Spiraling Outwardly for Equity in Public Arts

Video description

This is a presentation on one framework from the Research in Residence: Arts’ Civic Impact project. Mass Culture, in partnership with Canada Council for the Arts, the Culture Statistics Working Group, the Ontario Trillium Foundation, and Toronto Arts Foundation, conducted research to understand the civic impact of the arts.

Spiraling Outwardly for Equity in Public Arts, developed by Shanice Bernicky (Carleton University), is a framework to disrupt and reflect on arts organizations’ approaches to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Speaker

Shanice Bernicky, Carleton University

Publication date

August 1, 2023

Resources

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• Living Climate Impact
• Access in Counterpoint

Shanice Bernicky

My name is Shanice Bernicky. I am a fourth year PhD student at Carleton University's School of Journalism and Communication Studies. I'm currently studying equity, diversity and inclusion in settler colonial states. One of the things that you should know about me is that I have a background in video production, which is something that I think is important to note because I do come from a more tangible background in the arts and culture sector. But theoretically, I am also someone who thinks through anti colonial practices and praxis and decolonial studies. So the first question was, how can and then I had in brackets artistic approach be used to reimagine equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives in the public arts sector across settler colonial states, specifically Canada? The second question was, how can Culture Days' cultural reach from coast to coast and supportive structure be harnessed to develop inclusivity indicators based on participant survey data and Makerspace gatherings? And the third one was, how does a student researcher exist between the bounds of academia and the arts and culture sector? So there were three questions that I was trying to grapple with, and I find that through doing the work over two years, they became collapsed into these two: How can access to the arts and culture sector from coast to coast be more equitable? And how can participatory methods be used to engage more community members in the move towards more equitable cultural spaces?

One of the things that I struggled with was, I didn't really know what terms to use did I want to use Diversity, Equity and Inclusion considering the rise of reports and the reckonings when it comes to racial injustice is and then also considering reconciliation and the calls to action. And while I think the project stemmed from this, I think it was also important to see where it led. And so one of the things that was incredibly important was thinking about the communities that I was engaging with while doing the work. And fore fronting the words that they had to offer about equity, diversity and inclusion, and rather thinking through more nitty gritty data survey, and things like that. One other thing that I want to note is that the research questions will change, the ones that I've read to you now, there are about five of them, three of them from before two of them that I have now, but I'm going to be continuing my dissertation work on this project, and probably for a long time after that. So whatever I have now is definitely not what I'm going to end with. Things will change as I engage with both folks, things have changed. And I think that is a very important practice to have, we're doing research, because we acknowledge that research isn't perfect, it will shape shift and change based on who we engage with and the things that we learn along the way.

So working with Culture Days definitely provided a lot of important aspects to the research that I wouldn't have been able to have without, namely, the fact that I was able to send out a call to an a momentous amount of cultural workers, arts organization, representatives and artists. And I think that because Culture Days had such a large network that allowed me to weave in and out of different voices from different particular parts of the country, which is so essential. It also allowed me the ability to see the survey data that they had based on the organizations that they worked with, and some of the things that the organizations were considering, along with their funding structures, some of the things they were looking forward to in programming. But the reason I wanted to work with Culture Days is mainly because of their large reach, but then also the scope of the work that they do. As an arts organization type festival that takes place three weeks in September, with tonnes of free events. I think there's something to be said about, first off, how do we thoughtfully engage with free events when considering the work of artists? But then also, how do we get more folks who perhaps don't have opportunities to engage in pay to view services. There were a lot of things that went into the consideration of working with Culture Days. And I do think that I'm going to continue to work with them. But it's definitely the network. So Jackie is, quote, fighting the system through our artistic practice is really what governs the crux of this project, and the crux of the project as it develops through my dissertation.

So what does it mean to create equitable spaces in an arts organization which can harness the artistic practice that it has to do that speaking with arts organization workers, that there's this fall back and using managerial references, pieces that are very governmental in relation to equity of diversity and inclusion? And so this comes from a long practice of policy and also funding structures. But then what if we take a step back and think about where is it that arts the art public art sector comes from? We do know that it comes from a background of public good, and while I don't necessarily want to lean on that too much, because we can problematize that, I do think that if we take it as its core core concept of good? How do we consider making sure that folks feel comfortable, safe and able to express themselves, their true selves in any form in the public art sector? And that means using artistic ways of doing that, rather than falling on a very kind of strict managerial way thinking through who that who should be using this framework is a tough question. I think that it shape shifts based on where folks are at. But I think one of the things that I really wanted to stress and folks who I spoke to also stressed was that there are already so many micro grassroots organizations that are led by folks of marginalized communities for marginalized communities that have been doing this work on the ground for decades. So my framework will not be useful to them in certain degrees.

What it will do, though, is be useful to art organizations that perhaps are coming from a lot more of a historical place of comfort when it comes to public funding, who perhaps have not had a lot of engagement with folks from marginalized backgrounds historically, and contemporarily, who need to start considering and not just considering, but doing tangible work and action for them to consider how not to integrate, but to leave space for self determination of communities, members of marginalized backgrounds, but then also the employees who work within it, we do have a lot of data. And there are statistics about the very homogenous state of the arts and culture sector, specifically in Canada. And this is something at a high level that needs to be considered and reckoned with. And so while I do say that there are a lot of micro organizations that are doing the work, and I do think that perhaps this framework isn't necessarily exactly for them, I do think that there are pieces of it that they can take, because when fostering equitable spaces, we can always learn and we can always do better. But I do think that there are arts organizations that definitely need to reconcile with the homogenous state of their organization and how they can move forward. I do think, though, one of the important things is that we can all continuously learn. And one of the things about the framework that folks will notice when they engage with it is the fact that I am learning myself, there are points where I see myself in traps of being like, Oh, this is a preconceived notion that I have, or this is something that I've been taught systematically in my very formal education. So how do I also grapple with the questions that I have as I learn to make space for other folks, and considering the fact that I myself have a lot of work to do as well. The framework itself is housed on a platform called Miro that you can access through internet, but you can also use it when an offline capacity. So as soon as you receive a link to the mural board, which will be housed by Mass Culture, the first step that you will have is how to use a Miro board and the instructions. So you'll see that over on to the left of the screen. And then the way that you read the mirror board, in the case of the instructions is going from left to right. So once you've seen the instructions, then you go into the welcome page of Excel, which explains what the project is how it came to be. And my contact information, if you would like to get in touch with me, it breaks down the board into the three components, or three layers that there are. So there's the first layer, which is the Earth, the second, which is the sun reconciliation, and the third, which is the framework itself. One thing about the framework is that if ever you are using it, which I really hope you do, is that you're able to duplicate it and make it your own, but in duplicating it and making it your own so that we can have a shared practice of knowledge mobilization, it's important that you first off credit, the  work that I have done and the work that folks who engaged with it as collaborators have done, but then also keeping a trace record, including me as part of  the team so that I will be able to see what changed and what didn't. And this is all because we're working towards the same goal and making sure that we're not keeping these particular important questions and adjustments to ourselves. One other thing to note, and I haven't showed it to you yet, but let's say you're looking at the board, and you're like this is really overwhelming.

These are questions that my organization hasn't yet considered. I don't know if I'm ready to undertake it just yet. Don't worry. In those cases, there is a board linked here that is an anti colonial toolkit that I've developed, which you can start with and it is a good place to start with. So I'll click over to it here. And this is this massive stream of pieces that you can look through There's literature, and it also has the same mural board instructions, my contact and then the components of the board which are first a crash course on the current diversity management bends to a selection of resources, including articles, books, videos, podcasts, websites that I invite you to explore, and you can add on to this and then three an area for your own learning journey. And four an academic reference list, and similar to the spiraling outward board, this is something that you can copy and make your own. But if you do have resources that you want to share, please link them to me so that I'm able to populate this board. And it'll be active throughout. And I'll continue to add to it as I see things that helped me in my learning, it's important to note that sometimes we're just not ready to jump into things. But that's okay, it's important to take a thoughtful step back before you engage with communities, because you want to do this respectfully. And you also want to do this as a need, and a thoughtful process rather than something that you're doing just to do. So the crash course does consist of quite a few items, and a little work space for you and your team members to use. But back to the framework. So if you are ready and feel like you're ready to engage with the framework, then we start here, going back to Jackie’s, quote, fighting the system through artistic practice. So the framework itself is enveloped in a circle, a sphere, the earth. So the first thing that you encounter is the world in which we live, then it goes further in to this particular part, reconciliation, the importance of considering that while my work, especially understanding that I am not of an indigenous heritage background, specifically in Canada, that is, the work does, note the importance of considering the TRC is truth and reconciliation, calls to action. And it is important than any of the work that we do as settlers of colonial backgrounds specifically, well as folks here consider and actually do take action on and then you go further down to the framework.

And so the framework is something where you can actually start at any point, it is a spiral in the center. And that's because depending on where you feel your organization is where you start. So there are four pillars of engagement. The first is pulse check. The second is transparent socialization, and I'm reading from left to right. The third is E effective equity. And then the fourth is constantly are living and the way that those are different parts of the spirals, 1. And then, and the spiral continues to build out and get bigger and bigger. And the reason why it works this way is because of the last pillar called Sununu, which reads evaluating equity is a continual process with no end, nothing is truly perfect. And that is okay continue acknowledges the messiness of ensuring equity for as many folks as possible at any given time. As a result, the cycle continues over and over again, building on top of itself with no end, you'll notice that there are different components of it, which I'm going to get into. But keep in mind that you can start anywhere you can pick up anywhere, there are points where it tells you to go to one part and then the other. So just note that there's no right way to engage with the framework. But I guess if there was a right way, is go the way that you think you and your organization need to go. But also doing it with the sustained understanding that you need to do this carefully as well with mitigating harm of the communities that you're engaging with. Each pillar then has a introduction to what the pillar is and what it is supposed to do, then it has quotes from folks that I was able to engage with during Makerspace gatherings, which if you want to know more about what those were, you can look at the methodology reports that mass culture released. And then you'll have indicators, which are particular steps that you depending on the prompt, in this case of pulse check, please don't leave the steps behind. So things to consider. So indicators of how your organization is doing and how you are doing. And at the bottom, sometimes you have a prompt, that might be a question. And in the case of pulse check, it's what does equity mean to you? And how does your organization work to ensure it to all employees?

And so these prompts are constantly changing, and the questions are different. So at the bottom here, it says remember that while you were representing your organization, you are also an individual yourself, check in with yourself to explore any biases that may be clouding your judgment. So that's a particular board of pulse check. And all of the pillars have the same format. They have questions, they have quotes, they have indicators. And these indicators are not in the same sense of a checkmark or checkbox instruction. They can be depending on the particular question is review the trends of artists your organization has collaborated with over the last 1 years. So that is okay. Have you done that work? Yes, you can check that off. But what are the findings that you ensued by doing that work? What are the things that you notice that you need to either reconcile with or what needs to be troubled in your organization to move forward? Right now some of them are currently still being validated because I give my participants quite a long time to review their quotes because it's important that any work that is shared meaningfully and also with their approval, that they're being validated. So once they're validated, the gray will be removed. But one thing that I do want to note is that sometimes there might be a word that I use that is perhaps short form, or does need a definition.

And what you'll see is either a comment, or eventually you'll see once I get a little bit more tech savvy, when it comes to Miro, you'll see a pop up, for instance, you have E seeking background, and it says here, seeking background refers to equity seeking backgrounds. This includes folks who are members of so it provides you with a bit of a definition, if you ever get stuck. And if there's something that you are unsure about, there's another way to contact me so that I'm able to make this clear. So in the case that perhaps you think that this definition or this is unclear, there is a place that you can go, if you click at the bottom, and you'd have to type it in but note, and so note is an area where you can have a conversation with me. And so the instruction here is here, you can drag and drop elements of the board to comment on them, if you would like. If there's anything you wish to call to my attention, do it here on this main board. And because this is the main board that houses everything, you can always comment and it leaves your name. And you can add your contact information if you'd like or not, you can reach out to me personally, but it does allow for a conversation to ensue amongst several folks who are engaging with it, and things that perhaps need to be changed. And maybe there's something there's a huge gap that I need to consider as a researcher. And this is where it's left as a kind of both archive of intervention, but then also a fluid and active living space where we can engage with each other. So this note section will be the section that is housed on the Mass Culture Miro board, when it comes to your duplicate, this is something that you don't need to have at all, it is just something that we think is essential to continuously building on that conversation. So one thing that you'll notice is that as you go into different components of the framework,  some of the indicators are very short. And the reason for that is based on the pillar that they're engaging with. So in the indicators, please don't leave these questions behind. So some of the questions will be and I'll probably add on to these and you will most likely want to add on to these are, what sort of changes has your organization made thus far? How has your organization's relationship with the community evolved, and are there still barriers being vocalized by employees and community members? There's not really other ways of engaging with it, I do think that one of the important parts is that we recognize that, like I note is that this is something that continuously moves forward.

And the reason why it's housed on Miro is because it exists in this kind of terrain, or space that is alive and can be added to and I think that it is important to keep it in such a space. However, I do also want to note that Miro board can be read at certain components by a screen reader. However, in the case that sometimes this just doesn't fit or suit the accessibility needs of some folks, there is a PDF version that will be linked folks will have also had access to it's true that the level of engagement will differ. But it'll still provide that same information. And that same kind of looping or building components that the Miro board has. So while it would be useful to use it on the Miro board, based on the being able to archive and track, if ever, you are using a PDF version, please feel free to share it with us and share it with me. If ever you want us to see some of the changes that you've made. But this is also a possibility, it doesn't need to stay on the euro, it is on euro for its living capacity. But that doesn't mean that it might necessarily be the most accessible. And we acknowledge that and want to make sure that even a PDF is not the most accessible, please do not hesitate to reach out to us, especially me because I'm more than happy to find a way that to get this information to get the framework to you. I do think that one of the potential impacts that the framework might have on the art sector is first acknowledging that it doesn't have the capacity to fix systems of oppression. But what it does is opens up this possibility of destabilizing set systems in order to build more equitable spaces and communities of support. So one of the things that we're trying to acknowledge here is that these are ongoing questions, concerns and responsibilities that we have in the sector. And while its impact might be small at this point in time, the small impact might actually be a large impact for the community member or one community member that you're engaging with. So we're building from a small amount and outward and which is a little bit what the framework does, too. Right? It goes from a small spiral to a larger one with the understanding that these are really big questions that we're grappling with as a community.

And while there might not be a set answer And I don't think that the question is even designed to have an answer. What it does have is the embeddedness, or the understanding that there's action that needs to take place. And so because we're taking actions, that's already a step in the right direction. And I do think that an impact that might be small right now is something that will be built upon in the future. Another reason for why a framework includes a quote by Jackie is because of the fact that this work doesn't happen without others. Community is what makes this work and more impactful and community is what destabilizes the old idea, especially in academia, that we work alone, and that we have alone and sole authorship. So I think one of the important pieces as a researcher, but then also as a person, is to understand that we don't do any of this alone, and we can't do it alone. And so Jackie's quote isn't just there about the in relation to thinking about public good and artistic practice. But it's also there to consider I didn't do this alone. And the Framework also does have quotes from other folks who are part of the makerspace gathering, but it is to acknowledge that we can't exist in silos, we have to engage with others. We have to engage with other sectors as well, for this to actually be impactful and meaningful.