The Arts Beat
By Elynn Wareham
Canadian arts organizations have been given a chance to catch their breath.
Last October, Heritage Minister Sheila Copps announced that the federal government had approved additional funding for the Canada Council for the Arts, $25 million for this year and an additional $25 million in each of the next four years.
Just two weeks ago the Council announced it is ready to distribute the extra money it received to help Canadian artists and arts organizations.
But although the increased funding comes as good news, many arts organizations including the Great Canadian Theatre Company may have to save these pennies for a rainy day. These groups are saying they will keep this money in reserve as they are worried about the possibility that regional and city arts funding will be reduced in April. What might now look like a generous grant could turn out to be essential for future survival.
Canadian creators and arts organizations have suffered from years of funding cuts. When it comes to considering budgets, the arts are often pushed to the bottom of the list for increased funding. They are often seen as the jewels one buys to match an evening gown – nice, but not essential.
Arts organizations are continually being drawn into a game of cat-and-mouse with all levels of government. Although increased funding is accepted with gratitude it merely makes up for funding which was cut in the past. Governments often use the excuse of increased support through such items as subscriptions as a reason for decreasing their subsidies. Public support for the arts may be growing but this support cannot make up the money which is being lost through government cuts. No matter how successful their seasons are, organizations like the GCTC cannot survive without public subsidies.
Any increased public interest in the arts should reinforce the need for government support not the opposite.
The government should support those organizations which the public finds essential. If cuts keep continuing at the expense of artists and arts organizations, we may begin to hear anecdotes such as the one about an impoverished Vincent Van Gogh stealing his paints by dipping his wet fingers into vats of powdered pigments.
In April, regional and city council should follow the lead of the federal government and increase funding to the arts or at the very least maintain its current levels.