Arts in Crisis.
Eva Jackson
Arts in Crisis.
The Arts are crucial to the well-being of society and must be funded. From the beloved theme song of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ sounding melodically from your TV on a Saturday evening, to your favourite cast in the films you love to watch at the cinema or stream on Netflix, we all reap benefits from a flourishing Arts industry.
The average person watches twenty-two-and-a-half hours of TV a week, while also managing to fit in around eighteen hours of listening to their favourite tunes. As a society, we look to the Arts for entertainment and inspiration. But how is it that this industry that is so loved at the same time so neglected when it comes to funding?
The Arts sector has thrived in recent years and we have all benefited. The cultural sector added £10.8bn to the UK economy in 2016 and was widely perceived as one of the fastest expanding parts of the UK economy. As the NCA (National College of Arts) describes it, the Covid-19 crisis has brought the sector, “to its knees”. Many companies in the creative industries have suffered disastrous blows to their viability while the vast majority of freelancers are without employment. Previously flourishing theatres and performing academies have become ghost establishments. The passions inspired by emotive performances and imaginative works of art have been stifled by the economic cataclysm produced by the pandemic. Could this mark the beginning of the end of the UK’s creative industries?
Even before the global crisis, funding for the arts was inconsistent. According to a survey by the National Campaign for the Arts, compiled in association with the Creative Industries Federation (CIF) and King’s College London, public funding for the arts per head of population has fallen by 35% since 2008. Countless artists, poets, designers, writers and performers have found themselves unemployed, frantically searching for other work while still attempting to pursue their dreams. And the situation has been worsened dramatically by the circumstances of lockdown forced on us by covid-19.
One of the earliest large scale measures put in place was a major exhibition, ‘Artemisia’, at the National Gallery in London. The exhibition was planned to open on April 4th but had to be postponed because the artwork meant to be on display could not be transported from Italy and the US. The result was a massive loss of revenue. This was followed by the cancellation of large scale literary gatherings such as the Hay Literature festival in Wales. Peter Florence, the director of Hay festival, told the Guardian newspaper, “As an organisation we now face a stark reality… whatever you can spare will make a big difference. Every donation adds up.”
Making matters worse, there has been a 35% drop in city centre footfall over recent years, a figure that worsened to a dramatic 80% as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. This has left various buskers, mimes, musicians and other performers who rely predominantly on street performance in an increasingly desperate situation.
This is alongside the 15,000 theatrical performances cancelled within the first 12 weeks of lockdown, resulting in over £303 million in lost box office revenue. All theatres, are largely dependent on ticket sales alongside received income from refreshment sales, both of which currently remain predominantly stagnant. The UK festival and live events sector has been hit just as badly hit. The Association of Independent Festivals has estimated that 92% of its annual events “face permanent collapse”.
The Arts sector is vital for a vibrant and thriving society. Not only do the Arts have an impressive record in helping to revitalize neighbourhoods, they are also a lucrative resource for the tourism industry. It is a well-established fact that public investment in the Arts not only boosts tourism, it can also serve as a foundation for attracting investment from corporations seeking to improve their public profile. The result is an industry that drives wider employment. The ‘Creative Industries Council’ reveals there was an estimated 89,000 UK jobs in museums, galleries and libraries in 2018 and an estimated 296,000 UK jobs in music, performing and the visual arts.
As a society, we owe it to ourselves to save the Arts.