Opera RoomCaption: The Opera Room by Helen Ottaoway, Alistair Goolden, Deborah Thomas of Artmusic at the Phoenix Centre, ExeterPhoto: Tim Cuff, Apex News Agency

Public value: what people want from the arts

Creative Communities conference May 2008

Catherine Bunting

Why public value?

• promoting participation

• value and accountability

• a two-way dialogue

Public value of the arts

• building capacity: self-expression, communication, understanding, challenge, broadening horizons

• enriching experience: colour, beauty, passion, emotion, fun, relaxation, escape

• powerful applications: bringing people together, linking communities, local identity, learning

• value stems from the individual experience

Public value of the arts

"It's meant to depict a scenery of mountains and grass, blue sky and a sun, the arts to me means something that takes you out of yourself as if you're going out into the countryside, seeing something of beauty, the arts add that dimension to life."

“I think when you’ve been to something, you also feel that you’re communicating with everybody else that’s

been there, you’re part and parcel with them, it’s cohesive again isn’t it?”

Quality and innovation

• quality is an important but tricky concept

• can refer to experience, product or project

• experimental work can be alienating…

• …but people come to see innovation as critical

- heightens the creative experience

- about concept and process

Barriers to engagement

• widespread concern about elitism and exclusion

• key obstacles are psychological:

- intellectual nervousness

- lack of confidence and peer pressure

- fear of not fitting in

- is it worth the risk?

• empowerment not access

What people want from the Arts Council

• enable everyone to experience arts that enrich their lives

• bring the arts closer to communities

• fairness, transparency and accountability

• ongoing dialogue and more public involvement in decision-making

What happens next?

• develop a ‘value framework’

• public campaign to build awareness, understanding and enthusiasm for the arts

• work with partners to achieve high quality arts engagement that contributes to community outcomes

• develop tools for ongoing consultation and involvement

• continue the debate!

Further information

• www.artsdebate.co.uk

• catherine.bunting@artscouncil.org.uk

www.artscouncil.org.uk

Thank you