Sunny ways bring dawn of new hope

OTTAWA—The 2016 federal Liberal budget signaled a sea-change in funding for the cultural sector, providing a $1.87 billion boost to the arts, including the sector as an integral part of investment in the social infrastructure of the nation.

“Believing in innovation is also believing in the talent and in the creativity of Canadians,” said Finance Minister Bill Morneau in a prepared text of his remarks.

The recognition of the importance of the arts and culture sector, which employs 671,000 Canadians, according to figures from the Canada Council for the Arts, is a $47.7 billion contribution to the country’s GDP. The Canada Council, whose budget will double by 2021, called the budget news “an unprecedented, once-in-a-generation investment,” and the performers union ACTRA expressed a hope that this marked the beginning of a new relationship between government and creators.

“The doubling of the Canada Council’s budget is an incredible vote of confidence in the capacities of the arts to invigorate our economy and support social cohesion,” said Simon Brault, director and CEO of the Canada Council, in a news release. “The Canada Council, along with the remarkable artists and organizations we support, is ready and anxious to responsibly deliver results that will benefit millions of Canadians.”

Meanwhile at the CBC, which is slated to get an extra $675 million over the next five budgets, CEO Hubert Lacroix stated in a press release, “This is great news for CBC/Radio-Canada, and for Canadians who support public broadcasting.”

In addition to the direct funding, heritage and museum sectors received good news as infrastructure money will be spent on various repairs and renovations (some of which had already been earmarked by the previous Conservative government).

“I don’t know if you have ever noticed but there is a quote on the Canadian 20 dollar bill that reads, ‘How could we ever know each other in the slightest without the arts?’,” said Joe Osawabine, artistic director of Debajehmujig Storytellers. “This quote, I believe, is from Gabrielle Roy, one of Canada’s great literary artists and it is juxtaposed against image of indigenous artist Bill Ried’s sculpture ‘The Spirit of Haida Gwaii.’ I don’t think that most people have ever looked that closely at the bill to even notice the quote is there, but I always thought it was kind of ironic that the government would acknowledge the important role that the arts can play in getting at the very core of our identity by placing this quote right on our money, the very thing we as artists have been struggling with as there hasn’t been a serious increase in arts funding since 1995. The result has been that probably about 30 percent of the work we do as artists has been reduced to volunteerism. Now we have a real opportunity to advance by being paid for all that we do as artists not just the part that the public pays for, this leads to respecting artists, not simply as a commodity of entertainment, but actual reflectors of society that offer insight, reflection and a real possibility of leads to respecting artists.”

Mr. Osawabine noted that the impact of the funding announcement has reverberated through the artistic community. “This is a very exciting time in our history and we are extremely excited by this announcement and also the recent announcement of the new funding model at the Canada Council for the Arts. (The Canada Council has been undergoing a major change in its funding model, aimed at making applications simpler and increasing access for younger artists.) “Now not only will there be an influx of new money, but also in the way in which we access that money and what we are able to do with the money is in our hands, as the new funding model is consolidated, comprehensive and autonomous. This new sense of emerging respect for both artists and Indigenous People feels pretty darn good, particularly after the Harper drought.”

Mr. Osawabine said that beyond the funding increase, the change in how important arts and culture is in weaving the fabric of the national identity and will lead to a greater respect for artists and their contribution to the nation.

“I think the news is generally pretty exciting,” agreed 4elements Living Arts Executive Director Sophie Edwards. “The federal government is finally recognizing the importance of art. A lot of people underestimate the impact of the arts.”

At $48 billion, the arts and culture sector comprised three percent of the nation’s total GDP in 2010, more than the accommodation, food and agriculture and forestry sectors. She noted, “with 650,000 jobs, the sector employs 3.7 percent of Canada’s labour force.” The sector contributes $25 billion in tax revenue. With figures like that, she asserts that it is long past time that policy makers stop regarding the arts and culture sector as a “soft industry.”

But the importance of the sector stretches far beyond the economic realm. “It is an important part of a healthy, well educated population,” she said.

If there is one change that Ms. Edwards suggests needs to come about in the future, it is that there needs to be a recognition of the important role that administrative infrastructure plays in nurturing the arts. “As it stands, funding is project oriented,” she pointed out, making the creation of a solid infrastructure and training regime for arts administration personnel a challenge for most organizations.

“Any increase in funding for the arts is a good thing, and that kind of increase is nice to see,” said Gore Bay Theatre Director Walter Maskel. “The funding is so much less now. With Theatre Ontario, there is so much less funding now than there was in the 1980s and 1990s when they could help community arts groups. There has been a huge deficit in funding since then.”

The new funding for the CBC, $75 million in this first year, will assist in the continuation of the digitization project of the CBC’s programming so that it can be accessed on multiple platforms. Or it may just serve as an anesthetic for the ongoing pain caused by the loss of the ad revenue from Hockey Night in Canada. The Liberal budget specifically mentioned working with the CBC on an accountability plan and a new mandate that includes a basic system of five-year mandates tied to guaranteed levels of funding.

There were some shortfalls between electioneering and reality contained in the budget announcements, however, while the Liberals had promised $95 million over five years to the National Film Board (NFB) and the film funding agency Telefilm Canada, in the end there was only $13.5 million for the NFB and $22 million for Telefilm Canada.

Still, Mr. Osawabine summed up the impact of the budget announcements on the arts community in general with his final word: hope.