SEMINAR LEARNING REPORT

SHARING THE STAGEPOLICY AND PRACTICE: THE CIVIC ROLEOF ARTS ORGANISATIONS

Above: We, The Crowd was a 2016 Sharing the Stageproduction which explored what music and footballmean to people aged from eight to 85 living inNewcastle’s West End. Both professional and non-professional performers took part; for examplemembers of the Royal Northern Sinfonia and studentsfrom a local primary school.

Front cover: Dancers from Chicago performing at theNational Theatre of Scotland’s Home Away festival in2016. This festival was supported by the Sharing theStage programme.

Sharing the Stage Policy and Practice: The CivicRole of Arts OrganisationsSeminar learning report published in 2017by Calouste Gulbenkian FoundationUK Branch

www.gulbenkian.pt/uk-branch

Our final Policy and Practice seminar for 2016 wasspent focusing on the civic role of arts organisations,the subject of a multi year inquiry the Foundation isrunning.

We were privileged to have the seminar led as usual byFrançois Matarasso. He is an expert in this field, andbrings many years of experience, as well as histhoughtful disposition to this topic.

Guided by the three metaphors the Inquiry’s paneldevised in 2016, which are reprinted within thisbooklet, we examined arts organisations’ civic role.Small groups discussed arts organisations’ function as‘colleges’ (places of learning), ‘town halls’ (places ofdebate) and ‘parks’ (places of meeting). We alsoexplored the concept of arts organisations being‘hospitals’ (places of well-being and health). You canread in detail the discussion we had within this report.

As the Arts Programme Manager I felt it was vital tohave the Inquiry analysed by such a range ofpractitioners. I value the feedback from everyonepresent, as well as the subsequent work some havebeen involved in. The Inquiry will be highlyconsultative throughout its duration. In 2016 duringPhase One of the Inquiry arts organisations across thecountry gave us their view in a series of workshops;in turn we plan to consult colleagues on the findingsthrough an online survey from 10 July to 10 November2017.

I would like to thank our colleagues at the Esmée FairbairnFoundation and Paul Hamlyn Foundation forco-designing this seminar with us.

Kithmini Wimalasekera (Arts Programme Manager)

SHARING THE STAGE POLICY AND PRACTICE: THE CIVIC ROLE OF ARTS ORGANISATIONS NOVEMBER 2016 SEMINAR REPORT 1

PREFACE

TURN was a 2016 Sharing theStage performance createdespecially for Glasgow’s GovanGraving Docks by theatre-makerNic Green.

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Our final Policy and Practice seminar for 2016 withthe Sharing the Stage learning group broughttogether members from nearly 50 arts organisationsto examine the Inquiry into the Civic Role of ArtsOrganisations.

WHAT IS THE INQUIRY INTO THECIVIC ROLE OF ARTSORGANISATIONS?

In our changing world, the Inquiry is designed as aspace for arts organisations to consider our responseto the political, social and economic factors thatimpact on our society, exploring how individual andcollective actions can enable people’s voices to beheard. It is an opportunity for the arts sector toreconsider its role in society through the frame of acivic role in the 21st century.

The Inquiry is highly consultative and driven by thesector, and focused on actions that will supportorganisational change and resilience in playing a civicrole. It aims to galvanise the sector into a movementthat is committed to being people-focused,collaborative and champions of the artistic and socialvalue of the arts in the future.

Setting the scene

We were guided through this seminar by FrançoisMatarasso, member of the International ReferenceGroup advising the Inquiry, and co-facilitator of theSharing the Stage seminar series.

François began with a speech on the overlappingissues of democracy, access and power structures. Hereminded us of the topic he explores in his work‘Parliament of Dreams’: that in a democracy wherethere are formal structures for seekingrepresentation, those who lack the confidence orknowledge of how these structures operate aredisempowered in negotiating what they want. He said:

“An artistic life is a space where we can imagine,explore, make sense and challenge. It is a rich placefor the negotiation of our values. The transformativepower of the arts impacts on us all however we cannotput its impact into words. An informal artistic life isricher and more diverse than a formal life.”

François reflected that for the first time the arts are onthe losing liberal left side after a long time in power.François belives this is a moment for the sector toreflect and reimagine its relevance to the public. Hequoted philosopher Charles Taylor who describesdemocracy as an ideal in which we believe in to giveeveryone a voice. He then said:

“The opportunity lies in creating spaces that areunique to arts organisations, where people can have avoice to reclaim democracy. The distinctive role of thearts is in supporting people to articulate concerns,beliefs, dreams and how people live out an artistic lifein the broadest sense. By being agile, responsive andinformal, the arts offer a different space that informs aformal democratic life. The inevitable challenge is inhow these spaces work for dissenting voices andmanage different values, whilst recognising that thearts sector has a reputation for being governed by theliberal elite.”

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THE INQUIRY INTO THE CIVIC ROLE OFARTS ORGANISATIONS

Civic role of arts organisation

Before we discussed the Inquiry as a LearningCommunity, Andrew Barnett, Director of the UKBranch of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation,described how this work builds on a long history ofsupporting the arts sector. Seminal publications bythe Foundation include ‘Help for the Arts’ in 1959,‘Going on the Stage’ in 1975, ‘The Arts Britain Ignores’in 1976, ‘Voluntary Organisations Facing Change’ in1976 and ‘The Point of Culture’ in 2014. These all setin motion radical new ways of thinking about practice,and influenced policy changes that were conducive toinnovation. These works often included pilotingapproaches that have now become establishedmainstream practice. Andrew said a deepunderstanding of the nature of change is what enablesthe Foundation to influence systems to ensure long-term change is embedded.

Andrew told the crowd he believes the Inquiry is anatural progression for the Foundation in supportingarts organisations to future-proof themselves in ourchanging social, political and economic world. It is aholistic and collaborative endeavour with the sector toidentify practice, infrastructure and policy levers ofchange. It is a philosophy, not a funding programme.Andrew pointed to the EU Referendum, saying it hasgiven the Inquiry added urgency as the differences oflife experiences across the country and the deepdivides in public opinions have become starklyapparent. The Inquiry is an attempt to place artsorganisations at the centre of finding a way to makesense of these changes, understand difference andconnect people.

Benefits and risks

To unpack the complexities of what a civic role for artsorganisations could mean, François offered twoinsights to preface the discussion on the benefits andrisks. Firstly, John Berger’s ‘Ways of Seeing’ firstpublished in 1972, offers a reminder of what peoplebring from our life experience to the act of seeing.Secondly, Don McCullin’s war photography in the1960s which powerfully connected people to therealities of living in conflict zones, yet fell short offollowing up on that human connection with action.

With that in mind the attendees found consensus onthe benefits of playing a civic role as opportunities to:

l Expand our learning and our worldview.

l Explore the unique offer of the arts as a place todream, discover, explore and imagine. We must notlose sight of this and need to make a stand for thevalue of play, particularly in turbulent times.

l Connect with the whole of life experience, thewhole person and a whole community beyond thelimits of a project by creating pathways that enablepeople to access a range of public services.

l Offer communities a space for self-transformationand agency within the community.

l Embed diversity through civic engagement.

l Use the civic frame to connect across sectors.

l Embed co-production in the values and life of anarts organisation.

l Secure the future of the arts by being relevant.

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SHARING THE STAGE POLICY AND PRACTICE: THE CIVIC ROLE OF ARTS ORGANISATIONS NOVEMBER 2016 SEMINAR REPORT 3

“It is a holistic and collaborative endeavour with the sector toidentify practice, infrastructure and policy levers of change.

It is a philosophy, not a funding programme.”

The attendees also found consensus on the risks to beaware of as:

l Compromising on the artistic quality.

l Assuming a default role of the teacher, rather thanthe sector seeing itself as an integral part of society.

l Considering the arts as existing for itself, ratherthan the sector seeing itself as relational to theeveryday.

l Taking on roles of the state by becoming a morecost effective public service and enabling a brokensystem.

l Disillusionment about being experts in social care.

l Overpromising and under-delivering.

l Creating ghettos of good work withinorganisations.

l Siloing communities based on how the sectorworks and local authorities manage public servicessuch as domestic abuse, social care, etc.

The undercurrent to the discussion above was: do artsorganisations have legitimate rights to play a role incivic life?

We then split into smaller groups to discuss in moredetail how the civic role of arts organisations workedwith the metaphors of colleges, town halls, parks, andon the theme of health and wellbeing. These arereviewed in more detail below.

Thoughts from the ‘Colleges’ group

This group reflected on how arts organisations offer aspace for learning throughout a person’s life, from theearly years to older age. Creating ways to ignitecuriosity, build awareness and knowledge, as well asdevelop skills for life; arts organisations offer neutralspaces with the power to engage a whole community.In the context of the changes in the labour market overthe next ten to twenty years and increased automation,by supporting lifelong learning, art organisations canenable people to prepare for these changes andupskill.

The group also discussed that while arts organisationscan have a rich offer for communities, there is muchfor arts organisations to gain. By acting as a college, itcreates a two-way process whereby the organisationcan learn from communities and tap into widerexpertise and diverse lived experiences that may notbe available within the organisation. They felt it is anunrealistic expectation for an organisation to think ithas all the answers - there is value in not knowing.

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The Sharing the StageLearning Communitydivided into smallergroups to discuss thecivic role of artsorganisations.

Thoughts from the ‘Town Halls’ group

This group agreed that arts organisations offer a spacefor discussion, listening and enjoyment that goesbeyond what a traditional town hall could offer. Townhalls have formal structures where the public can havea voice as long as established rules are followed.

Arts organisation offer a nuanced place for thecommunities’ voices to come together, connect,appreciate difference and create. The distinction issignificant in that arts organisations offer a space forcommunicating ‘what we want’, as opposed to atraditional town hall communicating ‘what the peoplewant’. The opportunity for the sector lies in how weunderstand and maximise on that difference. Thevalue of the town hall is in stimulating debate, but itmust translate to action.

A key thought posed was: town halls have been given alegitimate role to represent people through ourpolitical process, so what then makes it legitimate forarts organisations to represent people? What isneeded to legitimise the role of arts organisations inrepresenting people?

Thoughts from the ‘Parks’ group

This group understood the idea behind this metaphoris that of a place which is open to everyone and wherepeople from all walks of life can meet. They felt that onthe surface this space suggests neutrality, yet in fact itmasks a highly curated space colonised by those whoknow how to use it. It hides the hierarchical structurethat governs it.

A more thoughtful approach that goes beyond simplyoffering an open door, is to consider how to engagepeople who do not know the space exists, to engagethose who are not aware of an invitation to enter.Funding structures need to change to enable co-creation, build capacity to make connections andbuild lasting relationships. Transparency of processand co-design must be fundamental to buildingspaces that are based on how to attract people andserve their needs. These spaces need to be legible topeople.

Thoughts from the ‘Health and Wellbeing’group

Arts organisations can support individual andcommunity health and wellbeing, this group agreed,but can also create spaces for fellowship andcongregation that are akin to churches. Artsorganisations can influence the health sector tosupport a transition from a medical to a social model.However, they thought the routes to influence are notclear. Arts organisations need to take a holistic viewand be mindful of not becoming social engineers oroffering temporary solutions. This area is becomingincreasingly important as the wellbeing agenda gainsmomentum and local authorities take onresponsibility for public health.

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“Transparency of process and co-design must befundamental to building spaces that are based on how

to attract people and serve their needs.”

BRIEFING NOTE

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The following text was received by the attendees ofthe Sharing the Stage Learning Community beforewe met.

COLLEGES: arts organisations as places of learning

Education is about skills and creativity and aboutknowledge and experiences too; experience of theworld we live in and its complexities, knowledge thatacquaints us with our history and culture and that ofothers. The panel, as do we, thinks emphasis hasrightly been placed on creative education and whathappens in schools. However we also learn outsideformal educational settings, and throughout our lives.The arts are integral to this. There are great examplesof ways in which arts organisations have historicallyfulfilled this role: places of life-long learning. Andthere are many examples of arts organisations actingas places of learning today. We and the panel believearts organisations have an important role to play inhelping everyone to reach their potential.

As we look to the future, what greater role can artsorganisations play in learning beyond the school gatefor all generations? As imagination and creativityincreasingly become fundamental for work in anysector and in building healthy communities, couldarts organisations become the ‘teaching hospitals’ ofthe arts world, where people are trained up ready to goout into the world with artistic and creative skills?What should the relationships be between the othercivic players who deliver education? Can artsorganisations contribute to a new understanding ofprosperity which incorporates artistic, creative,education and social as well as economic outcomes?

TOWN HALLS: arts organisations as places for debate

Art has always stimulated and reflected currentdebates about issues as diverse as human rights andgentrification. Pressing issues today include Brexit,climate change and ending poverty and inequality inall its forms. Trust in civic organisations is waning andeven those who are expert in their fields are beingquestioned.

There is a risk inequality is regarded as too big anissue and therefore unsolvable. So how do we give artsorganisations permission to tackle some of the reallybig issues? How do we give them permission to engagein politics? How can we tell ‘activist’ from ‘traditional’organisations, when funding processes require thesame language from all? How do we progress fromsmall-scale arts initiatives around equality into large-scale political solutions? How do we make artists intopoliticians, and vice versa?

What can arts organisations do around the issue oftrust in communities? Museums and libraries inparticular are seen as trusted organisations.

As we look to the future we need a betterunderstanding of the unique civic role that artsorganisations play as neutral places for opendiscourse. Could they provide the platform uponwhich solutions to the intractable problems societyfaces are constructed and deployed? Can gettinginvolved in neighbourhood arts result in peoplerecognising their connections to places and thecommon ground they share with their fellow citizens?How might arts organisations best achieve this?

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THE METAPHORS

PARKS: arts organisations as public spaces

The space we share with our fellow citizens isimportant. Public space is becoming increasinglycontested and in some places people feel crowded outof their communities, be it through gentrification ormigration. Public parks, freely accessible for leisureand wellbeing for all, are a perfect example of the typeof spaces our Panel felt are going to be needed in thefuture to maintain and develop community. Peopleuse parks with a sense of agency that can be lacking inother public spaces. You choose to go to a park, mixwith others and do what you want to do rather thantake part in activities others have programmed foryou.

We need places where a plurality of viewpoint can beexpressed and heard. Where disagreements can besafely heard and compromises reached. Artsorganisations have a unique ability to challenge andexpress a wide range of viewpoints. They unsurpassedcommunicators of feelings. They shape the identity ofplaces. They are placemakers enabling communitiesto thrive and attract new members as well asmaintaining the health and vibrancy of existingcommunities.

As funding structures are re-imagined in localgovernment and the civic infrastructure artsorganisations had taken for granted disappear a stepchange in how arts organisations see and work withtheir communities is underway. To be truly civic artsorganisations need to understand what ‘belonging’means and to get better at understanding‘communities’ not just the ‘audience’ subset ofcommunities. As arts organisations move to seeingparticipation as co-creating rather than spectatingthey also need to decide how to inhabit the new publicspaces they find themselves in.

BRIEFING NOTE

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WHAT’S NEXT?

The Foundation will be wrapping up Phase One of theInquiry in the middle of 2017. We plan to publish areport in July with research into this topic and acollection of case studies of next practice from thesector to inspire the sector. Going forward we want toconnect those who are interested in enacting a civicrole to create a movement and work with arts fundersand policy makers to reflect on how the fundingsystem can be rethought to better support a civic role.

Find out more atcivicroleartsinquiry.gulbenkian.org.uk

Calouste Gulbenkian FoundationUK Branch50 Hoxton SquareLondon N1 6PB+44 (0)20 7012 1400info@gulbenkian.org.ukwww.gulbenkian.pt/uk-branch

ABOUT THE CALOUSTE GULBENKIAN FOUNDATION

The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is aninternational charitable foundation with cultural,educational, social and scientific interests. Basedin Lisbon with branches in London and Paris, theFoundation is in a privileged position to supportnational and transnational work tacklingcontemporary issues. The purpose of the UKBranch, based in London, is to bring about long-term improvements in wellbeing particularlyfor the most vulnerable, by creating connectionsacross boundaries (national borders, communities,disciplines and sectors) which deliver social,cultural and environmental value.

ABOUT THE ESMÉE FAIRBAIRNFOUNDATION

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation aims to improve thequality of life for people and communitiesthroughout the UK both now and in the future. Wedo this by funding a wide range of charitablework within the arts, children and young people,the environment, social change and food.www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk

ABOUT PAUL HAMYLN FOUNDATION

Paul Hamlyn Foundation was established by PaulHamlyn in 1987. Upon his death in 2001, he leftmost of his estate to the Foundation, creating oneof the largest independent grant-makingfoundations in the UK. Our mission is to helppeople overcome disadvantage and lack ofopportunity, so that they can realise their potentialand enjoy fulfilling and creative lives. We have aparticular interest in supporting young people anda strong belief in the importance of the arts.www.phf.org.uk