COS 2012 Debates: MICA – Angel Funding for the Arts

by MP for Aljunied GRC, Chen Show Mao


Sir,

The Arts make up the stock of our nation’s cultural capital, which enables us to build a stronger sense of national identity, rootedness and social cohesion . To grow this stock, we need generous angel funding.

In fact, one of the recent Arts & Culture Strategic Review Committee’s recommendations was to — “invest more in the experimentation, creation and incubation of new content.”

Much like innovators in many other industries, perhaps more so, artists need access to funding during the very early stages of their work. This is why the Review Committee has suggested that more funds could be channeled towards the National Arts Council’s existing Arts Creation Fund.

The Fund focuses on the creation stage of the artistic process. It does not cover the distribution and
full production costs associated with the completed work. There are separate Natonal Arts Council schemes for these.

I would like to make a point on this role of the Arts Creation Fund.

I hope we take great care to ensure that the Arts Creation Fund’s funding process does not unduly influence an artist’s creative work in its early developmental stage, even as we hold artists accountable for the public funding they receive.

Currently, applicants for developmental funding are required to submit their plans for future distribution of the completed work. One of the stated aims of Arts Creation Fund for literary arts is the creation of work that has, “broad readership appeal”. Drafts of manuscripts are required to be submitted for assessment on, among other things, the market potential of the work.

Currently, the fund strongly encourages attaching mentors, consultants and editors into the early stages of the creative process. For example, it is strongly recommended that recipients appoint an editor (either identified by the National Arts Council or with a choice of editor subject to the Council’s approval), who will play among other things a developmental role.

All these can represent additional time and cost and, more importantly, the commercial considerations, editors and funding process could end up directing the work too much.

As the committee notes, “a balance needs to be struck between accountability to the public and giving the artists the time and space they need.” Sir, time and space are even more important during the developmental stages of an artist’s creative work, and angel funding should reflect this.

Thank you.