Supporting the Arts: A partnership rooted in accessibility and inclusion

Supporting the Arts: A partnership rooted in accessibility and inclusion

Shared values and common goals to ensure accessibility for artists and arts practitioners were the drivers for a partnership between Creative New Zealand and Tātai Aho Rau Core Education. Faced with the challenge of effectively disseminating information to artists after developing their remuneration policy, CNZ aimed to elevate the arts sector and support artists in advocating for their value and creating sustainable careers.

We shared a kōrero with CNZ Senior Advisor Adrianne Roberts about the kaupapa behind the creation of the resources and why they chose to partner with our content team.

 Photo credit Creative NZ

Can you tell us about the goals and importance of creating these resources for artists?

Adrianne:  The kaupapa for these resources was born from our remuneration policy, born out of a need for the arts practitioners in Aotearoa to have sustainable careers. We recognised that bringing together key tools to help artists and creating a one-stop shop would be valuable in addressing the unique challenges they face. To achieve this, we wanted to collaborate with external partner [Tātai Aho Rau] with strength in providing high-quality education resources. Together we were able to create effective resources that truly met the needs of artists.

I saw in the press release that the average salary for artists is $37K. How do the resources help with that? 

Adrianne: This statistic highlights the different challenges artists face at a professional level. Our resources are aimed at empowering artists to advocate for their own value. These resources provide guidance on how to negotiate, find legal advice, market themselves effectively and understand invoicing. Through this, we can signal the things that artists should be thinking about. Artists in themselves are a business, and we want to make sure they can represent themselves well. 

How important was it to partner with a values-based, people-centric organisation for this project?

Adrianne: It was incredibly important. One of the main reasons we chose Tātai Aho Rau was because of their approach. We knew that they had a mātauranga Māori team, are an inclusive organisation, and they've delivered projects we are familiar with like Creatives in Schools. Their advisory group on presentation, comprised of diverse voices from the disabled communities and new migrant communities, was also a significant factor. It was important to us to develop resources that were inclusive and relevant to all members of the arts community.

In addition, we launched our accessibility policy this year – so these resources are a test run to see how we could create something that at its heart is accessible. Throughout the resources, we made sure the videos and resources were easy to read and accessible, with sign language interpretation in the videos. We have had good feedback so far on the resources in terms of accessibility.

How was your experience working alongside Tātai Aho Rau in creating these resources?

Adrianne: We found Tātai Aho Rau great to work with. The communication was great, with easy implementation of feedback, and such a positive experience to be working with someone who has such a strong team in delivering learning content. It's been really lovely working with the team.

If you're an artist, have aspirations for a career in the arts sector or know someone who does, find the sustainable careers resources on Creative New Zealand’s website: https://creativenz.govt.nz/development-and-resources/sustainable-careers-resources

If you're looking for support to design learning solutions for your organisation kōrero with our team today: https://core-ed.org/en_NZ/content-development/