A final note on the Arts Commission's study The Politics of Art: Part tl, Ar- tists’ Forum at Spirals Cafe and analysis & implications of Arts Commission Facilities Study. ATE IN January, in an effort to establish what local artists consider necessary facilities on the North Shore, the North Vancouver Community Arts: Council hosted an Artist's Forum at Spirals Cafe on Lower Lonsdale. Apparently its objective in stag- ing this.event was to ensure that Phase 2 of the Regional Facilities - Study be a true reflection of the will and néeds of the arts com- munity and not just the contrived revelations of a consulting firm tailoring its investigations — whether by inadvertence or otherwise — to suit'the ends of. . those who employ it, in this case “the North Shore Arts Commission. ’.. The tenor of that gathering was immediately established when arts council director Richard Strachan ‘read a.list of observances recorded at the commission's Facilities Study’ “work session” in April cf”. . 1992. Tucked away in the next-- to-last appendix of the study, these . comments seemed to contradict “much ‘of what was proposed in the main body of the study.’ Accordi “present, that document put institu- tions before individual artists & arts ._ groups, and seemed to make the consolidation:and advancement of the commission itself the study's chief raison d’etre. 2 ~The Regional Facilities Study will undoubtedly stand:as the major ~S undertaking of the arts commis- >“ sion under its current administra- tion, and therefore warrants the ; following evaluation. ; ; __: lf we disregard its contents and survey the form and expression of ‘the study alone, we are struck by ‘sv its. most obvious fault. It is* ‘-.sneedlessly abstruse. ‘When it is not being annoyingly : 1! repetitive, it is dense with cross- . references that make its arguments _ almost impossible to follow. “Because the document is always conjecturing on non-specifics it is frustratingly vague and perplexing. _,. As one struggles with the study, . one harbors the suspicion that the complex verbiage and needless waffle were just so much flak sent up to disguise. its obvious impover- ishment. : . Regarding the study’s Needs _ Assessment Survey of North Shore Arts Groups upon which its rec- ommendations were, in part, bas- ed, there is evidence to indicate that very few of the groups listed seem to have been questioned in any depth if they were even ques- tioned at all. . Moreover, whether by oversight or intent, it ignores the relevance of thase it failed to acknowledge as “key groups.”” The ACTION group in West Vancouver is a prime example. Ultimately, the study seers to ‘reflect only what the arts commis: | nunc { MILIEU 926-5115 DOTS WE ing to many of the artists - Ron Falcioni ART REVIEW sion perceives to be the ends and means of cultural development on the North Shore. While the sheer bulk of the study would appear to indicate great strides have been iaken on the part of the arts commission, there is very little evidence to in- dicate that any real progress has been made. Because three distinct municipalities are involved, the study proposes that the North Shore be perceived as a single regional bedy with its three municipalities acting as & joint funding body and the arts com- mission functioning as coor- - dinator, Sor. All three arts centres would be organized as autonomous incor- porated sccieties with founding and operating agreements clearly defined with respect to municipality participation. All very logical and straightfor- ward, of course! But all of which raises the fol- lowing question: Why was it necessary to go to such expense just to reiterate the obvious and reformulate proven formulas? Is it not, in fact, the case that the _model presented above is, by and large, the very model typical of all _ such studies? After all, how else would such major public facilities _be developed, funded and operated? What also seems to have been ignosed here is the potential danger implicit in the bureaucratic centralization of power with . respect to the arts. There are no safeguards against costly self-ag- grandizement — or even philistinism! In the 1988 Cultural Plan, a mode! document the commission would have been wise to emulate, it was recommended the ‘‘Arts Commission be established and mandated to take a lead rale in the development and coordination of cultural resources.”’ But it was also recommended that “the existing two community arts councils either collectively or individually be further devel- oped as a key element of the ad- ministrative system.” Nowhere in the document pro- ‘ duced by the arts commission is there any acknowledgement of that fact. Indeed, no mention of the arts councils is made at all beyond their mere inclusion in the inven- tory of arts groups in Appendix D and their brief involvement in the study’s one and only Group Work Session. a The irony in all this is that while the arts commission has been engaged in expending thousands of dollars just to reconfirm the ob- vious and appease the politicians with the first half of this study, the art scene on the North Shore. has suffered casualties, : From the public's perspective, we have one-tenth of the entire: population of Greater Vancouver right here on the North Shore and we do not even have a2 respectable public art gallery in which to view local art. What we need here are people of vision and determination who can see through the protocol, cut the red tape and get down to - business. Moore. PAINTS NORTH SHORE @ DECORATING CENTRE Presents Color & Design for the S0s SEMINAR with Leslie Harrington (Head of Benjamin Moore's Design Dept.) Leslie illustrates basic ragging, dragging and dabbed layering techniques. She talks about glazes & colour combination and answers common design & problems. tt will be an exciting an informative evening! TUESDAY, MARCH 16/93 “F700PM. REGISTER EARLY ~ LIMITED SEATING TICKETS: $10.00 INCLUDES BOOK ST. PIUS HALL 4150 Mt. Seymour Road Our Annual Sale now on until March 6/93 Our knowledgeahle staff is ready to assist you 7.23 KG FOREMOST™, 4 LITRE JUG SUNSPUN™, 454 G LIMIT 1, OVER LIMIT 2.99 SUN-RYPE HANDIPAK, 6x250 ML PURE | APPLE JUIGE | BETTY CROCKER, 110 G “ASSORTED _ KOALA SPRINGS, 750 ML FLAVOURED MINERAL WATER ASSORTED ABC ORIGINAL, & LITRE LAUNDRY Neb DISCOUNT LIFT TICKETS Midweek Ski Tickets | . SAVE UP TO °5° not valid March 13-21, 1993 MEE 47TH AND LONSDALE, | ‘NORTH VANCOUVER » Prices in affect until closing Saturday, March 6/93, while stocks last. . We reserve the right to limit quantities.