SINGAPORE — To widen the reach of arts events in the Republic, the National Arts Council (NAC) will look to improve the quality of both free and ticketed events, while sustaining their quantity.

More public spaces, including those in the heartlands, will also be freed up for the arts, the NAC said on Friday (Oct 19) as it unveiled its latest five-year blueprint.

The SG Arts Plan, which charts the direction for the arts sector from 2018 to 2022, will see more public art trails and community art displays created together with other public agencies, non-arts agencies, corporates and intermediaries.

NAC chief executive officer Rosa Daniel also said that driving audience growth would be another key priority.

"What we want to do is ensure that the audiences are there. So basically, to raise the demand to meet the supply. Rather than a strategy where you prune back supply, which isn't going to help us to grow the arts scene,” she said.

MORE HELP FOR FREELANCERS

Among NAC's key proposals include setting up a new resource centre next year — both online and a physical centre — to support the needs of freelance arts professionals.

A survey in 2016 showed that about half of those who work mainly in the arts do so on a freelance basis.

"Freelance arts workers contribute significantly to the arts sector in myriad ways, and in the age of the gig economy, their numbers will grow... There is concern that freelance arts workers may not have sufficient support to protect their interests in matters concerning contracts, long-term financial planning, and so on," the NAC noted.

"Through this centre, we will enhance access to shared services and information, as well as provide learning and development opportunities," the council added.

Besides the centre, the NAC will also encourage employers in the arts sector to adopt the tripartite standard on contracting self-employed persons when engaging freelance workers, which was developed by the Ministry of Manpower, the National Trades Union Congress, and the Singapore National Employers Federation. The standard aims to foster fair and progressive employment conditions for freelancers.

BOOSTING INTEREST IN THE ARTS

Arts research will also be beefed up, said Mr Kenneth Kwok, assistant chief executive of planning and engagement at the NAC. These include a study into the size of the professional arts community in Singapore.

Mr Kwok said: "How do you define who is an arts professional? For example, some would consider a wedding singer to be one, but others wouldn't, so we are having an exercise to be very clear what it means to be an arts professional."

And while NAC said that the arts scene has improved for the past five years, only 37 per cent of Singapore residents said in the 2017 Population Survey on the Arts that they were interested in the arts.

"The arts continue to rank among the lowest priorities for Singaporeans, relative to issues such as job security and education. There is concern that Singaporeans will thus be less likely to pay for arts and cultural activities," the report noted.

Mr Low Eng Teong, assistant chief executive of sector development (Arts) at the NAC, also shared that only 54 per cent of Singaporeans have attended at least one arts event in the past year. Free events are a low barrier to get more people to be interested in the arts, he said.

While noting that ticketed events are also important, Mr Kwok said that there is a larger social value and commitment to make arts accessible through free events.

"The reality is that will always be some people who, for some reasons — location, cost, time, mobility issues — are not able to travel down to the Esplanade or National Gallery. We owe it to all Singaporeans to make sure that arts is accessible to all," said Mr Kwok.

A pilot programme will be introduced to provide training for artists, musicians, and marketing consultants with a focus on programme design and facilitation to reach people who do not regularly attend ticketed shows.

MORE FUNDING

On the issue of funding, NAC aims to increase private cash donations from corporate donors to registered charities in the arts and heritage sector through initiatives such as the Cultural Matching Fund, where the Government matches dollar-for-dollar the amount of private donations raised. Last year, S$20.5 million was poured into the Cultural Matching Fund.

In 2016, government grants accounted for 62.4 per cent of arts and heritage charities’ annual receipts in 2016, which the NAC said "underscores the need to grow philanthropy and broad-based support among Singaporeans".

Besides supporting the national visual arts cluster, such as the National Gallery and Singapore Art Museum, in taking their programming outdoors, the NAC will also work with partners like the People's Association to involve the larger community in arts projects.

To expand the reach of Singapore artists overseas such as at the Venice Biennale, Internationale Tanzmesse and Art Basel (Hong Kong), the NAC will also work with public sector agencies that promote Singapore overseas, such as the Singapore Tourism Board, Economic Development Board and Overseas Singaporean Unit.

"This will ensure consistent international marketing and branding of Singapore’s arts and culture sector, as well as greater coordination in areas such as international digital and social media marketing programmes, media outreach and familiarisation programmes," the NAC said.

The SG Arts Plan was created after nearly a year of consultations with partner agencies, cultural institutions and the arts community, with over 40 engagement sessions. It builds on the Arts and Culture Strategic Review, which was launched in 2012, and will be reviewed every five years. 

Sign up for TODAY's WhatsApp service. Click here:
 

Sign Up