Arts Council will not fund festivals

Press, 7 March 1984, Page 1

Arts Council will not fund festivals

Christchurch could not expect to get Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council funds for future arts festivals, said the council’s chairman, Sir Michael Fowler, in Christchurch last evening. Sir Michael said that the Arts Council would not fund any local festivals. Its role, as the distributor of the New Zealand taxpayers’ contribution to the arts, was to support events of national significance. “Apart from the allocations to regional arts councils, the small amount of money we have has to be spent for all New Zealanders,” he said. The aim of festivals like the Christchurch Festival was for local communities to encourage their own artists. They had to depend on local support. Sir Michael was in Christchurch to open “Paper-

chase,” an “omnibus” exhibition of works on paper by New Zealand and overseas artists. It is on show at the Robert McDougall Art Gallery as part of the festival After the opening he said that he was disappointed that the exhibition was not being taken to such places as Nelson, Oamaru, and Dunedin. “Christchurch people belly-ache all the time about not getting international exhibitions to the South Island, yet they could not get this one to Nelson and Oamaru,” he said. The exhibition was of national significance and it had taken a great deal of expertise to mount. With more forethought and more support from local bodies, the exhibition could have been taken on a tour of South Island centres. A local transport com-

pany could have been asked to support the venture and in those circumstances the Arts Council would be prepared to give more financial aid.

During the exhibition’s official opening, the Mayor of Christchurch, Sir Hamish Hay, said that the Robert McDougall Art Gallery was grateful for Arts Council support, particularly for the purchase of new works and the expansion of facilities. “I do not know whether the festival organisers are quite so enthusiastic about the financial support that they have had from the Arts Council,” he said. Sir Hamish said that the organisers could be even more critical of the lack of support from local bodies in Christchurch. He hoped that situation would change for future festivals. Although the Arts Council

has refused to fund the Christchurch Festival, the Southern Regional Arts Council has provided about $lO,OOO in cash and guarantees against loss. The Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council made a small contribution direct to the “Paperchase” exhibition. After the opening, Sir Michael said that private sector support for the arts had increased 1000 per cent to $l.l million in the year he had been chairman. One of his main aims was to attract more support from individuals and families, trusts, corporations, and companies. He was trying to show that private sector groups could get a return on their investment in the arts. “What convinces the Government to support the arts in its various forms is when others do it,” he said.