Arts as medicine
April 23, 2020
Host: Tara Taylor. Guest: Marc Almon
This topic couldn’t have been more timely, as just five days earlier, nearby communities had experienced a horrific mass shooting. And this while coping with the anxieties and quarantines of COVID-19.
Tara began with a minute of silence for the victims and their families, followed by a prayer and her own singing of “Count on Me.” She then invited Marc to introduce himself. He began by expressing appreciation for this opportunity to come together during this challenging time, and to visualize and build a future that was more creative and compassionate. He described the arts as a beacon that could show how things could be, and that could provide leadership in encouraging others to see themselves as part of a bigger world.
Marc shared his background as film producer and arts advocate. He was lead producer of the acclaimed feature films WEIRDOS and BLACKBIRD, and his first television series CAVENDISH debuted on CBC TV in January 2019. Marc also co-founded and was first chair of Screen Nova Scotia. In 2015, he responded to cuts in the province’s film tax credit by helping orchestrate one of the greatest grassroots campaigns in the province’s history, with 6,000 rallying outside the legislature, a 35,000 signature petition, over 74 million twitter impressions and news headlines garnered across the country. He said, “we saw the power in coming together to resist these changes.” A majority government in the midst of tough budget decisions agreed to sit down with the advocates and work out a compromise.
In 2017, Marc founded Culture Link CIC with partner Rob Power to launch a $13 million 84,000-square-foot creative hub in downtown Halifax through one of the first community interest funds in Atlantic Canada, with 60% of profits going back to the community and assets staying in the community forever. The plans include a television studio (which has been completed) and phase two which include a concert hall, dance studio, cinema and office space for cultural non-profits, scheduled to open later in 2020.
Marc concluded by saying he felt blessed to be part of efforts that responded to threats to the creative community. They had been able to move past challenges and thrive by working together. His personal mission is to empower story-tellers and change-makers to find ways of coming together to create a better world for creators and artists.
Tara then spoke of her own inspiration for this topic. She recalled the headline of an April 3rd CBC Arts column by Amanda Parris: “Artists are getting us through COVID-19. Never question their value again.” The article continued, “This lockdown should be a wake-up call to all of us who are leaning on these creatives now: arts and culture needs to be an unwavering national priority.” Besides being on the Narrative Project team, Tara is Festival Director and co-creator of the Emerging Lens Cultural Film Festival which aims to educate, empower and inspire by honouring the influence of African Canadian and other cultural filmmakers.
Tara invited us to reflect together in breakout rooms and then share insights in the chat column. Read the sampling below. The entire transcript is here.
This pandemic time could help us create something new for artists and for everyone... a world where the arts are more a part of everyone's life, more appreciated as central and essential to our lives and that of society.
As a museum worker, I’m thinking about the opportunity to use public space to encourage people in local community to reflect, express emotions and experiences considering COVID-19 and recent shootings.
Creativity has power to create connection and common ground, irrespective of age, socio-economic background, gender, nationality, profession.
This pandemic has changed the way we must view the world and live our lives. Our conversations have inspired me to become more involved with the arts.
The arts are a way to connect from and to our hearts and spirits….as well as our bodies and our minds…
The arts open our heart space, hold potential as common ground, common language. Can bypass the rational mind, having to understand everything that is going on right now (in so much uncertainty), can provide comfort in “knowing”, understanding in a different way. A different kind of certainty. The rational mind also the most colonized intelligence, going to the heart can be healing, the realization that the heart and spirit are intact.
We are in a new reality. Let’s watch for the signs and how to connect to the heart strings through art to build a gentler world and our society’s relationship to it.
Our society doesn’t manage death very well — we’re afraid to talk about it, and we don’t tolerate emotional displays very well. Music and other arts offer us ways to articulate our grief and provide time and space when it’s OK to express emotions.
I've been lucky enough to maintain my job through this, so I've been reflecting on how I can help others through this time and have been buying products from local artists and friends. When this is all over, they will need this ongoing support. I'm going to try to find a way to regularly do this.
Stories—in all art forms—provide guidance and wisdom to help us navigate the changing world.
Art is a wonderful coping tool!
The importance of guaranteed livable income. Look at countries where artists are given a stipend not attached to particular project funding.
Watch excerpts from the recording.