FUCK THE ARTS
FUCK THE ARTS
Well some of them anyway. I’ve worked in the arts for over half of my life as a freelancer, desperately scraping a living where I can. In that time, I reckon there hasn’t been a single week in which I haven’t been told how ‘essential’, ‘brave’ or ‘necessary’ my work is. That probably sounds like bragging but as most artists know, compliments like this are just the lube the gatekeepers use when they want us to prostrate ourselves. In reality, hyperbolic flattery doesn’t pay the rent and is almost never backed up with any practical support or financial help, at least not in a meaningful or consistent way.
The #savethearts hashtag has been ubiquitous across my socials over the last few days and I get it, of course, I do. This government, perhaps more than any in my lifetime is one that fails to see our value. Of course, they do. They’re a bunch of plutocratic sociopaths that care more about Weatherspoon’s than Theatre because it’s all about revenue to them. Historically, artists have amplified the voices of the disenfranchised and that sort of kindness stands in direct opposition to Tory ideology. We have to assume they’re going to be consistent and that any support they offer will be reluctant and biased towards structures that serve them. I suspect lots of venues and organisations are going to go under, so all we can do is campaign for the good ones. Because let’s face it, loads of arts venues and organisations suck. Yet here we are, fighting for them like a gaslit partner in a coercive relationship. Terrified that if they leave us, we’ll have nothing.
Bollocks.
We are the asset. Not them.
Ask yourself this: Does the venue you’re advocating for offer anything more than an established name and some space/equipment? Has the support they’ve offered you been about facilitating your art or have they just created hoops for you to jump through? Are they loyal? Have they taught you anything useful? Enabled your practice? Have they marketed shows you’ve made for them? Are their diversity strategies driven by staff from diverse backgrounds? Are their engagement strategies driven by people with lived experience? Are they box tickers or do they really give a shit?
Do they give a shit about you?
I’ve worked with venues that have taken twenty percent of my income for “producing” a show then proceeded to book hardly any tour dates, wasted money, sent us to the wrong town on the wrong day and pissed off tour venues so badly that we’ve arrived to face angry tirades. In 2011 I built a monthly performance night for one of Britain’s oldest theatres, at the time I was being horrifically harassed and was eventually hospitalised. When I got out of the hospital, I found out that the theatre had employed the person that hospitalised me. To be clear, this person had told me they wanted me dead and had a really good crack at trying to achieve that goal. I explained the situation to the theatre and they couldn’t have cared less. I had to give up my job, my home, my city and my support network at a time when I was really vulnerable. I’ve done literally hundreds of jobs that have nothing to do with my creative practice but fulfil some whim dreamt up by a room full of people trying to justify their roll in the arts. I've done hundreds of jobs that have pulled me away from my creative practice and my career goals.
Some venues exploit the stories of marginalised people with no thought of the consequences. Some venues lie about their commitment to access and outreach simply to secure funding. Some venues try to bully you if you don’t doff your cap obsequiously enough. Some venues treat artists like refried dog-shit and because there are so few opportunities for us, we take it. We take it because they have all the money and power and kudos.
Well, now they’re as vulnerable as we are so it’s time for us to step up.
Firstly, we need to fight for the good guys. Who are the organisations that have treated you decently? Had a genuinely positive impact on your career? Not just because of their name and cultural position but because of their positive practice. We need to advocate for them. Sing their praises to the people that matter. Unlimited is one of the best arts organisations I’ve ever worked with, they mean it. I’ve never felt so nurtured. Same goes for Metal. Individuals like Matt Panesh in Morecambe deserve support for trying really hard to change the cultural landscape of an entire town (a town devoid of arts venues and funding) with not nearly enough support. Same goes for Nell Leyshon in Boscombe and Diane Dever, Susanna Howard and Cheryl Pierce in Folkestone. These people care and it shows.
Secondly, I come from a DIY culture and I’ve spent a good decade wondering what we need a lot of these bloated venues for. There’s empty space everywhere. Instead of grovelling to prohibitive venues for crumbs, let’s form collectives with like-minded artists. Let’s occupy spaces that suit our work and our needs. Let’s serve communities in a way that’s sensitive and responsive to the people and environment, instead of blindly following edicts passed down by box tickers who often don’t have a clue. How many big organisations have you worked with that are staffed by people that don’t understand the communities they claim they’re desperate to engage? Is it loads? I bet it loads.
Let’s take this opportunity to restructure. Let the useless behemoths die, give the funding to well-organised groups of artists that can take their art to the people.
So okay, fuck the arts is a bit misleading. Let’s change the arts. Let’s give the means of production to people who have the artists and communities best interest at heart, and let the dinosaurs perish.