How ever you are making your way there Greyfriars Church is the place to be next Wednesday for the Creative D+G - Model for the Future Conference. 160 people from all around Scotland have booked to come - it is going to be a big day for our sector in our region
Details are being unveiled of a transformation in arts
leadership for Dumfries and Galloway – which could provide a model for other
parts of Scotland.
The new approach will be highly flexible, giving artists
and arts organisations a powerful voice in shaping the future. It is also
designed to bring wider access to the arts – enriching lives and giving new
opportunities – despite the economic downturn and the challenge of winning
funds.
Around 150 delegates from across the region, and
elsewhere in Scotland, will discuss the changes at a day-long conference
entitled A Vision for the Future: A model
for change in creative D&G, in Dumfries on Wednesday, 13 November.
One aim is to build a partnership of events, festivals
and projects to make 2015 a year of celebration of the arts in D&G.
The most far-reaching changes involve setting up
groups, representing the creative community, supported by a small core of
professionals, which will provide strategic leadership for the sector and play
a vital role in organising commissions and lobbying.
The new approach results from the Fresh Start for the
Arts process, which was set up following the collapse of the dgArts regional
arts agency. The aim has been to find an alternative model for arts leadership,
which gives a leading role to artists, is sustainable and is light on
bureaucracy.
Rabbie is first in the queue at Greyfriars |
Cathy Agnew, Chair of the Dumfries and Galloway Arts
Partnership, said: “This is a genuinely fresh start for the arts in our region
– based on an entirely new model that puts artists, arts organisations,
communities and audiences at the centre of what we do.
“In future there will be far more opportunity for those
who are ambitious to see our arts sector flourish to come together, agree
priorities, and make things happen.
“Dumfries and Galloway is an extraordinarily creative
place and we are bringing about a step change which will allow more people to
enjoy and be involved with the arts. We will also be working hard to raise the
profile of the region’s arts at a national and international level.
“This conference is a chance for the region, and
delegates from elsewhere, to find out more about what we hope to achieve. With
the arts facing rapid change, and a harsh funding environment, we are getting a
great deal of interest from other parts of Scotland, many of which are keen to
learn from our model as they seek to create a sustainable future for the arts
in their own areas.”
The event itself will feature a range of speakers,
including Janet Archer CEO of Creative Scotland, plus a variety of live
performances and presentations.
The new structure for the arts in D&G (which
follows successful pilot projects) will see a voluntary Chamber of Arts take
the lead role in representing the sector and will develop a regional arts
programme.
Regional and Area Arts Hubs will co-ordinate activity
across D&G and will be supported by a small core of skilled professionals.
Details of the new model for the arts in
D&G are contained in the background document which accompanies this
release.
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