A Response to the 2016 Budget Cuts in Municipal Arts Funding

 

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December 17, 2015

Visual Artists Newfoundland and Labrador – Canadian Artists’ Representation (VANL-CARFAC) Appalled and Dismayed by Cuts to Arts and Culture by the City of St. John’s

On Monday, December 14, the City of St. John’s approved a three year budget that cuts arts, tourism, and sports grants by 50 per cent and suspends the city’s annual art procurement fund of $20,000 until 2018.

The City of St. John’s has acknowledged and highlighted the importance of the arts to tourism, quality of life, the economy, and our identity as a culturally rich, diverse, and progressive city. The City’s own economic development plan explicitly emphasizes the arts as one of the five key platforms that are necessary for the city’s growth. These budget cuts are moves that threaten to jeopardize that progress on all fronts.

The ways in which the arts act as an economic driver is well documented.

According to Statistics Canada, in 2010, culture industries in Newfoundland and Labrador accounted for 1.6% ($424 million) of total GDP in the provincial economy while sports industries contributed $49 million (or 0.2%) to total provincial GDP (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/13-604-m/2015079/eco-eng.htm).

It is safe to say, the return on investment in the arts is one of the highest in the City’s budget. Suspending the City’s art procurement program to save a mere $20,000 in municipal coffers sends a profound message to the public that the City does not value the arts. It is a small amount but is important income that allows our hard working, St. John’s artists to continue to create new work and to be able to afford to live and work in the provincial capital.

Arts and culture is an industry on which our city has built its brand and identity. Arts and culture attracts tourists; encourages private investment; and draws skilled labour to live and work in our province. Art also defines our cultural identity and reflects who we are as people. Weighing all of these benefits against the fraction of the budget earmarked for arts funding, it is clear that artists punch well above their weight by not only paying for themselves, but as core, economic drivers.

These cuts are not fiscally prudent and are not culturally responsible.

VANL-CARFAC is a not-for-profit arts advocacy organization that is tasked with overseeing the general health of the visual arts sector in Newfoundland and Labrador.  We can say, unequivocally, that this budget will have ongoing and far-reaching negative effects upon our artists’ ability to live and work in St. John’s, and so, we strongly urge the St. John’s City Council to reconsider these cuts and to reaffirm their commitment to our cultural sector and to the city’s future.  We would welcome any opportunity to discuss these issues directly with City representatives.

Sincerely,

Teresa Kachanoski
Chair, Board of Directors


Recipient of the 2015 Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant Announced

 

Visual Artist, Kay Burns, Awarded $5,000 for Upcoming Project

For Immediate Release

St. John’s, NL – October 30, 2015 – Cox & Palmer and Visual Artists Newfoundland and Labrador (VANL-CARFAC) are pleased to announce that Kay Burns is the recipient of the 2015 Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant. Ms. Burns, who is currently based on Fogo Island, will receive the $5,000 grant in support of her project “The Museum of the Flat Earth.”

“Cox & Palmer is delighted to recognize and support Kay Burns as she undertakes her ‘Museum of the Flat Earth’ project,” said Paul McDonald, partner of Cox & Palmer and chair of the firm’s BRAVO! – Supporting the Arts sponsorship program. “If we didn’t already have enough reason to visit Fogo Island, Kay’s work will be that extra reason to go.”

The Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant is a funding opportunity offered through VANL-CARFAC for visual artists in Newfoundland and Labrador. It was created to provide financial support for working visual artists who have reached a crucial point in their artistic career and to allow them to evolve their practice and develop their reputation and visibility within the art world.
“We were impressed by the number of strong applications submitted by artists across the province, and we had a thorough debate over the merits of each one,” said a representative of this year’s jury. “Kay Burns was selected because of the strength of her current work and her detailed, ambitious plans to expand the complexity and influence of her practice. One of the most important aspects of her application is the plan to create a unique, locally relevant cultural resource within her community on Fogo Island. Based in narrative, humour, healthy scepticism of received wisdom and an unshakable confidence in the power of human experience, Kay Burns Museum of the Flat Earth marks a pivotal point in the artist’s career.”

For media enquiries, please contact VANL-CARFAC’s Program Co-ordinator, Tessa Graham, at vanlcarfac@gmail.com or (709)-738-7303.

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Empower Yourself: Confident Negotiation for Visual Artists

 

Visual Artists Newfoundland and Labrador VANL-CARFAC

Empower Yourself: Confident Negotiations for Visual Artists
A National Conversation

You’ve been offered an exhibition, but the fee is lower than you hoped. Maybe your work was posted online, and you weren’t offered anything… What’s your next move? Do you ask for more or keep your head down? Fees and contracts are negotiable more often than you might think.

VANL-CARFAC will present a panel discussion and professional development session entitled Empower Yourself: Confident Negotiations for Visual Artists on Saturday, September 12th in the Meeting Room of the Quality Inn in downtown St. John’s at 3:00pm.

Artists Chloe Lewis (Artist and Director of Eastern Edge Gallery), Andrew Taggart (Artist), Tara Bryan (Artist) and Emily Lukaweski (Lawyer) are panelists with moderator Ingrid Mary Percy (Artist, Vice-Chair of VANL-CARFAC, NL Rep and Vice President of CARFAC National).

Learn more about how to conduct your negotiations and get a better deal for yourself. This event is free but donations will be gratefully accepted.

Date: Saturday, September 12th 2015 at 3 PM

Location: Meeting Room of Quality Inn, 2 Hill ‘o’ Chips, St. John’s, NL

Moderator:

Ingrid Mary Percy

Panelists:

Tara Bryan

Chloe Lewis

Emily Lukaweski

Andrew Taggart

______________________________________________________

For more information, please contact:

Dave Andrews, Executive Director
dave.vanl.carfac@gmail.com

Tessa Graham, Program Coordinator
vanlcarfac@gmail.com

Phone: 709-738-7303


Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant, 2015

 

Guidelines and Application

Cox & Palmer has partnered with VANL-CARFAC to offer a new funding opportunity for visual artists in Newfoundland and Labrador. The Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant is valued at $5000 and is awarded annually.

Aim of the Grant

The Cox & Palmer Pivotal Point Grant will provide financial support for a project and/or activities that will significantly advance an artist’s career, help evolve his or her practice and/or develop the artist’s reputation and visibility within the art world. Examples include, but are not limited to: development of new audience/market through exhibitions; publications and presentations; skill set development for use of new media or materials crucial to the creation of a specific body of work; participation in a residency that provides time and facilities to generate new work; or support for creation of a body of work or for exhibition costs at a significant venue.

Deadline for Application
September 11, 2015

Notification of Result
October 30, 2015

Eligibility

Applicants must be a current member of VANL-CARFAC. Applicants can become a member at the time of application.

This grant is open to professional visual artists who are residents of Newfoundland and Labrador:
• Must be Canadian citizens or have permanent resident status
• Must be a current resident of Newfoundland and Labrador for a minimum of twelve consecutive months immediately prior to the time of application
• Must be at least eighteen years of age

Definition of professional artist

A creator of visual art has the status of professional visual artist if: earning a living through art making or possessing a diploma in an area considered to be within the domain of the fine arts, or teaching art in a school of art or applied art, or whose work is often seen by the public or is frequently or regularly exhibited, or recognized as an artist by consensus of opinion among professional artists.

Eligible Expenses

Eligible expenses include all reasonable expenses that will be incurred during the course of the proposed activity such as: travel, materials and supplies, technical support, residency costs, fabrication costs, shipping, studio rental, development and publication of promotional materials. The proposed project can be for individual or collaborative projects (include documentation for each collaborator). Other types of expenses will be considered as long as clearly justified by the nature of the proposed plan.

• Travel
• Materials and supplies
• Residency fees
• Studio rental
• Small equipment (up to $2000)
• Training costs
• Wages for assistants
• Consultant fees
• Technical services
• Professional development costs
• Exhibition expenses
• Publication costs
• Contribution towards living expenses

Ineligible expenses:

• Retroactive costs
• Purchase of building
• Renovations or construction
• Tuition

Required application support materials

• Completed application form and detailed budget
• Detailed project description that clearly outlines the program or nature of activities, how this will be carried out within the stated timeline and how this will be beneficial to the advancement of your career and/or artistic practice
• Up to date curriculum vitae
• Artist statement that provides context for previous work
o Digital documentation of previously created artwork– maximum of 20 images, DVDs, audio/video documentation (Original artwork will not be accepted)
• Optional Support Materials:
o Letters of support
o Confirmation of residency or exhibition
o Recent reviews, catalogues, etc.

Assessment Criteria will be based on the following three components:
• Artistic merit of work produced
• Strength and feasibility of proposed activity
• Ability to enhance the artist’s career/artistic practice.

Adjudication Process
All applications will be reviewed by the VANL-CARFAC staff for eligibility and completeness. All applications that meet these criteria will then be assessed by a committee of artists and arts professionals chosen by VANL-CARFAC’s board of directors.

Final Report
A comprehensive final report is required that includes an outline of the project/activities, a budget and the benefit to the artist. This report is due within one month of completion of the project.

Timeline:
Projects to be completed by October 30, 2016

Submission:

CLICK HERE to download the application form. This form must be filled out and returned with your application submission.

Applications may be submitted via dropbox or WeTransfer.com (preferred) or by email to vanlcarfac@gmail.com, or by mail to:

Pivotal Point Grant
Visual Artists Newfoundland and Labrador (VANL-CARFAC)
Devon House
59 Duckworth Street, 3rd Floor
St. John’s, NL, A1C 1E6