We are proud to repost this blog from Arts Education specialist Glen Meskell which mentions Peshkar’s current #ourteenageyears project.
Arts and Culture being removed from UK education system and arts audiences are mostly white, middle class. As discussed in the recent Warwick Commission Report:http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/feb/17/arts-and-culture-systematically-removed-from-uk-education-system
NO surprises there then. With a focus on main subjects in our current education system arts subjects are becoming less of a priority for schools sadly.
Although there are changes to GCSE arts subjects currently - to try and make them more “rigorous’ - is this really the way to engage young people in the arts? Is it the only way? Is it the correct way?
Engaging the Audience
The worrying part of this report isn’t the depletion of arts subjects in schools, although that is worrying, it is the engagement of audiences not changing from the traditional middle class and white. I see a lot of work going on in many organisations, including ones I’ve worked with, who try to bring the arts to communities from poorer backgrounds - some of it good work. The majority of this is through eduction. Which is great. Young people from poorer backgrounds it is sometimes their first and only engagement with the arts through education.
But in that structure of education can the arts really inspire a young person to go on to be a consumer of the arts? I’m not making a statement there that it can’t, I’m asking the question. Do we perhaps need to engage young people from lower economic backgrounds with arts and culture outside of education more. Do we need to find more innovative ways to engage audiences, all audiences?
When I was younger I wanted to be an actor, my first engagement with acting and theatre was through school. Through that engagement in school I ended up studying the subject and going on to having a career in the arts. But am I an audience member for theatre? No not really, I occasionally go the theatre because of my job and never as a genuine audience member.
As an audience member it is the visual arts where I am the biggest consumer (and museums next). As a child I was engaged in visual arts through a cool community project, in my neighbourhood in Skelmersdale, where a play area was painted by professional artist with requests from the kids in the neighbourhood. Chatting to those artists they encouraged me to visit the Walker Gallery and Tate in Liverpool. So I did, I still go back now at least twice a year or more. It was exciting, it was real, it was something I could really connect to. And still connect to now. All of it done, not through education or school, but through being able to see an artist at work in my neighbourhood, on my turf.
#ourteenageyears
Currently I’m keeping an eye on a project by Peshkar Productions in Oldham called #ourteenageyears which is really connecting up with young people (and some oldies) in an estate in Oldham, where they are connecting with artists. The number of young people coming to those sessions, from lower economic backgrounds, is huge. Why? It’s on their turf, it’s about them, it’s not in education / it’s not school? Who knows but I bet in years to come those young people become our audiences of the future because of workshops and programmes like that. There’s a real quality on engagement happening. When you see that quality in action it is a pleasure to see.
So in conclusion. Arts subjects are really important in schools, it can really help young people explore a lot about their world, history and help them be guided into careers and academia. But I feel if we are really striving for arts and cultural audiences from lower economic backgrounds for the future we perhaps need to start developing innovative and simple engagement projects on those communities own turf. There are lots of examples and the arts sector needs to start sharing these models and hopefully in ten years we will start to see a more varied and diverse audience for the arts.
Glen Meskell is a freelance arts education specialist. You can read more of his blog posts at http://glenartmes.tumblr.com/ and follow him on twitter @glenmeskell
