CULTURE, CREATIVITY AND THE ARTS: Building Resilience in Northern Ontario JUDE ORTIZ A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the University of the West of England, Bristol for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Arts, Creative Industries and Education May 21, 2017 Abstract This thesis investigates the contribution of the arts to resilience within the context of Northern Ontario, a vast, sparsely populated geographical region dotted with isolated, rural, and smaller urban communities whose economies are based primarily on resource extraction. Industry restructuring and other pressing issues related to globalization are forcing communities to rapidly adapt to survive. Resilience is commonly understood as a community’s capacity to resist adverse conditions, economic or otherwise, and the ability to adapt, transition, and prosper through change while retaining its core values (Lewis and Lockhart, 2002). The arts have been hailed as economic drivers in the creative economy and many, primarily urban centres, are attempting to harness the arts in this regard; however, in the North there is limited understanding of the links between culture, community development, and the economy. They are typically seen within traditional economic frameworks, i.e. tangible outputs of cultural products with limited viability in generating wealth. This perspective poses challenges in drawing on residents’ creativity and local and/or regional cultural assets to transition through significant change. While the arts are widely recognized as contributing to resilience, less is understood about how engaging in the arts strengthens community identity and fosters the emergence of local culture- based economies, generally, and the critical role artists in rural communities play in achieving such, specifically. The study utilizes action research to investigate the sector’s role in building resilience in rural communities. It studies the contribution of individual creative practice and art sector collaboration to developing skills and providing social and commercial infrastructure necessary for successful transitioning and continual adaptation. It is organized into individual, sectoral, and community level resilience to illustrate the benefits accrued within each scale and the significance of interconnectivity between them. The research indicates that creative processes inherent to engaging in the arts foster divergent perspectives, complex problem-solving skills, and an ability to work with complexity, emergence and uncertainty at individual, sectoral and community levels—all important characteristics when dealing with change. The production of cultural goods leads to increased understanding of oneself and others within the web of relationships that comprises place, enabling identity reformation and belonging, health and well-being, and agency, as well providing goods for localized and regional economies that link globally. Furthermore, the research highlights similarities between artistic and community development practices suggesting that capacities gained through engaging in the arts parallel those necessary for developers to work effectively within emergent, inclusive, and holistic approaches that underpin continual adaptation in addressing change. 1 Dedication To the artists who live here “We make the community” (Organizational peer networking session) Our passion and need, innovation and perseverance – our resilience − Reflects, informs and shapes the vast, shared region called Northern Ontario To arts organizations and developers interested in working in the region To my family – artists, organizers and travellers of many journeys 2 Acknowledgements Dr. Linda Savory Gordon for launching the Community Resilience Sault Ste. Marie (CRSSM) research; Dr. Gayle Broad for her continual guidance and understanding of the research within the context of Northern Ontario; NORDIK Institute for the opportunity to conduct the study within an interdisciplinary environment; Professor Danny Burns for starting me on the journey; Dr. Barry Percy-Smith who guided and kept me moving forward upon my return to the research; and Dr. Gillian Swanson who took the research to a new level of writing based on her expertise in the field. The participants who generously volunteered time and knowledge to co-produce an understanding of the complexity of the North and the ways the arts build individual, organizational, and community capacity to transition through change while retaining core values. 3 Table of Contents CULTURE, CREATIVITY AND THE ARTS: Building Resilience in Northern Ontario ................................................................................................... i Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Dedication ............................................................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 3 PART ONE ................................................................................................................................................ 8 Chapter One: Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 8 1.0 The Northern Ontario Context ...................................................................................................... 8 1.1 About the Researcher: My dual artist and researcher practice .................................................. 13 1.2 Research Design .......................................................................................................................... 14 Chapter Two: Conceptual Framework .................................................................................................. 23 2.0 Community as a Complex Adaptive System ............................................................................... 24 2.0.1. Relationships Between Individual and Community Resilience ........................................... 27 2.0.2 Relationship Building, Innovation and Resilience ................................................................ 29 2.1 The Centrality of Place in Culture ............................................................................................... 39 2.2 Intersections and Resources for Building Adaptive Capacity ..................................................... 43 2.3 Creativity and Resilience ............................................................................................................. 46 2.4 The Arts and Resilience ............................................................................................................... 48 2.4.0 Creative Practice: Reflexivity, Local Innovation and Spillover ............................................. 49 2.4.1 Artists, Art Work and Social Change: The measure and dismeasure of culture .................. 53 2.4.2 Arts and Community Development ..................................................................................... 56 2.4.3 The Social Milieu and the Cultural Economy ....................................................................... 60 2.5 Arts in Rural Communities .......................................................................................................... 64 2.6 Arts and Culture Community Development Models................................................................... 72 2.6.0 Policy and Planning Perspectives ......................................................................................... 72 2.6.1 Creative Class, Creative Cities and Municipal Cultural Planning.......................................... 77 2.7 Community Development Practice within a Systems Approach ................................................ 79 2.8 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................. 81 Chapter Three: Methodology ............................................................................................................... 85 3.0 A Boundary Critique .................................................................................................................... 85 3.1 Conceptual Analysis .................................................................................................................... 88 3.2 Methodological Demands and Selection of Action Research as a Methodology ....................... 90 3.3 Action Research Methodology .................................................................................................... 91 3.4 Overview of the Cycles of Action Research ................................................................................ 94 3.4.0 Cycles and Locations of the Research .................................................................................. 95 3.4.1 Reflexive Practice ................................................................................................................. 98 3.5 Cycles of Action Research ........................................................................................................... 99 4 3.5.0 Cycle One: The Socioeconomic Impact of the Arts on the Economy of Sault Ste. Marie .... 99 3.5.1 Cycle Two: The Role of Art in Community Development and Resilience .........................