Support for festivals is part of a new arts 10-year plan
Providing support for Guernsey’s many artistic and cultural festivals is among the many ambitions of a new 10-year plan for the arts, to be published in the next few weeks.
Education, Sport & Culture announced earlier this month that the new strategy, which was presented to its committee in October, would be ready for publication by the end of January.
However, speaking on the first edition of the new, monthly Guernsey Press Arts Podcast, Guernsey Arts’ head of arts development Russ Fossey confirmed that the not-for-profit agency had been instrumental in developing the blueprint.
‘To be honest, that plan is our plan and it’s about to be published in the next two or three weeks,’ he said.
Among the strategies in focus is the promotion of the arts through digital media, including social media, video and film, the benefits of more art in public places, such as sculpture, murals and public performance spaces and the development of arts facilities.
Listen to the first edition of the Guernsey Press Arts Podcast
In addition, Mr Fossey highlighted the opportunities afforded by the Bailiwick’s rich cultural history and the sort of support that might be afforded in future to the organisers of the many festivals on the calendar.
‘It’s digging in a bit deeper with them, trying to find out the common challenges that festivals struggle with and seeing if we can come up with a support package that supports the festivals widely,’ he said.
‘The administration for festivals is very heavy and it’s done by volunteers – done on a volunteer basis but with very professional people across all the festivals. But it is a strain for them and it’s something that’s been highlighted. We haven’t got the resources to help them with administration, currently. That is an area that most of the festivals would like some support with.’
Guernsey Arts partnership development executive Louise Le Pelley expressed her excitement at the possibilities afforded by the new plan.
‘There are so many interesting initiatives that have been put in place for the Guernsey arts plan, which is looking at the next decade,’ she said.
These would include introducing public art initiatives and ‘events that we can bring over that will create a buzz on-island that will inspire our creatives, and actually generate revenue that we can put directly back into the arts community here’, she said.
Recent on-island efforts to make more of the legacy of artists such as Auguste Renoir and Victor Hugo were cited as examples of the sort of work that can inspire, while generating interest and income.
‘We’ve got lots of assets in Guernsey that we haven’t maximised,’ Mr Fossey said.
One asset that Guernsey Arts has recently maximised is its own website, which now seeks to promote a wide variety of artists and their work, as well as an ever-increasing number of events and exhibitions.
Mr Fossey said whereas there might have been one or two exhibitions on at any one time a few years ago, there had been six running concurrently last November, signifying both a very busy arts scene and a strong appetite for the arts in the community.
Stay tuned for new episodes of the Guernsey Press Arts Podcast every month, covering the full gamut of Guernsey's creative community.
