SAA Bulletin – March 2017
In this issue…
- RSVP To Our Community Forum Reception in Rosthern
- 2017 – 2018 Provincial Budget: Meeting the Challenge
- Successful Swift Current Community Forum Luncheon
- EduArts Hub
- SAA and SCC Host Successful Reception at the HomeStyles Show
- Accessibility and Inclusivity in the Arts Symposium
- Saskatchewan Arts Board Releases Report on Independent Artists Program Review
- Call for Nominations – SaskCulture Board of Directors
- Common Weal: Call to Artists
- Seventh Poet Laureate Announced
- Common Threads: Weaving a Stronger Nonprofit Sector
- Supporting Canada’s creators a strong focus of #DigiCanCon consultation report
- The Canadian Arts Coalition participates in the 2017 Alternative Federal Budget
- Culture Days Board announces new Executive Director
- Saskatchewan Arts Alliance Board of Directors
RSVP To Our Community Forum Reception in Rosthern
In partnership with the Station Arts Centre, the Saskatchewan Arts Alliance is hosting a community forum reception on April 7 at 7 pm. We want to hear what matters to you and what is needed in your arts community. Feel free to bring friends or invite anyone you feel would be interested.
RSVP to 1-306-780-9820 or outreach@artsalliance.sk.ca
Station Arts Centre | April 7th | 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm | 701 Railway Ave. | Rosthern
As part of the reception, Dr. Ian McWilliams will discuss results from the Saskatchewan Partnership for Arts Research (SPAR) project “Understanding the Arts Ecology of Saskatchewan” – a four-year study of the provincial arts ecology seeking to better understand artists’ working conditions, connections, and networks. Dr. McWilliams will also be recruiting artists and residents who are interested in being part of a future case study of the Arts Ecology of Rosthern, Saskatoon, Prince Albert, and the surrounding area.
?2017 – 2018 Provincial Budget: Meeting the Challenge
On March 22, the Honourable Kevin Doherty, Minister of Finance, delivered the 2017 – 2018 Provincial Budget: Meeting the Challenge. In his address, Minister Doherty acknowledged that while the Government will “continue to invest in our arts community and continue to grow a creative economy, there will be reductions in those areas to help us meet the financial challenge.”
Those reductions include suspending the Main Street Saskatchewan program and eliminating the Culture on the Go and Community Infrastructure programs. Read more here.
Successful Swift Current Community Forum Luncheon
On March 25, the Saskatchewan Arts Alliance with the Art Gallery of Swift Current hosted a community forum luncheon. The successful event welcomed people from all over the South West District of Saskatchewan. Concerns discussed were the latest cuts in the provincial budgets and artist isolation. However, those in the attendance brought their positivity that included their success stories and new ideas for their communities.
EduArts Hub
On Tuesday, March 14th, the Saskatchewan Arts Alliance and the University of Regina co-hosted the Canadian Network for Arts and Learning (CNAL) “EduArts Hub” held in Regina. The hub was for anyone involved in arts and learning – artists, arts educators, academics, researchers and arts organizations. It included sessions on “Artful Practices on Storytelling” led by SAA board member and arts educator Kathryn Ricketts and workshop leaders Ashley Johnson, Shaun Horseman and Cortney Leonard. CNAL led discussions seeking input on the importance of arts education, and advocacy strategies. Larry O’Farrell, CNAL Chair and former UNESCO Chair for Arts and Learning, and PhD Candidate Tiina Kukkonen are writing a position paper for the Canadian Commission for UNESCO as a first step to reenergizing the Seoul Agenda. The Agenda articulates goals for the development of arts education.
While in Regina, the SAA and CNAL met with the Assistant Deputy Minister of Education, Rob Currie to discuss arts education in Saskatchewan and the SEOUL Agenda.
SAA and SCC Host Successful Reception at the HomeStyles Show
Hosted by the Saskatchewan Arts Alliance and the Saskatchewan Craft Council, a private reception of community leaders, businesses and artists celebrated the bringing together of the Fine Craft cultural industry, homebuilders and interior designers. The reception was held at the Saskatoon HomeStyles Show at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon on Saturday, March 11th.
Accessibility and Inclusivity in the Arts Symposium
Hosted by a consortium of arts educators and arts-based institutions in Regina, this symposium seeks to further explore the experience of disability as a cultural experience. Recognizing how the creation of art can be a way of reclaiming our power, a means of describing a future that centers the lives of people with disabilities, the event aims to create an open, transparent and accessible environment in which related questions will be discussed. For more information email Kathleen.Irwin@uregina.ca.
Mini-symposium – Theatre Department / Faculty of Media, Art and Performance
Wed. Apr. 12 | 9:00 to 4:30 in RC 176 at the U of R | Riddell Centre – Shubox and RC 176 Movement Studio in Theatre
For more information email Kathleen.Irwin@uregina.ca
Saskatchewan Arts Board Releases Report on Independent Artists Program Review
The Saskatchewan Arts Board began planning for a review of its Independent Artists program, which supports Saskatchewan professional artists as they pursue their creative work and careers, in early 2016.
A number of issues came up repeatedly in their review. The “What Next: Final Recommendations” document details the concerns that were raised during this review and speaks to the ways in which the Saskatchewan Arts Board will address these issues.
Call for Nominations – SaskCulture Board of Directors
SaskCulture is seeking volunteers for its Board of Directors. SaskCulture strives to build a culturally vibrant future in which all citizens of Saskatchewan individually and collectively, celebrate, value and support participation in and access to cultural experience. Positions to be filled include one, two-year term in Cultural Industries, Heritage, Métis and Membership at Large.
The complete application package for the SaskCulture Board is available on the SaskCulture website.
Common Weal: Call to Artists
Common Weal is requesting submissions from professional artists in any discipline for a three-month exploratory pilot project that addresses the topic of racism in our communities (locally and/or provincially). The objectives for this project are: a) to provide a voice for those who have experienced racism; b) to stimulate dialogue within society at large; c) to assess the viability of a year-long Artist-in-Residence program exploring this theme. Common Weal is interested in, but not limited to, projects that bridge the indigenous and newcomer communities. To read more.
Seventh Poet Laureate Announced
The Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild is delighted to announce that Brenda Schmidt of Creighton, SK is the new Poet Laureate of Saskatchewan. Brenda’s term will begin April 1, 2017 and will run until December 31, 2018. For more information.
Common Threads: Weaving a Stronger Nonprofit Sector
“Common Threads: Weaving a Stronger Non-profit Sector” is a FREE conference that will take place on June 9, 2017 at Luther College at the University of Regina. This second annual conference is co-hosted by VSSN and the Saskatchewan Non-profit Partnership (SNP) and will focus on new developments and challenges in advocacy, policy and engagement. Featuring Bruce McDonald (president and CEO, Imagine Canada), Dr. Cindy Hanson (Faculty of Education, University of Regina), Dr. Gloria DeSantis (founder of VSSN, Faculty of Justice Studies, University of Regina), and Jeph Maystruck (co-founder, Strategy Lab).
Travel subsidies are available, courtesy of the Community Initiatives Fund. Registration deadline is June 1, 2017. Space is limited – ensure your spot by registering here!
Supporting Canada’s creators a strong focus of #DigiCanCon consultation report
Feedback gathered through social media, in-person consultations and the DigiCanCon web portal has been compiled and released in the form of the Department of Canadian Heritage’s consultation report called What we heard across Canada: Canadian Culture in a Digital World.
The Canadian Arts Coalition participates in the 2017 Alternative Federal Budget
Once again, the Canadian Arts Coalition participated in the Alternative Federal Budget. The 2017 Alternative Federal Budget, entitled High Stakes, Clear Choices, is spearheaded by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
Each year, the CCPA creates the Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) as a “what-if” exercise. This exercise creates a Federal Budget that reflects a commitment to supporting key economic, social and environmental issues. The CAC encourages people to take a look at the policies and recommendations in the AFB – particularly the chapter on Arts & Culture (pages 37 to 41) before the release of the official Federal Budget on March 22, 2017.
?Culture Days Board announces new Executive Director
The Board of Culture Days is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Executive Director, Aubrey Reeves. Aubrey’s prior work experience includes her position as Executive Director, Ontario Culture Days from its launch in 2010 where she nurtured its growth and development from a fledgling alliance of the arts and culture sector into a thriving incorporated not-for-profit organization.
Saskatchewan Arts Alliance Board of Directors
Kelley Jo Burke – President
Marcus Miller – Vice President
Yvette Nolan – Treasurer
Joel Bernbaum – Secretary
James Hodges – Member at Large
Kaelen Klypak – Member at Large
Dr. Kathryn Ricketts – Member at Large
Leesa Streifler – Member at Large
The Saskatchewan Arts Alliance is a non-profit coalition of arts organizations that provides a collective voice for the arts in Saskatchewan. Established in 1984, SAA advocates on issues such as public funding of the arts, freedom of expression and artists’ working conditions.
