Create NSW needs a kick in the arts

Recently I learned that a number of regional galleries and three of NSW's regional art boards were unsuccessful in securing four-year funding from the state government through Create NSW

While Minister for the Arts John Graham has asked we wait for the two-year funding decisions to be finalised,  many of the organisations needing financial support will have already had their planning for the future disrupted.

This morning there's an interview being broadcast that I recorded with ABC Riverina yesterday, where I outlined some of the benefits of funding creativity.

There's data that shows Australians engage with the arts more than sport, although I think it's a bit of a false equivalence since both activities reflect our national culture. 

Many don't recognise culture, as it's like the joke about fish not knowing about water since we're surrounded by it every day.

One of my themes is that spending money on cultural practices is an investment in the future.

When you look at art you are able to get a perspective through the senses and thoughts of another person, so art builds empathy -- which is sorely needed in contemporary times.

It is at best ironic and at worst a sad indictment on NSW's arts ecosystem that one fifth of the regional arts boards were denied funding in this round, as they are the organisations placed to assist non-metropolitan communities to access grants.

Orana Arts is one board that was denied funding and I've been part of their innovative Studio Collab project for a few years, gaining opportunities to learn and collaborate and network with other regional artists.

I'm grateful for their residencies and other opportunities to promote creative practices, such as my talk on the cut-up technique.

Brian Eno has argued in a recent book that, where children learn through play, adults learn through art.

I think it's an important idea, since we gain perspectives and learn new capacities through experiencing culture.

It's as simple as feeling emotions when watching TV, those aren't considered art often enough to recognise the skills developed by a team of people to present interdisciplinary media.

In my ramble with journalist Sally Bryant I mentioned how 40 years ago the band Mental As Anything had a hit song called 'Live It Up'.

That band was a group of art school students and their exhibitions were opened by prime ministers, but their music was an unexpected outcome from their creativity (and possibly a desire for free drinks).

The song 'Live It Up' went on to appear on pop music charts around the world for two years, even returning to the Scottish charts as recently as five years ago.

It is one of our enduring cultural exports and an example of how something like free art education can lead to surprising outcomes.

As the world becomes increasingly fueled by (so-called) artificial intelligence, there's a need to invest in art to develop human creativity.

There is also a need to promote art-making for the benefits in developing empathy and, as careers are lost to AI, it will offer a balm in the well-being that arises from engaging in activities within our communities and sharing in the joy of creating. 

NSW teachers were recently told the creative domain was a focus in the High potential and gifted education policy and that's exciting as it's an area that I believe can be taught. 

However, every teacher knows the role of modelling to demonstrate their lessons and it's vital for students to see the arts are valued.

So, c'mon NSW State Government, Create NSW needs funding to give the arts a boost and regional communities deserve better.

Classless

All history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles 

Young perspectives

A student asked if I had a girlfriend and I replied, "yeah for about 23 years now."

"What?" She exclaimed, "Why haven't you proposed?"

"I've tried a few times," I explained.

"23 years," the student pondered. "I thought you were about 19."

Growing together

It's my daughter's 18th birthday today and I'm prompted to reflect

One of the wonderful aspects of being a parent is seeing those glimpses of personalities in little babies develop through childhood and blossom into adulthood.  

There are so many lessons that one learns about themself in the process, particularly that opportunity to revisit memories of one's own childhood from a new perspective.

I found a new gratitude for my parents and was able to let go of some painful experiences too.  

A key moment for me in fathering a daughter was recognising my own sexism, which came as a surprise after identifying as a feminist and studying that topic through one of my university degrees. 

It came after years of viewing my daughter with some suspicion, based on what I now see as a resourcefulness to get what she wanted without asking. 

A family member had written letters to each of my three children and, after they were discarded, I looked over them and recognised a distinct shift in tone within the correspondence directed to the girl. 

That prompted me to reflect on how my own interactions had subtle, yet observable, differences that meant I treated my daughter differently to her brothers. 

Over time I worked to consider my attitudes and address the perception that I might be unconsciously sexist in my behaviour. 

This isn't to say that I don't worry about how the world treats females, particularly how their needs are different, but it was a step toward recognising I wanted her to retain those capabilities and strengths that had been previously a source of conflict. 

In psychology they identify positive and negative conditioning as ways of shaping behaviours, and I guess I'm trying to articulate that the opportunity to be a father to a daughter helped me to recognise a broader range of strategies in parenting. 

There's more I can write about identifying my biases, but for now I want to conclude with gratitude for seeing another child reach adulthood and how my capacity for love has grown. 

Tadpole at heart


 

John Cage on silence

"Try as we may to make a silence, we cannot. 

"For certain engineering purposes, it is desirable to have as silent a situation as possible. Such a room is called an anechoic chamber, its six walls made of special material, a room without echoes. I entered one at Harvard University several years ago and heard two sounds, one high and one low. 

"When I described them to the engineer in charge, he informed me that the high one was my nervous system in operation, the low one my blood in circulation."

Bills horse trough

Darrell Jones is shown cleaning a Bills horse trough at Griffith Pioneer Park Museum

George and Annis Bills established a trust fund to support working horses that led to 700 troughs being installed throughout NSW and Victoria between 1930 and '39.

Sketchy zine

Made this zine while I was waiting for my partner yesterday

It uses drawings from the sketchbook diary that I kept for a month in 2013, inspired by my family and the work of James Kochalka.

That project developed my comic-making skills surprisingly quickly and gave me an appreciation for how much work Kochalka put into his American Elf series.

This zine will likely be a parting gift to my class when I finish up next week and I hope it shows them the joy of drawing and self-publishing. 

I've used the format promoted by Austin Kleon, see here. 

You should print a copy of the zine and leave some lying around your part of the world because, assuming they don't become litter, it'd be great to be distributed! 

Little things

Red Earth Ecology are planning an excursion to Fivebough Wetland

Today Jo and I made this little guide to waterbird diets and it's a zine, so it can be folded up to fit into little pockets.

Kid art

Saw this in the art classroom at school

I feel a bit sheepish for sharing this pic, since it's not my art and I can't attribute the artist.

However, it made me feel sentimental for when my kids would draw pages of random-looking characters.