The Alliance was at City Hall on Tuesday to show our support for Vancouver 125, a celebration of the city’s 125th anniversary (which falls in 2011) that would have a strong arts component. It also gave us a unique opportunity to request Council’s support in lobbying the Province to reverse the cuts to the BC Arts Council. While there, we had the opportunity to follow the Council’s deliberations on what to do about the density bank.
Read MoreWe have just returned from a frank and productive meeting with Minister Krueger at his Vancouver office. It was an excellent opportunity to communicate the concerns of our community to the new Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Arts, and to offer to help him in trying to reverse the cuts to the BC Arts Council. He wanted everyone to know that both he and the Premier are both very committed to the arts, and that they will do their utmost to ensure that the community is not "hung out to dry" next year when the supplemental funding runs out.
Read MoreThis article was posted on the Globe and Mail's website today at 5:05pm EDT:
Read MoreAs you may know, there are sweeping changes happening to the Federal government's copyright legislation. The Government of Canada recently (and quietly) launched a consultation process that has included regional roundtables and town hall meetings. Unfortunately, the roundtable in Vancouver has come and gone, but there is an opportunity to weigh in on the issue online through the Copyright Consultation website. Here is what the website has to say:
Read MoreThe Alliance for Arts & Culture is thrilled to announce the appointment of Vancouver-born Kevin Dale McKeown to the position of Director of Communications. Kevin succeeds Peter Boychuk, who will be leaving the organization in August to pursue his MFA in Playwriting at the University of Victoria.
Read MoreAs most of you know by now, I am leaving the Alliance for Arts & Culture in August. I have the unique opportunity to return to my first love, theatre, by doing my MFA in Victoria under the tutelage of the incomparable Joan MacLeod, one of Canada's finest playwrights. Although I am saddened to leave the Alliance and my wonderful colleagues behind, I am very excited to begin this new chapter in my life.
Read MoreA big shout out to the many artists and arts organizations who have sent letters to Minister Krueger in the past few days. To all those organizations who haven't participated yet... now is the time to act. We all know how much we depend on the BC Arts Council, and how damaging the 40% cut will be to our organizations and artistic practice.
Read MoreHelp spread the word. Send this release to anyone you know in media. We need to make some noise on this issue!
Arts community extremely concerned by cuts to the BC Arts Council
The arts and cultural sector in British Columbia is facing an imminent crisis. The Service Plans for the next two years show a 40% reduction in funding for the BC Arts Council. The BC Arts Council is the largest funding body in the province; last year, more than 224 communities throughout British Columbia depended on it for support.
"The impact to the province will be devastating," said Amir Ali Alibhai, the Executive Director of the Alliance for Arts & Culture. "The BC Arts Council supports a sector that employs 80,000 people and generates $5.2-billion annually. It is bigger than the forestry and fishing industries combined. At a time when the government is doing everything they can to create and retain jobs, why are they implementing measures that will trigger layoffs and cause organizations to reduce programming?"
Read MoreIn June, Martha Rans, coordinator of the Artist legal Outreach program, attended the Open Video Conference held in New York. The conference was about online video technology and related public policy issues.
Here’s an interview with Brett Gaylor, the director and creator of RiP! A Remix Manifesto, which was screened at the OVC and is described by Macleans as "... a knockout. Rip is a dazzling frontal assault on how corporate culture is using copyright law to muzzle freedom of expression."
Read MoreAs you know, during the cabinet shuffle the Honourable Bill Bennett was supplanted by the Honourable Kevin Krueger, MLA for Kamloops-South Thompson, as Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Arts. We have written the following letter to Mr. Krueger, whose Ministry is facing a forty percent cut in the service plans for the next two years.
Read MoreNamed #9 in the Best 50 Culture Blogs on the Web by Feedspot
100-938 Howe Street
Vancouver BC V6Z 1N9
T. 604 681 3535
The BC Alliance for Arts + Culture is honoured to work on the traditional, unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, and 240 other Indigenous communities across BC.
©2023 BC Alliance for Arts + Culture. All rights reserved | Privacy Policy
