Career Planning

Drawing from her own experience, Dian Marie Bridge of the Playwrights Guild of Canada says a lot of administration staff in arts organizations are artists themselves, trying to make ends meet financially with a steady nine-to-five job, granting themselves access to their art, while helping to pay the bills.
As discussed in the second group of the Artists and Creators workshop, increased focus must be put on career planning for artists, as well as "educating the artists in what the issues are," when it comes to cultural policy, she says. A major focus of the workshop was looking at the lack of access to training and development for artists, which are crucial for developing a functioning artistic society. The group agreed that this must include providing access to adequate and affordable facilities for artists to craft their work, while at the same time providing them the required tools of their trade.
Many members of the group feared that emerging artists and those coming out of university are unaware of many issues in cultural policy and are not properly equipped to enter the workplace as an artist. Many of these issues are closely linked, showing a need for training.

Jessica Rose