HomeMy WebLinkAboutArts & Culture - 2010-03-16
ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ACAC) MINUTES
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 CITY OF KITCHENER
PRESENT: Jennifer Breithaupt REGRETS: Juan Bohorquez
Alison Burkett Councillor Galloway
Len Carter (from 4:15) Lucia Harrison, Multicultural Centre
Peter Hammond Isobel Cisterna, Neruda Productions
Ann MacKenzie-Martino
Lawrence McNaught (from 4:30) STAFF: Cheryl York, Arts/Culture Coordinator
Helena Redshaw Carrie Kozlowski, Recording Secretary
Julie Robbescheuten
Kathleen Sheehy
Tracy Smith
GUESTS: Holde Gerlach
Majdi Bou Matar, Multicultural Theatre Space (MT Space)
Martin de Groot, Waterloo Region Arts Council (WRAC)
Azam Fouk Adaleh, Multicultural Cinema Club (MCC)
Peter McFadden, Waterloo Region Immigrant Employment Network (WRIEN)
Veronica Zaretski, Neruda Productions
Marilena Benak, YMCA
CALL TO ORDER Jennifer Breithaupt, Chair
Welcome to new members:
Ann Mackenzie Martino: retired grade 7/8 teacher; formerly involved with Board of Education arts
council; involved in annual musical productions; on the Board of Directors for KW Musical Productions
Helena Redshaw: Development officer at Homer Watson House and Gallery, piano teacher
1.0 Acceptance of Agenda
Councillor Galloway unable to attend; item #7 (Council Report) deferred
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Agenda accepted as amended
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2.0Acceptance of February 16, 2010 Minutes
Minutes accepted as circulated
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INFORMATION ITEMS
3.0Public Art Working Group (PAWG) Report: Alison Burkett
Public Art Masterplan: public survey yielded locations for public art. Revealed that public
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education is required re: locations of existing public art.
Kitchener Library Public Art Competition: 2 stage competition, stage 1 deadline: March 30.
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Budget: $125,000. Jury being created now. Jury’s recommendation goes to PAWG, then
ACAC, Committee and Council.
Central Maintenance Facility (CMF) Public Art: Budget: $100,000. Site is not well
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attended by public. PAWG recommendation: allocate $15,000 public art budget for CMF,
remainder of funds to public art project account. Locate art inside CMF, artist to engage
employees in its creation.
Belmont Avenue Public Art: Budget: $50,000. Locations for public art are limited. Terms
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of Reference currently being prepared. PAWG considering making a presentation to Belmont
BIA to inform them about public art, to educate them, and to show them possibilities.
Timing of project unknown.
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March 2010 - ACAC Minutes
ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ACAC) MINUTES
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 CITY OF KITCHENER
Student Video Competition: Call for entry now being distributed (a contest for high school
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and secondary school student videos to be played on The Cube atop city hall). Goal of
project is to raise profile of The Cube. Promotion included radio commercials, Princess
Cinema, local papers, city’s web site. Deadline is June 30. PAWG will form jury.
ACTION: STAFF TO SEND ACAC MEMBERS INFORMATION ON CONTEST FOR COMMITTEE
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MEMBERS TO DISTRIBUTE ELECTRONICALLY
Bullas Sculptures: Restoration of sculptures now complete. These art deco concrete
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sculptures will be installed at the Centre in the Square (temporary location). Final location
will be Centre Block public lobby.
Stefan Rose (Artist in Residence): Photos and poetry from his Grand Conversations project
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to be installed in Grand River Buses in April
4.0Downtown Advisory Committee (DAC) Report: Peter Hammond
DAC is interested in learning more about public art. Above mentioned PAWG presentation To
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Belmont Ave. BIA might be suitable.
King Street reconstruction: continues in a phased approach to Francis Street.
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Downtown strategic plan: 4 elements: more residents, retail, vitality, and infrastructure.
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DAC has subcommittees presenting at each meeting for next 7 months. (Peter is on Retail
subgroup examining what’s needed and what currently exists).
Coalition of Performing Artists (COPA) and City are working on an ‘Animate the
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Streets’ program to increase downtown vitality. COPA put out call for entry to arts
organizations for interactive performances (not juried), welcoming all to participate.
Received about 20 submissions.
5.0Economic Development Advisory Committee (EDAC) Report: Len Carter
EDAC is considering brown fields
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EDAC heard a presentation on tourism
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Len suggested same tourism presentation be delivered to ACAC
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6.0ACAC/Downtown Advisory Committee/Economic Development Committee update
Economic Development Advisory Committee (EDAC), DAC and ACAC meeting set for
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Wednesday, March 24, 11:30, Conestoga Room. Agenda sent to ACAC members.
Recommended preparation for ACAC attendees at the March 23 joint advisory committee
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meeting is the material contained in Culture Plan II, pages 30-41, “The Arts Investment
Package: Economic and Community Development”
7.0Council Report: Kelly Galloway
Councillor Galloway absent, no update
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8.0Media Arts Subcommittee: Staff
Arts Business Creativity (ABC) Conference: for artists (April 17) will include a media
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workshop.
Don Chapman (Special Events Manager) will deliver workshop on how to reach media.
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This is the 3 year for the conference. Cost is $55 for whole day, includes lunch and
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networking session. Location: Waterloo City hall, Button Factory, and possibly Clay and
Glass gallery. Small Business Centre organizes it.
ABC Conference keynote speaker will be Brock Hart of MFX Partners. Topic: “What’s
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working now? Designing Creative Networks”
ACTION: Staff to send ABC promotional flyer to ACAC
Media Handbook: no update
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Arts Marketing Strategy: no update
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March 2010 - ACAC Minutes
ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ACAC) MINUTES
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 CITY OF KITCHENER
Arts and Culture insert in The Record: Cheryl York met with reps from The Record. Record
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wants advertising leads, and $2,000 for a two page insert.
Arts and Culture unit has no budget for this initiative. Hope was that Record would
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produce it.
City of Kitchener has agreement with Record that our grants groups can enjoy the
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City line rate for Record ads.
Julie Robbescheuten: could ACAC do it, as a group? Take it on as our own? An
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advertising, promotional piece? Also creation and distribution of this item?
Len Carter: recall ACAC’s CPII update in February 2009. Could do something similar
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in a theatre, or as part of our next CPII update?
9.0Members Updates
Deferred
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DISCUSSION ITEMS
10.0Facilitated multicultural discussion
Facilitated multicultural discussion
CPII recommendation # 24: Mentor/host program for newcomer/multicultural artists—database
of artists willing to volunteer as supporters and mentors to newcomer artists
Questions (in bold, below) were distributed in advance to participants.
What’s the current situation, what’s on the ground now? What’s available currently?
Context:
Even artists born and trained in this country have a difficult time making a living wage in
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their professions. $23,500 is average wage for artists in Canada.
Newcomer artists with extensive experience in their disciplines (such as videographers,
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graphics for film industry) not finding jobs here; have to change careers.
Programs like the Rotunda Gallery are opportunities for newcomer visual artists; fewer
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barriers to participation because the language is visual. Performers, as opposed to visual
artists, encounter more difficulty.
Our region hosts three large contemporary arts festivals: IMPACT, Open Ears, and CAFKA.
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Groups like MT SPACE, Neruda Productions and Multicultural Cinema Club (MCC) have
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influence: they helped our region to land the 2010 Magnetic North Theatre Festival.
They raise the profile of this issue.
Work of Prosperity Council (PC) and its enabling organization may further assist the cause
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of newcomer multicultural artists
The Region’s web site hosts a leading edge, widely used portal of information for
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newcomers and for those thinking of emigrating. Information on the arts may enhance
what is now offered.
Existing immigrant mentorship program (not arts focused) such as that offered by the
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YMCA is driven by demand, fed through network of service providers (YMCA Cross
Cultural & Immigrant Services). Interaction between immigrants looking to agencies for
help. Waterloo Region Immigrant Employment Network WRIEN is an umbrella
organization for service providers. Loan Program, Mentor Program, Internship program
are tools for immigrants.
Question about central arts information source.
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Question about the Community Services Department’s Little Black Book for Youth— the
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arts information included in it is minimal and outdated.
Other comments: Artists are overwhelmed. Is this because they are artists or because
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they are newcomers? Language is a barrier. English tutors are available to newcomers.
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March 2010 - ACAC Minutes
ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ACAC) MINUTES
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 CITY OF KITCHENER
Newcomers often have to do retraining, going back to square one is tough, expensive,
and time consuming.
ACTION: Staff to inquire about updating ‘little black book for youth’.
What are statistics on constituency? (i.e.—how many artist newcomers are there annually?)
Statistics on constituency are unknown. There are likely more newcomer artists than
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actually self-identify.
Statistics Canada may have information.
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Anecdotally, the MCC has encountered at least five newcomer artists not working in their
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desired profession in the past year, and MT Space finds that 60% of actors responding to
its calls are visible minorities with impressive and extensive resumes.
Numbers of artists new to our community are increasing.
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Another group to engage is university students due to their diverse origins. After
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graduation, what would entice them to stay in our region?
What are gaps/What is needed?
Arts mentorship program would be helpful
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Question # 1: what are resources in the arts community?
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Question # 2: who can we help?
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Our region already has a good reputation in the arts for newcomers. The Prosperity
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Council could strengthen regional services through its enabling organization.
Newcomers already have places to go to for assistance but staff at organizations (YMCA,
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Multicultural Centre) must be able to direct newcomers to resources like the MT Space,
Neruda, MCC. Front line workers need more information on arts community contacts.
Need to establish an information base and connections.
The service delivery mechanism exists. Enhancing it is the challenge.
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Welcoming newcomers with creative talents is good for community, employers and the
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arts community.
What’s the process? Existing agencies have mentoring programs, but connections are
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missing. Need a list of mentors.
Group mentoring and networking opportunities for artists would be another option. The
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arts are unique. Could a group of newcomer artists meet with several artists over a 4
month period to make connections and learn from a variety of people?
Another issue is outreach: how do we find those newcomers who would like to connect to
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the arts community?
In the immigration process, artists may not at first self-identify as artists. They may be
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entering the country as a family member of a professional in another field (e.g.,
medicine, engineering).
Perhaps contact information on arts community can be added to the Region’s portal for
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new residents. This is one way to potentially disseminate information. Could Waterloo
Region Immigrant Employment Network (WRIEN) or the host program at the YWCA
facilitate this?
Also need a dedicated group of people to be involved. Provision of information passively
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is not enough. Need a mentorship program.
Newcomers may benefit from relationships. For example, for four months, meetings once
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a week, 1-2 hours.
Majdi Bou Matar’s recommendations:
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#1: Agencies and arts community need to get together twice a year to provide
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newcomer artists with an orientation. (MCC, Neruda and MT Space could give
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March 2010 - ACAC Minutes
ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ACAC) MINUTES
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 CITY OF KITCHENER
workshops). Mentoring opportunities would follow after that. Follow up with
networking sessions with established artists.
#2: Prosperity Council’s enabling organization must include issues of diversity as part
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of its strategy. Beyond the major arts organizations, marginalized groups must also
be involved in the development of the arts community.
#3: Capacity Waterloo Region which provides governance training doesn’t seem to
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have any arts or diversity representation in its participants. Needs to be more
accessible to culturally diverse organizations, needs to reach out to newcomers,
diverse groups. Establish a quota system for its courses.
#4: Equitable distribution of funds from Tier 1 and Tier 2 (City of Kitchener) grants
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program for culturally diverse organizations and visible minorities.
Who will take action? What’s the action plan?
Summarize discussion and send to participants and other affected parties.
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Set up a meeting to plan and strategize, determine goals and desired outcomes.
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Host a networking event: City to donate Rotunda space and WRIEN & Service Providers would
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organize the event. Main focus would be information sharing on the arts in our community,
audience development, volunteer opportunities, connections, networking, etc. – a way for
newcomers to learn about the community and become comfortable and involved. Arts organizations
would be invited to set up information tables and have representatives present to answer questions.
MCC, Neruda, and MT Space all are capable of providing assistance as a resource to newcomers due
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to their experience.
ADJOURNMENT
The chair adjourned the meeting at 6:15 p.m.
NEXT MEETING
Tuesday, April 20, 4:00 p.m., Schmalz Room.
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March 2010 - ACAC Minutes