Cynthia’s Thoughts on Arts Funding

Recently, Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper remarked that the arts were a “niche issue.” Some $45 million have been cut from funding and he even went as far as saying that “ordinary folks don’t care about the arts.” Oh really? The arts aren’t just about gallery openings, galas and symphonies. It is much more than that. For example, many cultures are preserved by storytelling that is passed on from generation to generation. Is that not art? We can’t just dismiss storytelling as something “folksy” and therefore not worth funding. It should be kept going. What about using technology to create art? This is something that actually could potentially bring in big business. Or, is it no longer “art” in this case? The arts need to be part of our everyday lives. Enough of it has been cut from schools, and little has been done to the curriculum so that arts are integrated to other subjects taught.

Perhaps if people saw the arts as something worth funding, as something innovative, then there’d be more money. It’s likely due to a disconnect between artists and the government and private sector – people who fund the arts, because artists tend to be non-traditional, less disciplined people. There are a lot of business people who see artists as “lazy” because they often take a long time on their creations. They also look down on artists because they think the artists’ work does not create value. In a way, this perception is not totally wrong because artists do not consider anything that is created for commercial purpose “art”,

Science and technology is increasingly touted as being better than “frilly” subjects. There are so many programs out there that promote science and technology, especially for girls, while others, especially the arts, have been ignored. While yes, technology makes the world go ’round (and have so since the dawn of time), but what kind of world would this be if we aren’t taught to enjoy the arts? Don’t get me wrong. I love technology. I wouldn’t be in the online magazine business if I didn’t. However, it does not mean that technology and art are mutually exclusive. Loving technology doesn’t mean that we should ignore arts. We can’t be a world of only unsophisticated geeks, can we? And certainly we aren’t really a country full of (as US VP candidate Sarah Palin puts it) “Joe six-packs and hockey moms.” Because it would be sad if we were.