10th International Conference on the Arts in Society and the Arts in Society knowledge community
Colloquium: Creative Work, Education and Careers: Links and Connections between Arts Education and Careers in the Arts
Dr. Roberta Comunian, Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries, King's College London, Southampton, UK
Global Aspirations and Local Talent: The Development of Creative Higher Education in Singapore |
Dr Roberta Comunian, King's College London
Dr. Roberta Comunian is Lecturer in Cultural and Creative Industries at the Department for Culture, Media and Creative Industries at King's College London. She has also undertaken research on knowledge transfer and creative industries within an AHRC Impact Fellowship award at the University of Leeds. She is currently researching the role of higher education in the creative economy and has recently explored in various papers the career opportunities and patterns of creative graduates in UK. (paper with Can Seng Ooi, Copenhagen Business School) |
The first paper discusses the broader landscape of an increasingly globalised developed of the creative economy, and the translation of creative policies internationally and focuses on the role of higher education development and policy changes in Singapore arts and cultural policy. Using qualitative interviews with key players in policy and higher education institutions, the paper aims to explain the push and pull factors being this investment in arts education. It considers the emerging original dynamics and diverse patterns - embedded in a society where higher education interactions with economic development have a long history and pragmatic rationale. While still in the early days of these investments, the papers argues that there are some global policy lessons to be learned from the case of Singapore and what role higher education can play in the developing a local art and creative economy, while striving to overcome issues of over-supply and vulnerability of creative careers.
The Practice Imperative of Diverse Creativities: Remixing the Next Generation of Artists |
Dr. Pamela Burnard
Reader, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK Pamela Burnard is Reader in Education at the University of Cambridge in the UK. Her research interests include diverse creativities across education, industry and diverse communities, digital technologies and learning cultures, intercultural arts practices, innovative pedagogies, student voice research and practice-based research methodologies. (Paper with Dawn Bennett, Humanities, Curtin University, Perth, Australia) |
The paper examines a proliferation of diverse creativities are recognised and communicated in the practices of artists. Whether working in the music industry as performing artists, composers, singer-songwriters, original bands, DJs, live coders, sound designers or as digital artists/practitioners working in community or educational settings, studying the practice of and developing new forms of creativities are characteristics required in a successful career. This paper explores what is distinctive and important about the pluralism of creativities as a radical way of rethinking innovation in educating artists seeking to address equity and diversity issues. It invites you to think positively about change and to think anew about the jobs (and their related creativities) that exist now but that might not exist by the time today’s arts students enter the workplace. An argument will be made for why arts students need to be able to work and live as entrepreneurs: that is, resourcefully, flexibly, creatively and globally
Funemployed in the City of Literature: The Artistic Critique of Work and Artists' Guide |
Dr. Scott Brook
Assistant Professor, Centre for Creative and Cultural Research, Donald Horne Institute, University of Canberra Canberra, A.C.T., Australia Scott Brook is Assistant Professor of Writing at the Centre for Creative and Cultural Research, Donald Horne Institute, University of Canberra. |
The paper shows that although creative labour studies has noted the low levels of collective organisation and representation amongst arts sector workers, it should not be forgotten that artists have been major contributors to the documentation and critique of the employment conditions of artistic careers. A number of literary genres, such as the Kunstler Roman, artists’ memoir and artists’ career guide (more recently) have been at the forefront of this work of critical documentation. Given such works typically focus on and/or are addressed to emerging artists, they reproduce an "artistic critique of work" that is ultimately ambivalent about the value of professional career development. The paper illustrates this via a close reading of the recent book "Funemployed: Life as an Artist in Australia" (2014); an autobiographical arts memoir that presents professional advice to young artists. Researched, written and published in Melbourne, a UNESCO City of Literature, the book is a prime example of how a new generation of artists are adapting to Creative City policy-making. In so far as the book combines professional career advice with scepticism regarding the value of this advice, it foregrounds a central dilemma for the study of artist’s labour markets; namely, that researchers are dealing with a vocational identity and work ethic whose validation is not reliant on employment. This is a problem for creative labour studies in so far as any viable critique of the conditions of arts employment – it’s insecure and lowly remunerated career returns – must take into account the "professional ethos" of a vocational field that is only weakly invested in commercial viability.
Nice Work if You Can Get It! Preparing Students for Work in the Arts |
Dr. Lorraine Lim
Lecturer, Department of Film, Media and Cultural Studies, Birkbeck, University of London London, UK Lorraine Lim is Lecturer in Arts Management at Birkbeck College, University of London. Her research interests focus on cultural strategies utilised by cities in Asia to transform themselves into capitals of culture. She has edited a special issue for the International Journal of Cultural Policy on cultural policy in Asia, which was re-published by Routledge in 2014. She has also co-edited a book on a book on cultural policy in East Asia (Palgrave-Macmillan) and is currently working on two funded projects on how to prepare students for work in the creative industries and the ethics of unpaid internships (Higher Education Academy and British Academy). |
The paper looks at how students are attracted to work in the arts believing it to be liberating, autonomous and creative. At the same time, work in the arts is also characterised as precarious, insecure and exploitative. Current career development advice often focuses on jobs that are permanent, stable and based on a standard, predicable career progression and is inadequate when it comes to preparing students for work in the arts where portfolio careers and self-employment is the norm. This paper will reflect on a specific project I have organised with funding from the Higher Education Academy that aims to re-conceptualise the idea of employability that brings these issues to the fore so as to create a structured employability and career development curriculum that addresses the particularities of cultural labour. Through the creation of an informal network that comprises of industry professionals who are working within the arts, representatives from student advocacy organisations and students, this collaboration aims to develop curriculum that is based on preparing students for the realities of working in the arts and creative industries rather than assuming that their ‘passion’ for the arts and creative industries will carry them on the creative economy wave
Art Schools and Pedagogic Networks as Place Attachment Factors for Artists: A Case Study on Leipzig" |
Silvie Jacobi, Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries, King's College London, London, UK
Silvie Jacobi is a Joint-PhD Candidate at the Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries at King’s College London and at Humboldt University Berlin, Geographisches Institut. Born in Germany and trained as visual artist in Germany and the UK, she holds an MSc in Creative Cities from King's College London. |
Based on findings from recent qualitative research in Leipzig (Germany), this paper will apply network/relational theory towards empirical evidence on the important role of institutions, stakeholders and networks for the development of a strong fine art economy in Leipzig. This contexts shows us that the art school has several direct and indirect “talent production” functions, while also acting as intellectual stimulus for the development of either market or autonomy-driven initiatives. This bears important ideological tensions, which stimulate experimental capacity among students and recent graduates. With this example, this paper will address the importance of art schools for the “re-production” of an actor-centered cultural economy in a city. It will also raise further awareness of the value of communities of practice over infrastructure-led creative city strategy, and why it is important to support the continued provision of quality arts education at HE level.