Leaders must recognize culture is the future

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(BRANDON SUN)

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(CP)

No Culture, No Future

By Simon Brault

Translated by Jonathan Kaplansky

Cormorant Books, 170 pages, $21

The arts and culture hold promises of other visions. They renew the invitation to remain open to experience the world.

Veteran Montreal-based arts administrator Simon Brault has presented a timely volume challenging the critical role arts and culture play in individuals' lives and in the fabric of contemporary cities.

As his title suggests, without culture we have no future. Culture is inextricably linked to each facet of the wider society.

Brault is executive director of the National Theatre School and vice-chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts. In a book first published in Quebec in 2009, he weaves personal and professional experiences together with extensive research, while drawing on recent literature, national events and international comparisons.

He effectively sets the stage for an ongoing dialogue between "the civil and political arenas." In his view, it is critical to place "culture at the heart of human and social development in the 21st century."

Detailing the complex connections between art and the community, he spells the many benefits culture accords society -- the creation and dissemination of art, the role of the artist and their positive consequential economic, intellectual and social impacts on the community. Brault's position is clear: arts and culture are essential to everyday life for individuals and "our collective development."

Citing the cultural expense slashing during the 2008 federal election, and the resulting dramatic nosedive of Tory leader Stephen Harper's campaign, Brault declares that "a new chapter in Canadian election history had been written ... a significant change in our political culture."

Brault passionately rallies artists and arts organizations "without delay to address the issue of ... participation in the arts ... promoting knowledge and experience of contemporary creation."

Artists and arts leaders must actively partake in all public discourse affecting society as a whole -- politically, economically and socially.

Brault's statistical research is extensive. Routinely backing up arguments with facts, he strengthens his position. For instance, the total cultural spending by all levels of government in 2006-2007 equalled $8.23 billion.

Sixty-one per cent of that was directed to cultural industries, including half to TV and broadcasting. In turn, these expenditures directly generated $84.6 billion to Canada's GDP. Yet, as Brault points out, we treat our artists poorly, many earning incomes well below the national average.

Brault's presentation of the historical Canadian cultural policy context is good, but a more extensive discussion would have substantiated his thesis further.

Grassroots movements have positively affected Canada's policy development. Brault mentions some critical milestones: the 1941 Kingston Conference; the 1949 Massey Commission that reported in 1951; and the 1957 founding of the Canada Council.

The collective histories of other major cultural institutions such as the CBC, the National Film Board, Canada's major galleries, museums and performing arts organizations form a solid platform to deal with the new 21st-century global realities.

Informative and confirming, Brault's international comparisons enhance his argument. The post-Second World War initiatives, his summary achievements by decade and comments on recent international conventions are particularly germane.

Eschewing labels for artistic expression, Brault argues against "elitist" concepts of art. Availability of cultural products has grown exponentially in recent years. He states: "We need to be able to make our choices for participation in the arts, based on artistic presentations that are meaningful and will have a lasting impact ... the works we choose to interact with calm or stimulate us, and encourage us to reflect or to distance ourselves from oppressive reality."

Brault organizes No Culture, No Future into three sections: Culture as a Forward-Looking Sector for the Future; Culture as an Essential Dimension of the Human Experience; and Culture as a Horizon for a Metropolis: Montreal as a Case Study.

Confronting frequently held myths with realities, he weaves these parts together.

The detailed case study he presents, the 2007 Rendez-vous -- Montréal Cultural Metropolis, is compelling. He discusses the five key lessons learned: Content first; consensus building; properly analyzing economic circumstances; relying on the support of social networks, and eradicating cynicism in relationships with elected officials. The event's achievement was "democratizing by mobilizing citizens."

Nationally, this case study is inspiring, beginning what could become a national trend. Montreal's success is the genesis of Canada's 2010 Culture Days planned for September.

The bond between business and art exists outside large metropolitan centres. By empowering citizens through the arts to engage in future municipal planning and removing the barriers between the "high" arts and "popular" arts, Brault contends the future of our communities will be increasingly secure.

His call to arms is contagious: "Art and culture cannot save the world but can help change it."

Arts and culture define our civilizations, past and present. Now may we heed Brault's urgency: "Art's power to transform and enchant is gaining ground ... culture is the future."

Brault's blueprint should inspire all cultural and civic leaders to be vocal and actively engaged in that future, understanding the power of art to transform.

Pat Bovey, FRSA, art historian and former director of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, is an art consultant who teaches Canadian cultural policy at the University of Winnipeg.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 12, 2010 H10