culture, with an emphasis on cultural policy moving away from “widening access to an enshrined canon” to instead “building the citizen’s capacity both to appreciate and to create”. Holden states that although most of the UK population takes part in some form of cultural activity, a section of the population is nonetheless culturally and creatively disenfranchised, and that social justice will not be achieved simply by increasing access to a pre-determined ‘legitimate’ culture.
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