Just another industry?

Mark Lawson responds on the Guardian website to the Work Foundation’s report on state funding of the cultural and creative industries. Many thanks to current MA CCI student Alison Parry for sending in this link.

La Cool Britannia

Dr Richard Howells gave an interview earlier this week to the French newspaper Liberation on Cool Britannia – the UK’s alleged image makeover in the 1990s from culturally conservative to young, cool and creative. Howells discusses the use of term and the political forces behind it, and considers how cool the UK really is. Francophone readers of Lost in CCI may want to take a look here.

New culture secretary

As UK cultural policy is a central topic in MA CCI at King’s, it’s worth noting here on Lost in CCI that James Purnell was named yesterday as the new Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, in new Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s cabinet reshuffle. More information can be found about this 37-year-old boy wonder here (a profile from today’s Guardian) and here (the Wikipedia entry). We were also inspired to take a virtual look around his new home, the DCMS.

Creative destruction

Current MA CCI student Anna Chatziangelidou writes:

“After a significant period of hibernation, Athens is making a comeback in the contemporary international art scene, presenting a series of important curatorial projects this year. With international art fair Art Athina having already celebrated its thirteenth appearance this May, still to come in the following months are Peres Projects Athens curated by Javier Peres; the DESTE Foundation Prize; and, perhaps most importantly, the first Athens Biennial, which is also going by the name of Destroy Athens.

“For the first time in years, art magazines such as Frieze and Art Review and international curators and artists are enthusiastic about what’s taking place in Athens. We all hope that this will regenerate the Greek contemporary art and boost cultural education!”

Don’t get ripped off

London-based IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) organisation Ownit provides a free DVD, How Not To Get Ripped Off, which tells you how to protect your intellectual property. It’s only available to organisations at the moment, not individuals, but you can watch it online here.

The Grand Tour

Current MA CCI student and Tate Britain intern Anna Chatziangelidou writes:

“I was walking near my house yesterday when I suddenly saw a Rembrandt painting hanging on a public wall on Rose street, Covent Garden. Later that day, I had a cup of tea at Maison Bertaux in Soho and there it was again. Not Rembrandt this time, but a a huge Turner painting staring at me on Greek street.

“The project is called The Grand Tour, and is a collaboration between the National Gallery and Hewlett Packard. Almost forty high quality reproductions of fine art are turning West End into a giant gallery, and the result is quite astonishing (well, it was for me!)

“There are also designed specific theme tours such as The Heavy Hitters Tour, the Lovers’ Tour (that’s a smart way to impress your first date, boys!) and The Lunchbreak Tour.

“Although I am not a fan of galleries that exhibit reproductions (such as the project in Amsterdam I presented at a seminar earlier this year), I think this is something a bit different and it caught my attention instantly.

“I’d be interested to hear your comments and thoughts, so please leave a message below or email me. Many thanks! Anna.”

Links

http://www.thegrandtour.org.uk/photo_gallery.html
http://www.thegrandtour.org.uk/index.html

Music internship at Icebox

Icebox, a music organization that gives exposure to new, BAME (Black and Minority Ethnic) music makers, is offering an internship for a Project Co-ordinator to assist the Project Director with the day-to-day running and administration of the company’s development and music projects. The post-holder will be responsible for liaising with musicians, research, assisting in the production of CD’s, events and projects, maintaining press packs and mailing lists, as well as the company website and administration of financial procedures.

Further details, including how to apply, are in the internship description. Many thanks to Aaron Cezar (MA CCI 2002-3) for sending us this information.

Glyndebourne

One of the annual highlights of the UK arts calendar is the summer festival (May-August) at Glyndebourne, the famous opera house in the East Sussex countryside near Brighton (pictured above). Lost in CCI was very pleased to hear this week from 2005-6 MA CCI alumnus Naomi Saffery, who since graduation has been working in the festival’s marketing department.

The top ticket price at Glyndebourne is £165, which is actually £20 cheaper than the Royal Opera House. But due partly to factors such as the dress code (evening dress) and the tradition of taking picnics on the lawns during the long interval, Glyndebourne has been seen as snobbish and elitist.

Part of Naomi’s job, as well as filling the house each night, is to diversify the audience demographic. “We do this in a number of ways”, Naomi explained. “Direct mailings, e-marketing and press campaigns are all tools that we use. We also establish initiatives such as our under 30’s night. This year on August 9, 16 & 24 anyone who is under 30 years old can buy a ticket in the stalls to see Katie Mitchell’s staging of J S Bach’s St Matthew Passion for £30 – that is a saving of £135! I’m listening to the company rehearsing on stage right now and it is beautiful.”

Naomi’s role at Glyndebourne is to write all the copy for brochures, leaflets, flyers and any other promotional print. She is also editor of the bi-annual newsletter Glyndebourne News, and, as well as print production, she also edits and updates the website.

Glyndebourne also goes on tour from October to December each year. This represents a completely different marketing opportunity, as Naomi explains. “The tickets are much cheaper and there is no dress code, but the production quality is the same. We go to places such as, Stoke-on-Trent, Norwich, Plymouth and this year we are returning to Sadler’s Wells in December. The tour is our chance to introduce a completely different audience to our work.”

So how would Naomi describe working in a high-profile arts organisation like Glyndebourne? “It’s exciting and dynamic. Achieving a balance between creativity and business is a daily consideration for all of us involved in the arts, and it’s constantly interesting.”

Inside tomorrow’s museum

Lost in CCI was at Tate Modern this afternoon, taking a good look at Transforming Tate Modern, a set of plans for the expansion of the museum and the broader development of the South Bank into ‘London’s cultural quarter’. We’d been invited by Tate’s Interpretation and Education department, whom we’ve partnered with over the last few years on the course Tate Modern: Inside Today’s Museum, which is available as a module to MA CCI students. If today’s presentation is anything to go by, next year’s students will have plenty of issues to think about in relation to the further growth of the museum. What should the new spaces at Tate Modern be used for? How does an international art museum build and maintain links with its local community? What role will the musuem play in the establishment of the ‘cultural quarter’? How does this relate the 2012 Olympics? And, last but not least, what do you think of the plans for the new building?

Get stuffed

MA CCI student Giulia Vaccari sent us this link to the website of forthcoming Hungarian ‘body horror’ film Taxidermia, distributed by extreme cinema specialists Tartan Films where Giulia is doing her internship. The still below is one of the more pleasant currently available on the internet. Variety write-up here.