Ausbuy

Cultural Policy

July 22nd, 2007

“A living national culture empowers ordinary citizens. The more individuals are actively involved in maintaining and recreating that culture, the more vigorous it becomes.”

Stephen Crabbe, ABC Interview

Ausbuy believes that Australian culture is vitally important to the health of the nation and equally as important as Australian business. Our icons, images and the way we see ourselves is inextricably linked to our culture, and in the modern world it has become too often the case that for a culture to thrive it needs support and protection, just as our companies do.

At present Australia has federal and state cultural funding bodies and our artists rely on subsidies and grants from these funding bodies. This is for a number of reasons, but mainly because, with a population of 20 million we cannot hope to recover costs spent on some of the arts. For example, feature films in America are released to an audience of 290 million where profits can be recouped domestically through attendance at the cinema. Australia does not have the population to make it realistic in this country, so to make a feature with a similar budget producers must rely on assistance from the Film Finance Corporation.

Australia is also geographically a long distance from other English speaking countries, so touring plays and exhibitions becomes prohibitively expensive without assistance. For example, a play written and produced in Germany can tour domestically and then throughout Switzerland, Austria and other neighbouring German speaking provinces without huge expense. An Australian play would have to travel to the US or the UK to obtain a larger audience.

Funding for the arts is not a uniquely Australian expectation. Most countries in the world have some government assistance to develop and enhance their culture. Even in America quirky, subversive or unconventional productions would never happen without assistance from outside the major production houses or traditional arts patrons.

Some politicians and economists seem to fail to realise the input the arts makes our economy. The arts and cultural industries contribute around 2.5% of Australia’s domestic production of goods and services, valued at some $20 billion annually. They are similar in size to the home building industry. Just over 250,000 Australians are employed in the cultural sector, which represents 3.3% of the total Australian workforce. Altogether, 157,000 people work in a cultural occupation as their main job and a further 98,000 work in cultural industries in a non-cultural occupation. The funding that the government provides the arts is not a handout but an investment in an industry like any other.
[1]

The importance of a strong cultural identity is not just important for Australia’s citizens. It is also important to business, tourism and trade as it contributes to our international reputation as sophisticated, vibrant and progressive. We need an interesting and well-developed culture to be considered a world-class nation to which people wish to visit and invest, which further generates wealth.

Ausbuy believe the government needs to put more support into the cultural funding bodies, at both state and federal level. We also need to develop the philanthropic movement as another source of funding.

Our government sees the huge importance sport plays to our nation’s identity, and Ausbuy agrees sport is fundamentally important to our image and lifestyle. However, sport receives many millions more in government funding that the arts. There have certainly not been as many, if any, government reviews into sport funding as there have been into the arts in recent years.

Ausbuy believes we need to extend the tax incentives for private donations to the arts.

The Australia Council should be able to develop policy and make funding decisions without having to follow government guidelines or election promises. Galleries and museums should elect their own boards and committees. Politicians should leave artistic decisions to artists and artsworkers.

As well as training and supporting our artists in their artmaking, Ausbuy believes it would also be beneficial to train these artists in market development, self promotion and publicity in order to empower themselves to secure funding, patronage and commercial interest.

Government should stipulate to developers that all new developments must expend a percentage of their budget on public artworks within the development, whether they be outdoor sculptures, mosaics or paintings in the lobby. This will build opportunities for local artists.

Whilst developing new means of expression, it is also vitally important we preserve our cultural heritage, indigenous culture and traditions as well as our architectural heritage, archives and historical objects.

Our government must see the arts as a valuable part of our economy which brings funds into our country whilst enlivening our community. Think of the Renaissance when Europe was thriving economically at the same time as it was artistically.

[1] Information provided by the Australia Council

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