🚀 go-pugleaf

e: support for the arts in the US

For any of you Americans who are considering adopting a Canadian style
of funding for the arts, I would like to point out some fundamental
problems with our system that merit some thought. 

Adopting a granting body like the Canada Council will create the
following problems:

1) Ossification of the bureacracy: As the granting body ages, more and
more money goes towards the infrastructure of the council and less goes
towards the artists themselves. (A recent case in Toronto featured a
local council siphoning funds out of artist's pockets and into their
employee pension fund.) 

2) Creation of artistic fiefs: Jury members often recommend grants to
"contemporaries" whose work is familiar to them. There are even a few
examples of individual jury members recommending a project in which they
are directly involved in - "leaving the room" as other members vote.
Many young artists feel that they are shut out of this process merely
because they don't have the right connections.

3) "What is Art?": Who is to determine which project is valid and which
is not? The acceptance of one applicant automatically means the
exclusion of another. 

4) Artists turn into grant writers! There are many out there who have
evolved into great grant writers but have lost their artististic ability
along the way! 

5) Juries begin shying away from politically incorrect material until
all that remains is watered down pablum that no one has any interest in.

6) ...the list goes on...

Before my fellow Kanucks flame me to a crisp (no doubt they have all
received council funding!) I would like to close by saying that I
support government funding of the arts. The system may not be perfect
but I've yet to see a better way. If you Yanks spent 1/10th of your
military budget on the arts, you would be the envy of the world!

Sincerely,


Chuck Cook


(oops! just kidding) :-)

Sincerely,


Mark B.