State of the Arts: Final Report
Funded by the Department of Canadian Heritage, ELAN produced State of the Arts during the financial year ending 31 March 2019.
Acknowledgements
Project Manager: Farah Fancy Events and Access Coordinator: Christale Terris
State of the Arts Think Tank: Karla Etienne, Kristelle Holliday, Dimitri Nasrallah, Himmat Shinhat, Skawennati, Malek Yalaoui.
ELAN Staff: Guy Rodgers, Executive Director; Amy Macdonald, Program Manager; Sufia Duez, Communications Coordinator; Emily Enhorning, Membership Services Coordinator; Jennifer Broydell, Special Projects Assistant; Lital Khaikin, Communications Assistant.
Volunteers: Warm thanks to Deborah Forde and the alt.theatre team, Swati Khanna, and the other amazing volunteers who helped out at the Activation Conference and Textures.
The Activation Conference featured a keynote speech by Nadine St-Louis; breakout sessions facilitated by Kristelle Holliday, Christie Huff and Denis Piquette, Lisa Ndejuru and Joliane Allaire, Guy Rodgers, Himmat Shinhat, and Malek Yalaoui; and artistic interventions by Deanna Smith, Maize Longboat, Bettina Forget and Khosro Behramandi. The opening and closing was conducted by Tewenhni’tó:ken Sharrow. Owisokon Lahache prepared tobacco ties, offered input throughout the day, and taught a closing round dance. Don Barnaby did a closing drum and dance song and played during the round dance.
SotA-PEP website and report infographics: Marc Lafontaine.
Textures featured a menu created by Ana Castillo, Sebastian DiPoi, and Sophie Beauchamp; and music and visuals by Nico Adama and Phil Vandal.
Final Report Assistants: Jessica Brown, Amy Macdonald
Final State of the Arts report March 2020
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 1 Table of Contents
Executive Summary Page 3
Introduction Page 5
Methods Page 5
Surveys Page 8
Recommendations Page 8
Next Steps Page 10
Appendix 1 Survey Information Page 11
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 2 Executive Summary
Purpose: the goals of the State of the Arts (SotA) were to: • Gather information about needs, wants, barriers, and potential solutions through in-person and online conversations with stakeholders in the arts communities of Quebec • Proactively reach out to marginalized groups to better understand, and meet, needs and desires, and build relationships in Montreal/the regions of Quebec • Develop leadership through intergenerational knowledge and resource transfer • Host a one-day Activation Conference on February 28, 2019 • Inspire excitement, creativity, connection, and positivity through project activities • Identify actionable recommendations to help organizations, funders, and anyone in the community who is interested to align resources with community needs • Produce a report sharing recommendations, knowledge gathered, and resources developed
Methodology: Three phases formed an experimental pipeline for acquiring information about needs, wants, barriers, and solutions to be offered, workshopped, and developed into concrete recommendations. The phases – Assertion, Affirmation, and Activation – often overlapped and intersected, allowing us to discover and explore new ideas in different ways.
Results: Two surveys were distributed in the community: one to individuals (artists and cultural workers), and one to organizations and institutions. We received a total of 105 responses: 98 from individuals, and seven from organizations.1
• Demographics: We heard primarily from emerging and mid-career artists. By reaching out as broadly as possible to our networks, we were able to hear from a solid cross-section of the arts community in Quebec, with over a fifth of respondents identifying as LGBTQIA, another fifth identifying as a visible minority, a third identifying as low-income.
• Short-term Goals: Asked about their short-term artistic goals, responses fell into three broad groups: o (1) output creation, which encompassed any response which referenced publishing, releasing, writing, recording, creating, developing, producing or completing projects; o (2) growth and stability, in which artists described their goals to grow personally, including being able to pursue their art full-time; and o (3) next steps, which included any specific plans or desire to escalate current artistic activities.
• Long-Term Goals: artists took a more global vision of their futures and the state of arts and the world. The passion to work, to create, to enact a vision of the world deeply rooted in justice and health – these themes radiated from the responses, as artists outlined ambitious plans for themselves and their communities
1 Organizational respondents showed great variety in their disciplines served and services provided. Unfortunately the low number of responses we received from this survey limits our ability to share information or draw conclusions.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 3
Recommendations: collated from the online surveys, small group interviews, and focus groups at the State of the Arts Conference. (see pages 8-9 for details)
Professional Development • Workshops & Classes • Mentorship Opportunities • Networking & Collaboration Opportunities
Access & Support • Better Access to Facilities, Tools and Resources • Mental Health Support • Facilitating Integration into the French Community
Advocacy • Support/Create Enclosed “Safe” Spaces • Support/Create Representative Bodies • Support/Create Standard Accepted Pay-scales for Artists • Support and expand Educational Programs
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 4 1. Introduction
1.1 Purpose & Goals State of the Arts (SotA) was an ELAN project aimed at better understanding how artists, cultural workers, arts organizers, funders, and audiences are all connected, and how these groups can help each other strengthen the arts community through thoughtful collaboration and meaningful exchanges.
ELAN recognizes that there are many rapidly evolving conversations regarding access, inclusion, working conditions, economics, appropriation, and other barriers that prevent arts communities from thriving. Our aim in this project was to commit to actively listening and finding practical ways to recognize and validate the diverse experiences of artists who speak in English, and who make up an important segment of Quebec’s evolving identity.
The overall goals of the project at its outset were to: • Gather information about needs, wants, barriers, and potential solutions through in-person and online conversations with stakeholders in the arts communities of Quebec, • Reach out to artists and communities not previously connected to ELAN, • Proactively reach out to marginalized groups to better understand, and meet, needs and desires, • Reinforce existing relationships in Montreal and the regions of Quebec, • Build new relationships in Montreal and the regions of Quebec, • Develop leadership through intergenerational knowledge and resource transfer, • Host a one-day Activation Conference on February 28, 2019, • Inspire excitement, creativity, connection, and positivity through project activities, • Identify actionable recommendations to help organizations, funders, and anyone in the community who is interested to align resources with community needs, • Produce a report sharing recommendations, knowledge gathered, and resources developed.
Project Manager Farah Fancy, working with Events and Access Coordinator Christale Terris, as well as the SotA Think Tank and ELAN staff, developed interviews, focus groups, and other consultation activities to engage artistic communities around their needs, wants, barriers, and solutions in a concrete, proactive way. In this report, we share findings and observations around how the consultation activities attempted to fulfill these goals.
2. Methods
2.1 Methodology & Application Three phases formed an experimental pipeline for acquiring information about needs, wants, barriers, and solutions to be offered, workshopped, and developed into concrete recommendations. The phases – Assertion, Affirmation, and Activation – often overlapped and intersected, allowing us to discover and explore new ideas in different ways.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 5 Assertion Phase (AS): Designed to amplify voices. The Assertion Phase opened the floor to suggestions, ideas, and expressions to improve the State of the Arts in Quebec. This phase produced information that would be further explored in the Affirmation Phase.
Application Outcome
Individual and small group interviews Interviews revealed mostly anecdotal qualitative information. Six Meetings with individuals and small groups (3 distinct themes emerged: or less) were initially intended to gauge • Identity: the pressure to self-categorize when filling out grant interest and gather ideas for topics and design applications, the internal conflict this causes: exclude elements of group activities. They often turned into rich of identity to increase chances of a winning bid, or include it and conversations about needs, wants, barriers, risk alienating or confusing jurors. Defining what it means to be a and solutions. ‘professional’ artist. • Well-Being & Mental Health: isolation, vulnerability of the creative process, stress of managing all aspects of professional artistry • Accessibility: issues of physical access to arts spaces, knowledge access (e.g. how to apply for grants), resource access (mentors, classes), community access (ways for marginalized communities to access the arts). • Funding: accessing and acquiring grants successfully, financial stress, shrinking arts’ budgets, pressures of financial precariousness • Collaboration: finding opportunities for successful and respectful internal, regional, cultural and cross-sectoral collaboration. • Decolonization: questioning assumed cultural norms in the arts world – who they serve and who they do not. Ensuring the entry point for involvement in the arts is open, fair, and equal.
These themes were all incorporated into the final project design.
Assertion Sessions The two-hour Assertion Sessions offered a group setting for participants to express their Some sessions were held as standalone events, while others were thoughts on the State of the Arts in Quebec. immediately followed by an Affirmation Session to delve into They were designed to create an atmosphere participants’ assertions in more detail. in which a group of (often) strangers could Assertion Sessions were held in different locations around build trust, identify common ground, and Montreal and in the regions, varying according to the topic, partner exchange ideas about needs, wants, barriers, organization, and/or participants. Several of the regional sessions, and solutions. The format was tailored to the were held in communities where ELAN has not yet developed needs and interests of each group, while strong ties. opening space for networking and connection across disciplines, demographics, career stages, and perspectives.
Surveys These gathered high-level qualitative and quantitative information Two surveys were distributed: one to about needs, wants, barriers, and solutions. individuals (artists and cultural workers), and one to organizations and institutions.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 6 Affirmation Phase (AF): Designed to access deeper understanding and meet participants’ needs. Affirmation Phase activities explored information from the Assertion phase through brainstorming and group discussion, while offering hands-on exercises to build skills and test solutions.
Application Outcome
Affirmation Sessions • Some Affirmation Sessions were open in topic, others focused on Held immediately following many Assertion specific areas that ELAN knew were in demand, or that Sessions, the Affirmation Sessions tested and participants had mentioned in the Assertion Phase (e.g. bio explored assertions from the Assertion Phase writing, grant writing, identity mapping). through in-depth conversations. • Sessions delved into discussions of underlying factors that affected participants’ experiences of barriers in their artistic careers. • Focused on revealing potential solutions through peer support and brainstorming, expertise, coaching, hands-on exercises, and skill building.
Activation Phase (AC): Designed to mobilize participants around ideas expressed in the Assertion and Affirmation Phases, cultivate creative solutions, share resources, build networks, and spark action to influence the State of the Arts in Quebec. Application Outcome
State of the Arts Activation Conference2: A Based on the six themes that emerged in the Assertion phase, we free one-day event that brought together held break-out sessions on identity, funding, collaboration, well- stakeholders from across English-speaking being, and accessibility. In addition: communities to listen, learn, and gain access to • Keynote speaker on reclaiming Indigenous narratives the connections and resources vital to artistic • ‘Speed dating’ session with representatives of several funding growth. It included six breakout sessions organizations.3 programmed according to themes that • ‘Minute Market’ featuring ELAN partners and sister emerged from the Assertion and Affirmation organizations speaking about their work Sessions. • Facebook livestream of the auditorium proceedings, and live notes recorded by ELAN staff in a Google Doc4 State of the Arts – Public Expert Pitches (SotA-PEP): provided an opportunity for an ELAN provided the successful candidates, or SotA-PEP Community individual, collective, group, or organization Partners, with a $1500 honorarium and professional resources to not currently receiving funding to engage in a implement their ideas. short-term project that would implement a tangible, small-scale idea to improve the State of the Arts, beyond assisting their own personal artistic vision or goals.
Textures: an experimental cocktail party.5 Drawing on Christale Terris’s background in Approximately 40 participants attended. sustainable food, Textures was designed to creatively explore the themes of SotA, discuss problems, dream up community solutions, and make links between food and art.
2 Held on February 28, 2019 at the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) in Montreal 3 For example: Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, CALQ, Conseil des arts de Montréal, CAM, the Department of Canadian Heritage. 4 This allowed people who could not attend in person to engage with the process through messaging and comments. 5 Held on March 28, 2019 at Bar Le Ritz PDB.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 7
2.2 Additional Methodological Activities: SOTA Think-Tank
ELAN envisioned inclusion in SotA as the active, intentional, and ongoing engagement of diversity in the lived experiences, intelligence, and creativity of SotA participants. We believe that every artist, cultural worker, organization, audience member, or arts lover has expertise to contribute towards positive change in the State of the Arts in Quebec. SotA activities were designed to create positive conditions to engage that expertise.
To that end, ELAN created a think-tank, consisting of six artist consultants who guided programming and advised on community engagement, specifically on gathering information, building trust, and developing relationships with communities with whom ELAN was not well connected. Think Tank members provided expert input and best practice guidance on areas related to their professional and artistic experience. Their input was particularly influential in shaping the Activation Conference approach and programming, including the State of the Arts Public Expert Pitch (SotA-PEP) call for collaborators. 3. Surveys
3.1 Online Survey6 Two surveys were distributed in the community: one to individuals (artists and cultural workers), and one to organizations and institutions. They gathered high-level qualitative and quantitative information about needs, wants, barriers, and solutions. We received a total of 105 responses: 98 from individuals, and 7 from organizations.7 See Appendix 1 for highlighted demographic information (questions 1-5), as well as the qualitative findings (questions 6-11).
4. Recommendations
These recommendations were collated from the online surveys, small group interviews, and focus groups at the State of the Arts Conference. While some of these suggestions have already been put into practice within the community (for example, peer mentorship networks), what participants seem to be looking for is more ways to access these resources; more support in reaching out to the places that are designed to help them; greater encouragement and a sense of their work being valued; to be heard by those who have the power and ability to act as a conduit between their personal ambitions and the means to achieve them.
Professional Development
• Workshops & Classes o Through these, provide tools and training on completing grant applications, financial planning/diversification for artists, professionalization (or how to become a professional artist), gaining market access, how to identify and connect with
6 To find respondents, we advertised through ELAN email newsletters, social media, and paid Facebook ads, and recruited through partner and sister organizations’ channels. Paper surveys were also distributed at CINARS and prior to the Assertion Sessions, as a way of framing the discussion more clearly. 7 Organizational respondents showed great variety in their disciplines served and services provided. Unfortunately the low number of responses we received from this survey limits our ability to share information or draw conclusions.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 8 experts in the field, and finding cultural workers (editors, accountants, consultants and so on) to assist with getting organized. In addition, skills workshops to help artists hone their artistic abilities (or pick up new ones), and French-language classes focused specifically on artists’ needs.
• Mentorship Opportunities o Chances to work with agents, more experienced artists, galleries, publishers, or funders in a one-on-one and growth-focused capacity. This is especially useful for new artists, or individuals newly-arrived to Canada.
• Networking & Collaboration Opportunities o Developing or supporting peer networks, places for creative and professional exchange of ideas and resources, cross-disciplinary collaborations, and integration into French-speaking arts communities.
Access & Support
• Better Access to Facilities, Tools and Resources o Facilitating access to co-working spaces, venues, online communities, residency opportunities, art supplies and equipment, and so on.
• Mental Health Support o Greater access to affordable psychological counselling, creating free or low-cost support groups, supporting organizations that work with artist mental health.
• Facilitating Integration into the French Community o Help support non-French speakers to access the French market and community through language-classes, language-sharing programs, cross-organizational exchange and cultural participation.
Advocacy
• Support/Create Enclosed “Safe” Spaces o Specifically for marginalized groups, to protect and promote their participation in the artistic community. Helping to develop and enforce actions and community standards that promote true equity to ensure all artists’ contributions are welcomed and understood in Quebec’s arts communities.
• Support/Create Representative Bodies o For artists in specific disciplines or identity groups. These bodies could guide artists, represent their interests (and value) to the public, and prevent exploitation.
• Support/Create Standard Accepted Pay-scales for Artists o Organizations like CARFAC (visual arts) and unions have established pay scales; could the same exist for artists and cultural workers in other disciplines?
• Support/Expand Educational Programs o Through this, connect students and the broader public with opportunities to learn through the arts, and promote the value of art as a way of understanding the world, not only a topic to be learned about.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 9 5. Next Steps
Final reporting on State of the Arts was delayed by serious health issues among the team. The delay has interrupted the momentum of energy built up during the Assertion, Affirmation and Activation phases. However, new channels of dialogue were opened by State of the Arts activities and participants maintain the will to collaborate more broadly on implementing the recommendations. ELAN made it clear to participants during State of the Arts that it does not have the resources or mandate to tackle all the problems and opportunities identified. However, ELAN is committed to playing the role of mediator, facilitator and catalyst with partners identified during State of the Arts.
ELAN will distribute this report along with a survey to guide priority setting for follow-up actions. ELAN will also establish an Action Committee of 5-10 members to oversee and coordinate actions that flows from this report’s recommendations.
None of the problems identified will be resolved any time soon without a concerted effort to effect change. The lapse of time between ELAN’s first Sate of the Arts (2011) and this edition was eight years. Many of the problems facing our community in 2011 were still not resolved by 2019. We hope that an engaged community, guided by the Action Committee, will be able to report significant progress at our next State of the Arts gathering in 2027.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 10 Appendix 1
3.1.1 Demographic Information (Questions 1-5) As the data below reveals, respondents to the online survey were predominantly from Montreal, and mostly identified as ‘artists’.8 We heard primarily from emerging and mid-career artists, a status which may provide some context for the goals and barriers that respondents went on to discuss in the qualitative sections of the surveys. Finally, by reaching out as broadly as possible to our networks, we were able to hear from a solid cross-section of the arts community in Quebec, with over a fifth of respondents identifying as LGBTQIA, another fifth identifying as a visible minority, a third identifying as low-income.
Question 1: Where do you reside in Quebec? Region % Region % Region % Region %
Montreal 76.3% Quebec City 2.2% Vaudreuil area 1.1% Ontario 1.1%
Sherbrooke 2.2% Outside Q.C. 1.1% Lennoxville 1.1% Pincourt 1.1%
Not specified 1.1% Eastern 1.1% Bonaventure, 1.1% Brossard 1.1% townships Qc.(Gaspésie)
Wakefield 2.2% Huntingdon 1.1% Dollard-des-Ormeaux 1.1% Kahnawake 1.1%
Monteregie 1.1% Chelsea, QC 1.1% Pierrefonds 1.1% Sutton 1.1%
Question 2: Please select the discipline(s) in which you work.
8 Respondents were given a range of options (see question three) on how to professionally identify. While some chose very specific categories (writer, teacher, producer), the majority of respondents simply categorized themselves as ‘artists’. Question two provides broader insight into this rather large category: everything from writers to comedians to photographers.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 11 Question 3: What is your role in the arts? Role Response Role Response Role Response
Artist 83.9% Board Member 2.1% Curator 4.3%
Writer 11.8% Volunteer 2.1% Artistic Director 3.2%
Teacher/Educator 8.6% Gallery director 1.1% Performer 2.1%
Producer 8.6% Designer 1.1% Composer 2.1%
Cultural Worker 8.6% Researcher 1.1% Musician 2.1%
Owner/Manager 6.5% Photographer 1.1% Administrator 2.1% (Various)
Agent 1.1% Technologist 1.1% Actor 2.1%
Director 1.1% Songwriter 1.1% Journalist 1.1%
Creator 1.1% Student 1.1%
Question 4: How would you identify your artistic career stage? Career Stage Response Career Stage Response Career Stage Response
Established 9.6% Retired 1.1% Intermediate, 1.1% amateur, flexible
Mid-career 31.9% Revitalizing 1.1% somewhere a bit 1.1% past emerging but maybe not mid-career yet
Emerging 44.7% Evolving 1.1% Ongoing in a 1.1% lower key
emerging - 4.2% Established in 2.1% On and off 1.1% mid-career one genre; emerging in another
Question 5: Do you identify as any of the following? Category Response Category Response
First Nations, Metis, Inuit 4.3% Youth (under 35) 26.1%
Visible Minority 20.3% Someone who experiences barriers due to 20.3% mental health
Immigrant 17.4% Someone who experiences barriers due to 17.4% physical health (ex: chronic pain)
LGBTQIA+ 24.6% Parent (of dependents) 11.6%
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 12 Category Response Category Response
Low-income 30.4% Other (write-in option, responses included): 21% Political activist mixed class back ground Bi-racial 55+ None of the above Language minority Audible minority Retired Aging
Member of the 10.1% Deaf 0% (Dis)Ability community
Individual Survey Responses: Goals, Barriers & Needs9 In the questions that follow, respondents were given space to write in their goals, rather than choose from a drop-down menu. This resulted in a wide range of responses, which we categorize below.10 (It should be noted that there was some overlap in the responses, as some respondents listed more than one goal).
Question 6: What is your top short-term artistic goal? As stated, this question focused on the immediate aims of the artistic communities. Responses fell into three broad groups: (1) output creation, which encompassed any response which referenced publishing, releasing, writing, recording, creating, developing, producing or completing projects; (2) next steps, which included any specific plans or desire to escalate current artistic activities; and (3) growth and stability, in which artists described their goals to grow personally, including being able to pursue their art full-time.11
The most common responses are highlighted in grey. As mentioned above, the broad focus on creating, self-sustaining and gaining recognition (both in terms of financial compensation and public awareness) made sense given how many respondents were either emerging or mid-career.
Group Category % of Respondents Output Write/Record (books, songs, poetry, graphic novels, plays, mixed-media projects) 12% Creation Develop/Produce (artists wanting to be more involved at the production end of the 11% creative process, or to help develop a piece/project) Publish/Release (books, albums, collections) 7% Create (anything from a musical collective to studios to festivals) 6%
9 In order to protect the privacy of respondents, we have not reproduced the exact written responses here. 10 To arrive at these percentages, we carefully tracked the use of the words in each category (‘publish’, ‘release’, etc.). Each instance of the use of the word comprised one goal. We then compared the number of instances of a particular goal to the overall number of goals collected (this was 111). We divided the number of instances each category word appeared by the overall number of goals reported to arrive at the percentage. 11 There were times where a goal, while not using the specific word, clearly fit in with the category (for example: “I want to graduate from school” does not use the word ‘education’, though it was categorized as an education goal). We have made notes in each category where a different word was used to classify the goal under a particular category.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 13 Completing Projects12 (artists indicated a goal to specifically finish projects that 5% were currently in the works, but had been temporarily shelved) Next Employment/Professionalization13 (to find work or increase the amount of work 10% Steps in artistic field; find any work within or outside of artistic field). Exhibition/Gallery Representation (finding a permanent gallery home, or 7% holding a standalone exhibit) Organization (to become more personally organized in their artistic pursuits) 5% Recognition/Exposure (gain broader name recognition, or acknowledgement)14 4% Selling Work (in malls, galleries or other outlets). 4% Artistic Collaboration (within or across genres) 4% Touring (starting, continuing or escalating) 3% Growth Personal Artistic Goals (anything from amplifying marginalized voices, to 10% & perfecting a personal sound) Stability Financial Autonomy & Grants (becoming financially stable enough to pursue art 7% full-time; winning grants) Market Access (finding new ways of marketing work to different demographics; 4% diversifying revenue streams) Education & Skills Development (returning to or graduating from school; 4% attending training workshops)15
What Is Your Top Short-Term Artistic Goal?
Personal Artistic Goals 10% Market Access 4% Financial Autonomy & Grants 10% Education & Skills Development 4% Recognition/Exposure 4% Employment/Professionalization 6% Selling Work 4% Artistic Collaboration 4% Touring 3% Completing Projects 5% Exhibition/Gallery Representation 7% Organize 5% Develop/Produce 11% Create 6% Write/Record 12% Publish/Release 7%
0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14%
12 This category included any reference to “finishing” or “completing” a project (excluding a book, album or collection, which were grouped under the ‘Publish/Release’ and ‘Write/Record’ categories, for greater simplicity). 13 In addition to the words “employment,” and “professional,” this category included any use of the words “job,” “earn income,” “wage,” and “working.” 14 In addition to the words “recognition” and “exposure,” category included any use of the words “coverage,” “become known,” and “visibility.” 15 In addition to the words “education” and “skills,” category included any reference to the words “school,” “learning,” “study/ies,” “workshop,” and “graduate.”
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 14
Question 7: What is your top long-term artistic goal? When asked about long-term goals, artists took a more global vision of their futures and the state of arts and the world. The passion to work, to create, to enact a vision of the world deeply rooted in justice and health – these themes radiated from the responses, as artists outlined ambitious plans for themselves and their communities.
Group Category % of Respondents Output Write/Record (books, songs, poetry, graphic novels, plays, mixed-media projects) 8.5% Creation Create (anything from a musical collective to studios to festivals) 4% Completing Projects16 (artists indicated a goal to specifically finish projects that 4% were currently in the works, but had been temporarily shelved) Publish/Release (books, albums, collections) 3% Develop/Produce (artists wanting to be more involved at the production end of the 3% creative process, or to help develop a piece/project) Next Financial Autonomy & Sustainability (becoming financially stable enough to 19% Steps pursue art full-time; winning grants) Recognition/Exposure (gain broader name recognition, or acknowledgement)17 8.5% Exhibition/Gallery Representation (finding a permanent gallery or 6.5% representative; holding a standalone exhibit) Selling Work (in malls, galleries or other outlets). 4% Artistic Collaboration (within or across genres) 4% Touring (starting, continuing or escalating) 3% Growth Community Building/Advocacy 10.5% & Personal or Career Growth & Change (challenging oneself to improve one’s art, 8.5% Stability changing fields, shifting priorities, etc.) Start/Operate An Organization (studio, gallery, record label, etc.) 4% Skills Development (returning to or graduating from school; attending training 3% workshops)18 Market & Resource Access (finding new ways of marketing work to different 3% demographics; diversifying revenue streams)
16 This category included any reference to “finishing” or “completing” a project (excluding a book, album or collection, which were grouped under the ‘Publish/Release’ and ‘Write/Record’ categories, for greater simplicity). 17 In addition to the words “recognition” and “exposure,” category included any use of the words “coverage,” “become known,” and “visibility.” 18 In addition to the words “education” and “skills,” category included any reference to the words “school,” “learning,” “study/ies,” “workshop,” and “graduate.”
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 15 What Are Your Top Long-Term Goals?
3% Skills Development 3% 4% Personal or Career Growth & Change 8.50% 10.50% Touring 3% 4% Selling Work 4% 6.50% Recognition/Exposure 8.50% 19% Develop/Produce 3% 3% Completing Projects 4% 4% Write/Record 8.50% 0.00% 2.00% 4.00% 6.00% 8.00% 10.00% 12.00% 14.00% 16.00% 18.00% 20.00%
Question 8- What are your top barriers to achieving your short-term/long-term goals? Since all of the barriers to achieving long and short term goals overlapped, we combined the results here. Artists identified their top barriers to achieving a short-term goal as:
Barrier % Money (funding to pay for equipment, materials, costs of living, showing, and so on) 27% Access & Opportunity (access to the markets and French language community; opportunities 5% for jobs and exposure) Time/Other Work Commitments (lack of time to work on projects; non-arts jobs consuming 20% working hours) Knowledge & Education (needing more or better training) 3.5% Age (self-limiting or externally-imposed limits and discrimination due to age) 6% Discrimination (racial, ability-based, ethnic) 19 3.5% Environmental Constraints (changing public tastes, budget cuts, or poor organizational 9% practices) Mental Health & Disability (the ways in which poor mental health, or physical disabilities 3.5% interfere with accomplishing goals) Motivation (lacking the energy or drive to pursue goals) 5% Connections (lacking the insider knowledge or contacts to successfully break into the market) 5%
19 Although age discrimination was noted specifically, some participants simply noted “age” as a barrier. As we could not be certain whether this indicated age discrimination by others, or self-limiting due to age, we chose to exclude age in the discrimination category, and group all references to age in the age category.
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 16 Top Barriers to Achieving Long and Short Term Goals
Connections Motivation Mental Health & Disability Environmental Constraints Discrimination Age Knowledge & Education Time/Other Work Commitments Access & Opportunity Money
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%
ELAN State of the Arts final report March 2020 17