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Labour's vision of arts for all
Louise Jury, Chief Arts Correspondent10 Jan 2008
All publicly-funded arts companies should open their doors free for a week to encourage new audiences.
Sir Brian McMaster, former head of the Edinburgh International Festival, made the proposal in a review of cultural policy published today.
The report, Supporting Excellence In The Arts, was ordered by James Purnell when he became Culture Secretary last summer. The aim was to investigate how public subsidy could get the best results in the arts.
Unveiling the findings today, Sir Brian proposes practical measures alongside a commitment to excellence and innovation.
Every arts organisation should have two artists on its board to provide "the appropriate expertise," he advised, adding: "The move in recent years towards boards encompassing a variety of skills has in some places been at the expense of artistic expertise."
A "knowledge bank" of experts should be set up to help talent spot for - and influence the appointment of - arts leaders and offer support to funding bodies. Ten organisations with "the most innovative ambition" should receive 10-year funding to help them succeed, said Sir Brian.
In a shake-up of how to identify excellence, there should be a further move away from top-down targets.
Cultural bodies should be judged by a system of peer review alongside selfassessment, he said. His recommendationsare likely to be welcomed by practitioners who have questioned the qualifications of those currently making funding decisions.
But Sir Brian warned: "Where organisations are failing, funding bodies must intervene strongly." The notion that the arts were not for everyone "must be tackled head-on," he added.
The free week would be a start. But the shake-up in thinking could mean a "true golden age" ahead, according to Sir Brian. "We could be on the verge of another Renaissance," he said.
The report was welcomed by Mr Purnell, who has already accepted the importance of arts for their own sake. "This review will mark a real shift in how we view and talk about the arts in this country," he said.
"The time has come to reclaim the word 'excellence' from its historic elitist undertones and to recognise that the very best art and culture is for everyone."
It was also time to trust Britain's artists and organisations to create the best work they could, he added. "To do this we must free artists and cultural organisations from outdated structures and burdensome targets, which can act as millstones around the neck of creativity," said Mr Purnell.
