I attended my first arts conference in Dumfries and Galloway during my Independent Learning Week. I was one of about 150 artists and representatives of organisations from across Dumfries and Galloway and Scotland who attended the day-long event at Greyfriars Church in Dumfries. I found that it explored the change in the region’s strategic arts leadership, encouraging the creative sector to take a lead in its own affairs.
At the end of the conference, there was an “Open Space” set up where eleven questions were pitched for eleven different spaces in the church. It was up to the individual to join one of the eleven spaces to discuss the question they could enter or leave a discussion when they felt necessary. I found this experience fascinating – conversations were fast paced and since people were continually coming and going they naturally evolved. Some found this a distraction, due to focus being lost as the dynamics changed – but I couldn’t help relate those changes in the conversation to the nature of a contemporary arts practice anyway – a constant discussion taking place with yourself, your peers, your mentors, your friends and family, your strangers and your new faces giving you new perspectives. Although I remained part of the same conversation that concerned Inclusive Arts Practice in the region for the forty-five minutes, I found myself actively referring to my experiences on my placement. In this post, I want to share interesting moments of the conversation – what I define Inclusive Arts Practice to be, the need for it in Dumfries and Galloway and Creative Scotland’s New Youth Arts Strategy.
How do I currently understand Inclusive Arts Practice?
Inclusive: Open to anybody – Participation in creative activity is fundamental to well-being and should be available to all.
Art: A way for people to explore, reflect on and share individual and collective narratives – the story of who they are and how they make meaning in the world.
Practice: Actively Going and Doing.
Dumfries and Galloway’s need for Inclusive Arts Practice
Sadly, wheel chair and general accessibility was a major issue in the conference – which itself, exposes the obvious considerations that we need to start making back at home. I participated in a very passionate discussion about how we can promote Inclusive Arts Practice in our region and it was within this discussion that I was able to share moments of learning during my own placements with Paragon Music and Pan African Arts Scotland. Our question was, “How can we make arts accessible and participatory for those with disabilities?”
I would argue that there are numerous ways that this can happen. To make this clearer to understand, I have identified three areas: Language, Space and Opportunity.
Language: The conversation centred on the fact that we can make arts accessible and this can happen in our region with a change of perspective. We have to pay attention to our facilitation style when working with diverse groups of people, and this is certainly something that I have been working on. I also noted that Paragon does this by not drawing attention to the support needs of the participants in the group – everybody is identified as a musician and people are valued as creative individuals.
Space: I also pointed out that the region needs to make better use of it’s spaces. Although there is certainly a lack of performance or workshop spaces in comparison to cities such as Glasgow, we have to be creative with what we have got. Pan African Arts Scotland are managing to work creatively within their new venue, and are collaborating with Central Community Hall in order to run the Ha Orchestra.
Opportunity: We have to be collaborative in our pursuit to create an inclusive arts practice in our region. This is where I voiced strongly the links I have made with new people and how important connections are. Coincidently, a meeting with Paragon has been arranged to discuss the possibility of the company working in Dumfries and Galloway!
The conversation was rich, and as an outcome it has lead to the beginnings of a regional forum that will continue to probe this question. Following this, I spoke to Kenneth Fowler, Creative Scotland’s Director for Communications about Inclusive Arts Practice, and he referred me to a section that I have noted below concerning the new Youth Arts Strategy Time To Shine.
Creative Scotland’s Strategy
The expressive arts are rich and stimulating, with the capacity to engage and fascinate learners of all ages, interests and levels of skill and achievement. It is therefore important that all teachers and educators look for opportunities within their own teaching approaches for interdisciplinary learning and to foster partnerships with professional arts companies, creative persons and cultural organisations. (Creative Scotland, Time To Shine, 2013, p11)
There are seven key principles that act as a guide to how the youth arts must be nurtured. The sixth principle was of particular interest as it concerned inclusive arts practice:
Many young disabled people face the principle barriers of cost and transport. In addition. there are specific barriers which have been identified around lack of support, not feeling welcome or, in some cases, not having enough person-centred (relevant) activity… We need to hear a wide range of voices that will help address this imbalance. (Creative Scotland, Time To Shine, 2013, p19)
I was glad to be one of the voices that aims to address this imbalance. I agree with these difficulties, stating that these accessibility limitations are true for participants on some of Paragon’s workshop programmes. In comparison to Dumfries and Galloway,the widespread geography of the region will only increase these accessibility difficulties and potentially make it harder to reach people.
This is when I start to question whether it is ever possible to create a truly inclusive practice, meeting many needs of many people… I don’t think it is, but there is definitely value in appreciating the people that continue to participate in the programmes, whose needs are being met.
My response to the strategy is a positive one. I am satisfied with the work that is being proposed, and I will be excited to see it come to fruition. I think that attending this conference allowed me to test my current enquires in a new setting and potentially start putting them into practice. Though, I am currently thinking about how we can measure the achievement of these ambitions without merely planning new conferences that only reveal more plans and more future thinking and more striving? Is this always a struggle for any artist or organisation? I think that it is necessary that we relinquish some of the desires of planning to enable space for conversations and the “practice” to take place. I have made discoveries about myself as a facilitator, performer and as a musician. I am glad I found time to participate in the conversations happening at home and include some information from conversations I have had during my placements. These will continue to evolve and change, as I too begin to take lead in my own affairs.
Music Does Move 
Excellent post Zach. It’s really interesting how you are gravitating not only to a type of practice but a sector too. Your questions were pertinent. It may be worth extending the process further and looking at how funding structures impact on inclusive practices
I’ve really enjoyed reading this post – lots of parallels with things that have come up through my Go & See trip to Ireland. They make so much out of partnership and collaboration over there, and I am so happy to see this emerge as a visible strand of arts strategy in Scotland. Partnership and collaboration is such a basic, yet effective, tool for spreading awareness and passion for inclusive arts, universal design and access for all in the arts.
RE: physical accessibility of venues – I had many interesting conversations about this in Ireland. While most buildings are (by law) made accessible, it is not until you place many people with physical access needs in that building that you very quickly find it is not as accessible as the “official label” makes out. Health and Safety policy is actually what contributes to this – adapted buildings can only be made so accessible before a quota has to be placed on, for example, the number of wheelchair users allowed in the building at any given time, in order to ensure safe evacuation in an emergency. Also, I’ve yet to see an accessible route to the orchestra pit, which has implications for access to music as a profession for people with physical access needs. This is a massive barrier and I’m not sure how we can overcome it without the budget for brand new, universally designed arts venues.