Response to State of the Arts Survey - Key Messages and Findings.
We would like to acknowledge the participation of everyone in the sector who took the time to contribute to each of the surveys over the last twelve months. The response has been phenomenal and that is reflected in the number of participants.
The last twelve months have been incredibly challenging for the sector. Even with the challenges that have been presented, however, the sector is steadily regaining optimism
A range of issues were identified by respondents that they would like to raise with the Minister. These are indicative of the need for a national arts strategy to help create systems change and sustainability for the sector.
The overarching theme that has been highlighted through the surveys is the need for more robust and predictable investment in the arts sector. The current funding models do not lend themselves to creating sustainable models of practice.
There is a need for more backbone support and infrastructure to support the sector and practitioners.
Priority needs to be given to supporting creative freelancers and the independent arts sector. It is clear throughout the reports that these practitioners have been deeply affected both by long-standing issues in the sector around issues such as wellbeing and income insecurity, as well as the impacts of Covid-19 since 2020.
It was positive to see in this survey respondents’ perception is that audience appetite for creative work appears to be slowly returning.
Respondents see a continuing need for a cultural shift to increase recognition of the value of the arts generally, and the contribution of the sector to community health, wellbeing and cohesion.
Explore the reports from the June/July 2022 Survey below:
State of the Arts Waikato Summary June/July 2022
State of the Arts Waikato Report June/July 2022
State of the Arts Aotearoa Summary June/July 2022
State of the Arts Aotearoa Report June/July 2022
What is State of the Arts?
The State of the Arts is a series of surveys conducted between April 2020 and July 2022 which aimed to understand the impact of COVID-19 on Aotearoa’s creative sector.
These three surveys aimed to chart the changes in attitudes towards and impacts of COVID-19 on the arts sector over time. Regional-specific reports were also generated from these surveys for Waikato, Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Whanganui a Tara.
This research was conducted by Dovetail, an Auckland-based research and evaluation company, and was distributed via social media and email.
These surveys were funded by Arts Wellington with the support of Wellington City Council (Pōneke), Te Taumata Toi-a-Iwi (Tāmaki Makaurau), Creative Waikato and Te Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage.
Explore previous reports here