The Canadian Artists Network, the voice of Canada's experienced professional artists, will present its annual virtual conference Maintaining Creativity 8 from October 30-November 3, 2023 with three chapters on the theme Artists as Agents of Change.
The Maintaining Creativity 8 conference will explore a different aspect of Artists as Agents of Change in each two-hour chapter with moderators including Laurie Brown, Steven Loft, and Garry Neil. This annual conference is an online gathering place for professional artists of all disciplines in Canada to come together to examine new ideas for innovation, support, and craft.
Maintaining Creativity 8 is presented free of charge, with registration now open at https://www.csarn.ca/conference/. Participating panelists will be announced in the coming weeks.
Chapter One
Women Warriors for Change
Monday, October 30th at 1pm Eastern time
What does it mean for an artist to be a warrior? Starting something that needed starting? Stopping something that never should have started in the first place? An artist who works to change the system? For moderator Laurie Brown, being a warrior means searching, exploring until we find authenticity, honesty, purpose and meaning coming together. Broadcaster, writer, journalist Laurie Brown will dig deeply into the topic of Women Warriors with three remarkable guests.
Chapter Two
Inclusion: Where Are We?
Wednesday, November 1st at 1pm Eastern time
Canadian artists from diverse communities have been at the forefront of issues involving equity, representation and inclusion. Much has happened and a lot still needs to happen. Where are we when it comes to social justice in the arts and beyond, in the areas of race, reconciliation with Indigenous communities, gender, sexual orientation, and people with disabilities? What are the most effective ways to be an ally for these communities? What is the role of artists in mobilizing their own community and the wider community? What role can/do arts institutions play? Does ageism fit into this discussion?
Inclusion: Where Are We? will be moderated by Steven Loft, Vice-President, Department of Indigenous Ways and Decolonization at the National Gallery of Canada.
Chapter Three
The Original Gig Workers: Strategies Towards Economic Stability
Friday, November 3rd at 1pm Eastern time
Artists are fundamental to society, but they are the original gig workers. The median income of professional artists is 44 per cent lower than that of all workers; many earn less than the poverty line. Thirty years after the Status of the Artist Act was adopted, have we made any progress? What more needs to be done?
The Original Gig Workers moderator will be Garry Neil, whose 40-year-career in arts and culture policy includes the 2005 UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.
For more information visit: www.csarn.ca/conference.
The Canadian Artists Network (CAN, formerly CSARN) is the voice of Canada's elder professional artists across all disciplines. CAN offers programs and services that enable artists to remain relevant, connected, informed, and motivated. Artists don't retire. Their creativity and skills do not diminish with age. Creativity Lives Forever. The Canadian Artists Network is committed to raising awareness of the value of these artists as resources for the future and role models for emerging talent. CAN is dedicated to supporting, celebrating, and inspiring these senior artistic voices through its advocacy work and programs.
