Arts Fundraising in Europe VS North America

Photo credit: Tristram Kenton

You may find this NY Times article interesting: Courting Donors, Finding Freedom .

NB. This article seems awkwardly written, as though it's been heavily edited. But in any case, the author touches on a number of points relevant to modern not-for-profit arts funding. Essentially it claims that American-style private funding results in "accountability": for management and for "results" (is the theatre full or half full?). It sort of makes me laugh too, because it describes the "comeuppance" of uppity Europeans who thought their fine art was too good to go begging at the corporate coffers. "Ha ha!" the article says, "See? We knew you'd give in eventually!"

In terms of state funding, Canada sits on the scale somewhere between the US and Europe, which is to say that some organizations here think they have the worst of all possible worlds. Not only do they have to fundraise corporately (which takes time and money), but the corporate pickings are slimmer because we do not have the same history or compulsion towards corporate largesse as in the US(the Fords, the Guggenheims, etc). Additionally, they spend a significant amount of time trying to ply funds from the extensive government arts funding agencies: the Canada Council, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, etc. Many times as I slave over yet another grant to a foundation or a council I wonder how many countless hours of creation have been funnelled into grant writing instead at a significant expense to smaller arts companies.

This debate could go on and on. Should we have any non-profit arts organizations at all? Should the government standardize all grant writing (actually they are in the process of standarding financials nationally and provincially thanks to a NetGain project)? Should organizations that do dance spend less time justifying why their organization does "good", "worthy" and "relevant" dance in words (an officer at the Canada Council actually just told us there is a new peer evaluation process for dance)? Why do some countries have a vibrant "culture" and minimum state investment in it (much less a system of according funds)? Is high culture even relevant? If the work has little to no audience, should tax payers fund it?

A can of ol' worms.