Funds a shot in arm for arts

FUNDING for the arts is never easy to come by, with creative organisations regularly put through the wringer to prove why they are worthy of taxpayers’ hard-earned money.

It is always a balancing act trying to weed out frivolous flights of fancy from people who think they deserve state-subsidised sponsorship purely by virtue of their self-professed creativity, while also acknowledging the enormous contribution art makes to society.

It is the glue that holds us together and, as they say, life without art is no life at all.

The creative and enterprising folk at the Centre of Contemporary Arts are rightly celebrating after securing a State Government pledge to completely overhaul the facility, including setting up a $2.1 million incubator for indigenous performance art.

KickArts, in particular, has found itself up against the wall in recent years with a dark cloud hanging over its financial future.

The group’s director Justin Bishop must be breathing easy now that Arts Queensland has assured him funding would be maintained “for the foreseeable future”.

In an economic and political climate where the mere mention of arts funding often elicits a hysterical response from the “get a real job” crowd, keeping that constant source of money flowing is no mean feat.

The timing of the redevelopment is unfortunate, with the Cairns Performing Arts Centre still under construction until August.

Extra effort must be made to give the CoCA groups the space and resources to continue their good work in the interim. Chris Calcino chris.calcino@news.com.au