Borak Art Series 2014

Building Knowledge Capacity in Funding and Mobility

Documentation

 

Table of Content

Welcome Remarks................................................................................................................................. 1

Opening Remarks .................................................................................................................................. 2

Keynote Address 1: Our Journey in Growing Malaysia’s Arts & Culture ............................................... 4

Session 1: What is the Value of Culture ................................................................................................ 6

Pecha Kucha Country Update: New Zealand ...................................................................................... 13

Session 2: Getting To Know Our International Fund Partners ............................................................. 15

Session 3: Info Cell B – Enacting Citizenship Through Arts ................................................................ 23

Special Session: Arts and Cultural Support for a Creative and Vibrant Society .................................. 32

Session 4: Investing Time in Networks ................................................................................................ 37

Pecha Kucha City Update: Ipoh ........................................................................................................... 43

Session 5: Cultural Entrepreneurship and Innovation ......................................................................... 45

Closing Remarks.................................................................................................................................. 49

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Welcome Remarks Ms. Izan Satrina, Co-founder & Director of My Performing Arts Agency (MYPAA) MYPAA welcomes all returning and new delegates to the 2014 edition of the Borak Arts Series. The conference is honoured to host international delegates and speakers from New Zealand, Japan, Belgium, Korea, France, and Singapore. The Borak Arts 2014 is made possible by the support from various partners, i.e. The Sime Darby Foundation, Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur and Asia Centre, Korea Arts Management Services (KAMS), the French Embassy, the Asia-Europe Foundation, NST Publishing group, mapKL Publika, Boh Plantations, and many others. MYPAA is a private and independent art agency which aims to bridge the gap between public and private sector in the arts industry. This has be done through various programmes and strategic platforms such as: The Royal Arts Gala Fund, Karnival Seni Kreatif Kita (outreach programme), Artivate (youth knowledge platform), youth entrepreneurship programmes, international exchanges, and the Borak Arts Series. MYPAA accords it appreciation to the Jabatan Kebudayaan dan Kesinian Negara/ The National Department for Culture & Arts (JKKN) for the continuing support and collaboration in making these initiatives successful. In 2013, the Borak Arts focused on building sustainability in the arts industry. Building on from this, the Borak Arts 2014 theme is “Building Knowledge Capacity in Funding and Mobility”, which reflects a very important area in the arts ecosystem. In addition to Borak Arts Series 2014, a Malaysian arts and culture funders roundtable was organized yesterday, which say the participation of, among others, Khazanah National, Think City, Petronas, CIMB Foundation, Ministry of Finance, and Hong Leong Foundation. The Borak Arts series will continue to strengthen from year to year as it remains a key platform for all stakeholders to meet and discuss issues. Working towards 2015, Borak Arts will focus on becoming arts networking platform in the ASEAN region. This is in line with Malaysia’s ASEAN chairmanship in 2015. It is also hoped that a bi-annual performing arts market would also be organized and presented in Kuala Lumpur.

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Opening Remarks YBhg Datuk Norliza Rofli, Director General of the Jabatan Kebudayaan dan Kesinian Negara/ National Department for Culture & Arts (JKKN) The Borak Arts Series The first Borak Arts Series in 2014 was part of the “quick win projects” under the government’s performing arts focal area in the National Creative Industry Fund. JKKN is proud to note that MYPAA has been successful in sustaining this programme, and that the scale and diversity of participants have increased. This year would also see other initiatives come to fruition based on investments in 2012 and 2013. In the years before Borak Arts Series was organized, there was no such platform to discuss issues faced by the industry. For those who attended the Borak Arts in 2013 it was a refreshing and valuable experience for all. Opinions and ideas were discussed openly and freely; including criticisms, which are necessary to be brought up in order to further improve the industry. The Borak Arts Series is set to become an important and strategic platform for the arts community in Malaysia and ASEAN region as it presents opportunities for stakeholders to have meaningful discussions. Such platform is important in order for the community to learn, connect, strengthen and nurture relationships between the public-private sectors, and with the industry practitioners. Theme and Programme The theme of Borak Arts 2014 is “Building Knowledge Capacity in Funding and Mobility”. Participants and speakers will have the opportunity to explore and share experiences on this common topic. There will be panel discussions on topics such as: the value of culture, international funds for the arts, arts networking, and cultural entrepreneurship. There would also be ten special roundtable sessions hosted by various organizations, which focuses on specific topics and area of interest. Additionally, the conference will be made colourful by inspiring showcase performances by upcoming contemporary and traditional artists. The Borak Arts Series 2014 is also organized as part of inaugural Malaysia International Performing Arts Village (MIPAV), which would take place at the Malayisan Tourism Centre Kuala Lumpur from 22 – 26 November 2014. JKKN welcomes all delegates of the Borak Arts Series to partake in MIPAV. At the end of the Borak Art Series, it is hoped that the arts community would have access to new tools and knowledge to further their work. The Royal Arts Gala Fund 2014 JKKN takes this opportunity to announce the second call of application for the Royal Arts Gala Fund (RAGF). The Royal Arts Gala is an initiative MYPAA where funds are raised from the private sector via a dinner-cum arts performance showcase. The funds raised are then channeled to the industry via a grant programme.

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The funds collected are held in custody under the Tabung Amanah Kebudayaan, a trust fund under the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. All applications are submitted online and evaluated by a committee comprising of corporate donors and industry veterans. MYPAA and JKKN are only observers and do not influence the outcome. Successful applications would receive grants ranging from RM1,000 – RM30,000. There are four key priority areas under the RAGF, i.e.: (1) to promote Malaysian artists or works overseas; (2) to encourage and facilitate international coproduction and collaboration involving Malaysian talents with international counterparts; (3) undertake research and documentation on the arts; and (4) to develop technical and managerial skills. In 2013, MYPAA and JKKN disbursed funds to 31 organizations under this programme. An open space for all JKKN hopes that more stakeholders in the ecosystem will partake in the transformation of the arts and culture landscape of Malaysia. On this regard, JKKN congratulates MYPAA for taking the lead. JKKN values the presence and contribution of all participants and speakers to the Borak Arts Series 2014. In Bahasa Malaysia, the word “Borak” means to chat and converse; and in this spirit, all participants are invited to have a lively exchange of experience and ideas over the next two days.

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Keynote Address 1: Our Journey in Growing Malaysia’s Arts & Culture Mr. Rosli Rahim, Director of Gallery Petronas, Group Strategic Communications Division, Petronas Trust and Stewardship Petronas was established since 1974 as a business entity wholly owned by the government. It was vested with ownership and control of petroleum resources in Malaysia through the Petroleum Development Act 1974, and therefore had the responsibility to manage and develop this resource. Petronas is founded on the concept of trust – where it is shoulders the responsibility of managing the petroleum resources on behalf of the nation’s people. As such, Petronas conducts its business with the utmost integrity and puts the best interest of the people at the core of the organization. It has contributed RM806bil since its inception in royalty, taxes, and dividends to the government and nation. As a business entity, Petronas has been successful. It has evolved over the years into a fully integrated oil and gas corporation with operations in over 30 countries. It is ranked number 69 on the Fortune Global 500 list in 2014. In 2013, Petronas recorded a profit before tax of RM94.3 billion. Even though it has become a global multi-national corporation, the philosophy of trust and nation-building remains as the core proposition of Petronas. Area of focus and Working Principles Petronas strongly believes that its corporate social responsibility needs to be translated and integrated into its business practices. As such, there are seven key areas in its sustainability development framework: (1) Shareholder value; (2) Natural resource use; (3) Societal needs; (4) Health, safety and Environment; (5) Biodiversity; (6) Climate change; and (7) Product stewardship. In planning and implementing these areas of focus, Petronas and its employees are further guided by the five key principles of: • Belief – to remain responsible for natural resources while balancing with bigger need of the nation; • Development – to pursue a development agenda as oppose to philanthropic exercise; • Long term – to focus on long term results; • Sustainability – results than can be reproduced and replicated; and • Impact to the people – priority in the well-being of people. Arts and Culture Arts and culture development falls under the societal needs category in Petronas’ CSR. For the organization, this is a key area alongside other things such as education, environment, and capacity building.

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Malaysia is blessed with a unique composition of distinct artistic and culture heritage. Petronas believes and support the development of arts towards the nation’s goal of being a developed country as espoused in Vision 2020. The three key programmes under Petronas’ art and culture development are: Galeri Petronas (visual arts gallery); Petronas Grants for Malaysian Traditional Art and Culture; and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. The Galeri Petronas has attracted over 1.7million visitors to date and has hosted over 200 local and international exhibitions featuring over 1,400 pieces of artworks. The Galeri is also active in organizing public and outreach programs such as the PETRONAS Art Competition, Petrosains Science Fest, various school programmes, and Street Art Exhibition. The gallery is the recipient of the Prime Minister’s CSR Award 2009 for Arts and Cultural Heritage. Petronas Grants for Malaysian Traditional Art and Culture began in 2012 and has since given over RM900,000 worth of grants to traditional art groups such as the Dayak Culture Foundation who is practicing indigenous art , and the Sekolah Seni Malaysia (art school) in Johor Bahru and Kuching. The focus of the grant is to promote and preserve tradition performance art forms while nurturing young talents. The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra is a Malaysian orchestra residing in the Petronas Philharmonic Hall. In the 2013/14 season it comprises of 60 international and 17 Malaysian artists, and held 113 concerts with 58,456 attendees. It has toured locally across the country and internationally. The orchestra has also youth orchestra as part of its efforts to develop young talents. At present, the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchesra has 113 members. Collective Action Petronas was involved in the inaugural Funders Roundtable discussion yesterday. Corporations and funders are encouraged to get involved in the ecosystem. To increase the impact and address the gaps, corporations and funders should combine resources and effort in order to be more effective. On this regard, it is encouraged to see that other new groups have emerged to collective take on this responsibility.

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Session 1: What is the Value of Culture How do we start quantifying the goodness of culture? We have multiple stakeholders - funders, audiences, organisations, talents - each with their own values, and different in needs. In view of this, more and more institutions are waking up to the need for more holistic attempts to measure value in the cultural sector. How is this value perceived in the socio-political and economic context? Moderated by: Ms. Meera Sivasothy Presenter and Producer of The Bigger Picture, BFM89.9 Panelist: YBhg Datin Marion D’Cruz Co-Founder of Five Arts Centre, Malaysia Mr. Hamdan Abdul Majeed Executive Director of Think City, Malaysia Mr. Taneo Kato Executive Director of Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan

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YBhg Datin Marion D’Cruz Co-Founder of Five Arts Centre, Malaysia The topic on culture sparks curiosity because in its intuitive definition, culture means a way of life. This would include everything: food, religion, festivals, politics, education system, economic beliefs, superstition, dance, theatre, music, painting, photography, design, architecture, design, and national culture. There are various definitions and characteristics of culture: culture is an integrated system of learnt behaviour patterns which are characteristics of the members of the society; it is central way of how we view, experience, and engage with all aspects of lives and the world around us; it is shaped by historical political social and cultural context we live in; culture is the totality of socially transmitted behaviour patterns; it is the predominating attitudes and behaviours that characterizes a function of a group of an organization. The term “culture” was first used by an anthropologist named Edward Tylor in his book entitled Primitive Culture which was published in 1871. He concluded that culture is a complex which involved knowledge, beliefs, arts, law, morals, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by human beings as a member of society. Culture is a powerful tool for human survival, but it is also a fragile matter. It is constantly changing and easily lost because it exists only in our minds. Our written languages, governments, buildings, and other human made things are merely products of culture which reflect cultural patterns. It is difficult to talk about culture given its extremely wide scope. So instead, the discussion would focus on the arts. The arts is part of culture. It is the soul of the people; and without the arts, we will die. Renowned Malaysian artist, Yee I-Lann, once mentioned – in her reference to her Tamparuli Arts Centre project in Sabah – that art is important in our society because it brings about dialogue and discussion on the issues we faced in a softer approach. It is a language and mode of expression to facilitate stories and expression of emotions. Art can be very useful because it can help transcend differences and prejudices. The Tamparuli Arts Centre was set up because there is was a growing need in Sabah for spaces for people to express their thoughts, emotions, and stories. In 1993, the Five Arts Centre conducted a Theatre Muda (Youth Theatre) project. Audition sessions were organized to select children between the age of 12 to 16 to participate in a six month arts training project which involved music, dance, and traditional arts. In one instance, there was a child by the name of Wafi who participated in the programme. Wafi was a child who was very unenergetic, has bad posture, and has difficulties in focusing; but after going through the programme, he transformed into the complete opposite. Many of the children who participated in the programme went on to have successful careers, and they would often recall how Theatre Muda changed their lives. In the ASWARA dance school in Malaysia, prospective students had to go through audition sessions before they could be admitted. It was a constant challenge to balance between talent and development in this process. There was a student by the name of Natasha, who initially did not do well in her audition. Natasha at that point of time was working as a salesperson in a convenience

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shop. However, she completed her diploma in ASWARA and is currently part of the DBKL (city council) cultural dance troupe. The story of Gillian Lynne – a world renowned ballerina and choreographer of Phantom of the Opera and Cats – is another of such inspiration. As a child, Gillian Lynne was an extremely active child and her teachers told her parents that she may have behavioural disorder. Her mother took her to the doctor. When the doctor spoke privately to her mother outside of the room – and at the same time leaving music on – Gillian started dancing gracefully. The doctor told Gillian’s mother that there is nothing wrong with Gillian, and that she should send her to a dance school. Is there value in the arts? They allow us to reflect on our life and encourage us to express ourselves. Arts empower and allow for multiple views – which is much needed in this country. It is a catalyst for change, which educates, entertain, and provoke thoughts. Arts encourage and nurture creativity – something that every human being needs – and creativity is needed in every section and layer of society. Artists are privileged to stand within and at the edge of the society at the same time; they view and reflect upon society from the edge, and then they make art that hopefully tells us something about ourselves and our society. The late Krishen Jit once mentioned that the most functional, if not the best, artists stands apart from society as they observe social and cultural landscape. Theirs is the viewpoint of a committed outsider. In Malaysia especially, we need to empower multiple views, inclusivity, and layered meanings We so need for our souls to sing; and the arts can help achieve that. There is a need to introduce and strengthen arts in our education system so that the arts become part of the people’s growing experience. This would enable them to become artists or consumers in the future. With regards to the management of arts and culture under the government, there have been many changes over the years. In 1970s, arts and culture was under the Youth and Sports Ministry, which was quite an important portfolio. This later changed as arts and culture was combined into the Ministry of Arts, Culture, and Tourism; the arts is seen as to serve and service tourism. At one point of time, it became the Ministry of Culture, Arts, and Heritage on its own; but has now regressed again to be under the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. The arts should be the responsibility of everyone, and artists should not be always playing the blame game. Funding will remain a challenge, but for Malaysia, what is needed is more transparency, clarity, and a systematic approach on how artists can access funds for the arts. The timelines to apply for these funds must also be realistic. Private institutions too have a key role in the industry. For example, Petronas used to fund and support the Petronas Performing Arts Group (PPAG), which consists of over 30 dancers and artists. However, the group was closed down a few years ago; which sends a bad signal across the arts industry. The arts and culture ecosystem has changed substantially over the last 10 years and it continues to move in the right direction. With the work of agencies such as MYPAA, Kakiseni, and JKKN, there has

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been much more dialogue between stakeholders despite various weaknesses. There are also more art groups which have received support via various schemes.

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Mr. Taneo Kato Executive Director of Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan There was an incident once when the speaker visited a centre for people with learning disability. One of the residents in the centre had a peculiar behaviour, where he would take a long time – more than 30 minutes – to walk down a flight of stairs and likewise, walking very slowly during his walking session. At the end of the walking session however, he would walk back to the centre at a normal pace. The caretakers in the centre believe that this is his performance and a way for him to express himself. This reminds us that art can be useful in challenging our existing mind set and thoughts. Japan is recognized as a country where its citizens are actively involved in arts. For example, the tradition Japanese poem, haiku, is widely practiced by citizens and is carried in almost all newspapers in Japan. The development of Japanese art and culture was a long process; it probably started over 150 years ago. Research has shown that at that point of time, the Japanese people were very highlight literate. Therefore, poems and literature was used a way to creatively communicate. In the present modern era, the population of japan still enjoy being part of the arts, and many are actively becoming creators instead of just consumers; for example in the manga and animation industry. There is a paradox where even though there are many art makers and creators, the modernization and industrialization of Japan over the past 150 years has eroded some traditions and made Japan more westernized. High culture for example, is usually popular in the form of orchestras and western styled paintings. However, there are also other groups which are more receptive towards pop-culture, i.e. art forms that are more relative to their everyday life. At some point, these two contrasts would need to be connected in order to continue enhancing the arts and culture in Japan. Supporters of the arts must keep an open mind in supporting new forms of arts expression, especially those by young people, which would usually go beyond conventional norms and genres. The power of the arts lies in its ability to move people’s minds and hearts to question our own perception towards the world and society. After years of trying to convey this message, KMK has managed to achieve some success as people and corporations are more ready to support contemporary forms of art. But various challenges still remain, such as the difficulty in changing the minds of policy makers, and the fact that there is no societal consensus on the value of such art as opposed to traditional art forms.

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Mr. Hamdan Abdul Majeed Executive Director of Think City, Malaysia In the 1969 International Conference on Traditional Drama and Music of South-east Asia, Malaysia founding father Tunku Abdul Rahman, said that “We usually forget that apart from making a living on this earth, human beings live in societies and these societies have cultures. It is only through having cultures that mankind on this earth has an ordered and meaningful life. Music and drama are two of the many important manifestation of a culture. They are important because they represent the expressions emanating from the power of human artistic creativity.” The quote by Tunku Abdul Rahman is still relevant in many ways in present time. Culture is very much intertwined with the soul of the human being; without culture, human being cannot exist. It also interrelates with the issue of identity, and manifests in forms such as food, beliefs, and materials objects. People are often caught in the debate on ascertaining an economic value of culture. This originated from the funders and supporters of the art who, as part of their evaluation and selection process, tries to quantify the returns on their investment. Additionally, the challenge is also to measure and ensure that the artists have delivered the work that was proposed. The George Town Festival in Penang started in 2007. At that point of time, the city remained very much stuck in time in a derelict condition. Fast forward today, the collaborative effort between the government, civil society, businesses, citizens, and artists in taking advantage of George Town’s status as a UNESCO Heritage site has made the city alive and vibrant. In the world today, people are living in an age of extreme mobility – where people and technology are moving quickly and frequently – and therefore there is competition among cities. The factor that remains constant however, is the identity and the location itself. If we can reinvent the city and make its economy and identity to be rooted in culture and heritage, then the city would have a distinct advantage. Think City has focused its effort into seeding, capitalizing, and enabling various initiatives that is in line with this vision. This would happen through various forms – restoration of building, funding festivals, supporting the arts community, or publishing materials. The organization wants to push arts and culture into the frontier of change. As custodians of public funds and wealth, Think City’s role is not to be discriminatory and limiting; but instead to capitalize, enable and shape outcomes that are beyond the ordinary by creating new possibilities. In a multi-faceted society such as Malaysia, this would involve accepting differences and diversity. In terms of economic value and impact, we have heard about the success story of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, which cost about EUR96 million to construct in 1997 using public money. The issue of return on investment was raised because of this high cost. However, in just three years, the museum has attracted over 4 million visitors and the government has recovered its investment through over half a billion euros in economic activity – increase in taxes from hotels, restaurants, and other related activities.

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The George Town festival may not be the most extravagant and expensive festival, but it is one that is very inclusive and celebrates diversity. It brings together local and international talents, embraces new ideas and celebrates the old. The spill over impact of the festival is very signification. For a whole month, the city is in a celebratory mood. The brand name of the city, George Town, has also increased – not just because there is a huge amount of money invested via these festivals, but because culture and heritage was at the core of George Town’s reinvention. There are implications and factors to think about in terms of increasing accessibility to the arts by providing free access to shows and performances. In Kuala Lumpur for example, there are various art festivals which is free for people to participate in. However, this would affect other shows and performances which are selling tickets for their financial sustainability. On the other hand, we need to continue educating and building the audience in order to generate consumers. To popularize the consumption of arts, it needs to be embedded into everyday activities. For example, by bringing arts to the street to make it more connected to the everyday life of the people, instead of in a confined space. It also makes the art more interesting and engaging for both the performers and audience. One of the biggest challenge in funding for the arts is the attempt of bridging the value proposition between the practitioner (i.e. the arts), and the private sector and the government. Funders usually look at it from a return of investment perspective, while artists focuses more on artistic value and expression. In conclusion, arts and culture is very much interrelated with the soul of human beings. Countries and cities need to embrace arts and culture to remain relevant and to survive. A creative economy and culture exists when there is interplay between the arts, design, technology, innovation, and creativity. The challenge is in manifesting it in every day in a more meaningful way so that it can be better appreciated, supported, and nurtured. The key lies in how we move as a group and in a more interdisciplinary approach. This would involve having more dialogues between stakeholders. There is bound to be divergence in views, and many other obstacles – but there is a lot to celebrate as well.

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Pecha Kucha Country Update: New Zealand Mr. Gareth Farry Arts Manager of British Council, New Zealand New Zealand has a bi-cultural system where on one level it is represented by the indigenous Maori people community, and the other level is represented by the European immigrants. However, New Zealand has become a multicultural society with four million people. Geographically, there are four main cities in New Zealand’s in relation to arts: 1. Auckland – is the centre of comer with a population of 1.5 million people. Most of the arts

activities are based there, 2. Wellington – is the centre of governance with a population of 700,000 people. The film industry is

vibrant in this city. 3. Christchurch – which was devastated by the earthquake in 2011. It is now unique environment

where there are post disaster reconstructions. There are also many social enterprises and positive use of urban space and regeneration.

4. Dunedin – a city with 100,000 people 100k people, well known for its university city campus and vibrant music industry in the 1980s.

New Zealand’s cultural landscape and art forms have changed significantly in recent times. Artists are exploring more forms of cross cultural art work and are integrating digital technologies and visuals in their work. It is also important to note that arts and culture in New Zealand is largely connected to its environmental – the open space (as oppose to congested cities) and natural surroundings. This forms a huge aspect of the national identity and has significant influence on the lives of people. In terms of audience, a census conducted last year showed that 95% of the New Zealanders have seen an arts performance in the last 3 years. This is in comparison with a 75% result back in 1995. The appetite for international art is growing as well; instead of watching films, people are also going to theatres. Films and music are generally well supported, but other art forms such as theatre, drama, and dance are increasingly popular. The government has also started to invest in the arts as it is a strong indicator of both economic growth and the well-being of the people. New Zealand has changed from being one of the most regulated to the least regulated economy in OECD countries in the past 25 years. Performing arts make up 13% of the country’s export GDP, while 2% is consumed locally. However, this would be a skewed result because of the significant boost brought by the filming of the Lord of the Rings movie. It is important for New Zealand to be part of the regional arts network. Programmes such as performing arts market and festivals around Asia provide important platform for directors and presenters to view the art. Such events also provide an opportunity to discuss about issues such as finance and logistics.

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The multicultural context would inevitable cause various forms of tension and conflict. One of the best ways to resolve such tension is through the arts – e.g. theatre, dance, and music. Through the arts, people can explore the questions of identity as it provides a space and non-confrontational manner. The arts also brings different communities together for discourse, and collective unite in embracing the arts.

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Session 2: Getting To Know Our International Fund Partners We believe that encouraging cultural cooperation and fostering the mobility of artists are necessary, and the motivations for the support lie in the growing importance of culture and cultural mobility in international policies. What kind of useful fund information is out there? Find out information about the funds related to the international market / Asian region, which can enable overseas and in co-operation / collaboration to take place. Moderated by: Mr. Terence Conrad Director of TerryandtheCuz Productions, Malaysia Panelists: Mr. Yohann Floch Coordinator of Fresh Arts Coalition Europe (FACE), and member of On The Move, Belgium Mr. Jean-Yves Coffre Board member of Res Artis, and Director of Centre D’Art Marnay Art Centre, France Ms. Monica Turner Project Officer (Culture) of Asia New Zealand Foundation, New Zealand Mr. Masaya Shimoyama Managing Director of The Japan Foundation Asia Center, Japan Ms. Valentina Riccardi Project Manager of Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF)

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Ms. Monica Turner Project Officer (Culture) of Asia New Zealand Foundation, New Zealand The Asia-New Zealand Foundation was established in 1994 with the objective of increasing New Zealand’s reach, knowledge, and understanding on Asia. This was in a context where New Zealand was very Europe-centric at that point of time. The government wanted to shift its focus to Asia where future economic possibilities would be strongest. By 2030, Asia’s middle class is expected to reach 3 billion people. Asia pacific would be home to 60% of the world’s middle class, and there of the four biggest economies in the world would be Asian countries. Asia’s transformation is also transforming New Zealand: 40% of the country’s export goods are to Asia, with China being that largest trade partner; more than 20% inbound tourists are from Asia; and one in 4 Aucklanders are of Asian descent. The Asia-New Zealand Foundation is a non-profit and non-partisan organization. It is accountable to a Board of Trustees appointed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It is primarily funded by this Ministry, but also receives support from other government bodies and corporate sponsorships. The foundation partners with a range of nationally and international organizations across the private and public sectors, such as schools, businesses, university, and art organizations. The Arts and Community Programme of the foundation is exclusively for New Zealand based organizations. The objective of the programme is to support New Zealand art professionals in creating network in Asia; to support collaborative and reciprocal projects between New Zealand and Asia; and to assist New Zealand arts and culture organizations in staging Asia-related content. This is executed via a range of activities such as residencies, curator tour, and performing arts tour. However, there are also many opportunities for collaboration with New Zealand artists and organizations. For example, the Indian Ink Theatre Company is interested in touring to Malaysia and to collaborate with local artists. The Indian Ink Theatre Company is one of New Zealand’s most successful touring theatre companies which blends western theatre traditions with eastern content. It is critically acclaimed for use of live music, heightened theatricality, humour, and storytelling. In addition, the Asia-New Zealand Asia Foundation also supports programmes which increases connection and networking of New Zealand artists to Asia – such as residencies, artists exchanges, and performing arts tours. In this regard, the foundation is interested to hear ideas and proposals. In assessing grant proposals, one of the main criteria is that it should be pertinent to creating meaningful long-term relationships in Asia with a view of working collaboratively. Creating collaboration is a two stage process; at the beginning, there must be networking to explore and build relationships, before collaboration can happen. As such, the foundation understands the need for artists to develop and build meaningful relationships, and that this process would take a long time frame. Additionally, successful candidates are usually those who have a good understanding of the foundation and its objectives. Applicants need to show in their plan how the proposed programme or project would meet the objectives.

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Ms. Valentina Riccardi Project Manager of Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) The Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) is based in Singapore but works across 51 countries in Europe and Asia. It works on a broad area of arts and culture, i.e. not just on performing arts, but also other forms such as visual arts, museum, heritage, new media, photography, and film. ASEF is an intergovernmental organization set up in 1997. It receives funds from governments which are members of the organization and as such is a public funded organization. Besides arts and culture, the foundation also works on other areas such economics, human rights, sports, environment, and education. As for the arts programme of ASEF, the main objective is to facilitate and create connections among people and countries. This is done through four main programme categories: (1) promoting mobility; (2) documenting information and good practices; (3) promote knowledge exchange between cultural mediators; (4) facilitate dialogue between policy makers and the arts communities. (1) Under the promoting mobility programme, ASEF facilitates and supports bi-regional mobility through open-call mechanism. This includes the creation of new and sustaining existing network. The primary target group are artists and practitioners who have limited access to international mobility. (2) As for the documentation programme, ASEF has created the culture360.asef.org portal, which provides information on the arts and culture industries in different countries. One of the key features of the website is its database of over 1,000 cultural organizations in Asia and Europe, which allows interested parties to look for potential partners for networking or collaboration. ASEF has also published the Mobility Funding Guides, which compiles the various funding opportunities available for mobility. The guide contains wide and detailed information on issues such as: artists residencies, scholarships for training, exploration grants, event participation, market development, and research Additionally, the foundation published the Enabling Crossovers guide in 2014 which documents 36 good practices in the creative industry across Asia and Europe. The compilation showcases examples of policy and practice that may serve as inspiration for networking, collaboration and policy making. Likewise, there are also publication on country-specific arts and culture profiles, i.e. which provides an overview and analysis of the arts industry in a particular country in connection with its politics, policies, and environmental factors. This publication is helpful for people to better understand the country that they are interested to engage with. At present, there are country profiles on India, South Korea, and Vietnam. (3) Under the knowledge exchange programme, there are two grant schemes. First is the Creative Network grant, which looks at building networks between the Asia-Europe region (but also now includes intra-regional networks). Secondly is the Creative Encounter grant, which focuses more on facilitating and supporting artistic collaboration between cultural professionals and arts organizations. In assessing grant applications, one of the key factors considered is the practicality of the proposal. This means that some initial stage and form of idea and ground work must already be in place.

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Secondly, is the criterion of multilateralism, i.e. to embrace and encouraging as many type of people as possible in the project, especially from new regions. Thirdly, the foundation considers the sustainability of the project beyond the period that is funded. (4) As for the facilitation of dialogue between policy makers and the arts communities, ASEF supports programmes that increases dialogue on funding for mobility and has been actively involved in advocacy platforms such as in the Europe Union. The European Union has conducted a study to understand and assess the role of culture in improving Europe and Asia relationship. This has further led to the Canary Island Declaration on Artistic and Cultural Mobility where six independent cultural mobility funding organizations affirmed the commitment on increasing mobility to help artists and individuals to learn, understand, and experience other culture.

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Mr. Jean-Yves Coffre Board member of Res Artis (RA) and Director of Centre D’Art Marnay Art Centre, France RA is an an association with over 400 art centres and organization from 70 countries across all regions. Its members are a mix of small and independent artist-run spaces, and large, established institutions. This would include foundations, arts councils, governmental organisations, consulates and cultural centres, universities, and corporations. RA is dedicated to the promotion of cultural exchange and artist mobility. It aims to provide a critical forum for organizations or residency programmes to develop creativity and at the same time challenge conventional cultural assumption. The core work of RA is the meetings and dialogues between arts network, which provides opportunities for members to meet, discuss, learn, explore and build relationships. RA organizes three forms of meetings: general meetings which are for members, regional meetings, and thematic meetings. Among the programmes conducted by RA are: • The ResSupport programme, which is a peer-to-peer support program for people who are interested

to undergo art residencies programmes. Information on the needs and challenges of a residency programme are shared through methods like workshops, fellowship programme, and resource materials.

• Res Artis Awards, which is in a form of a residencies programme awarded to one deserving artist. The residency programme is donated and sponsored by a member organization.

• ResSupport Fellowship, which is a platform for an established RA member organization to donate and sponsor a residency period to an emerging organization. This provides the emerging organization to improve their own residency programmes.

• Res Mapping, which is an exercise to map all residencies programme worldwide. Based on a survey among its members, RA members have conducted over 4,262 residency programmes in 2013, with average duration of 50 days per residency.

In short, residency programmes offer artists, curators, and all manner of creative people a time and place away from their everyday life to undergone a process of creative exchange and creation with other artists. As residency programmes usually take place overseas, the experience is further enhanced with a unique geographic and cultural context. RA’s website – resartis.org – provides a directory of various artist residencies around the world.

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Mr. Yohann Floch Coordinator of Fresh Arts Coalition Europe (FACE), and member of On The Move, Belgium On the Move is a European network dedicated to cultural and artistic mobility with 37 members globally, including Asia. Members come from across all artistic disciplines – design, dance, theatre, music, etc. On The Move is sustained via donations, partnership, and funding. The organization understands cultural mobility as “the temporary cross-border movement of artists and other cultural professionals. Certain forms of mobility relate to the individual (e.g. networking, residencies, etc); others are intrinsically connected to the works or performances in another country. (…) Mobility is not only understood as occasional movements across national borders that may be useful to gain professional experience required for career advancement as well as advance artistic endeavour, but more as an integral part of the regular work life of artists and other cultural professionals.” (From Ericarts, Mobility Matters 2008) The network’s primary purpose is to facilitate access to information. The team in On The Move focuses on mapping out all the artistic mobility opportunities all year long, such as programmes on residencies, incubator programmes, co-production, and access to conferences. These information are available for free. The website (On-the-move.org) has guides on cultural mobility, and is sorted by geographical areas, topic, and region. The guides are updated quite regularly to remain relevant. This is part of an initiative to bridge the gap between the many opportunities out there – travel grants, funding calls, residencies, festival invitations – with people who are looking for such opportunities. It also broadens the opportunities available by introducing opportunities in new and unexplored regions (such as the middle-east and Eastern Europe), which artists may not have been aware of or considered before. Europe is diverse in many aspects – language, politics, cultural policies, history, economy, etc. However, in general, most residency centres focuses more on contemporary forms of art. This is a factor to consider when applying for residency programmes.

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Mr. Masaya Shimoyama Managing Director of the The Japan Foundation Asia Centre, Japan The Asia Center is a new organization established in April 2014. It is established as part of the Japan Foundation, which has over the past 40 years conducted cultural and arts programmes in three areas: • Japanese language education – providing universities, schools, and language centres on Japanese

language programmes; • Japanese studies and intellectual exchange – supporting universities and research institutions to

promote Japanese studies, and organize symposiums relating to global issues; and • Arts and cultural exchange – supporting Japanese arts and cultural programmes to increase

familiarity on Japanese arts and culture. During the ASEAN-Japan Commemorative Summit Meeting in 2013, Japan Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, announced new policies on cultural exchange in Asia. In his statement, the Prime Minister expressed the importance of equal partnership and bi-directional exchange in respecting diversity. This further led to the establishment of the Japan Foundation Asia Centre. The organization primary focus is to organize exchange programmes in two fields: Japanese language learning assistance; and two-way arts and cultural exchange. The Japan government has provided a budget USD300m to be spent over the next 7 years, which leads up to the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo. The Japan Foundation Asia Center’s work and programmes are centred on the 4Cs, i.e. to: • Communicate – to expand the range of interaction and cultural exchange to improve mutual

understanding. One of the projects conducted is the Nihongo Partners Programme, where citizens are despatched to ASEAN countries as partners for local teachers and learners to assist in Japanese language education and at the same time, to learn and deepen understanding on the culture of the local community;

• Connect and share – to promote the development of human resource and “soft” infrastructure for the support of culture. This means to create better relationships and affinity between people in Asia;

• Collaborate – to form strong networks from a diverse range of cultural fields, and lay the foundation to build platforms for sustainable cultural exchanges;

• Create – to generate new values and movements in Asia, and to raise issues and proposals to improve the future of arts and culture.

To this effect, the Japan Foundation Asia Center has supported various programmes such as the Tokyo International Film Festival which was held in last October. Over 80 participants from all over Asia and ASEAN countries were invited, which includes film makers, directors, actors, producers, and buyers. Asia Centre supports the Performing Arts Meeting in Yokohama (TPAM) which is the oldest international platform for performing arts in Asia, where performing arts professionals mutually learn and network through a diverse range of programmes. The centre has also started the Asian Youth Jazz orchestra project. The orchestra consists of young musicians from ASEAN and it provides opportunities for rehearsals camps in Tokyo and to perform across Asia.

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In terms of grants and fellowship programmes, there following opportunities are available:

Program Eligibility Grant Coverage

Grant Program for People-to-People Exchange

• Non-profit organizations from Japan

• Exchange projects at grassroots or regional level which are implemented in ASEAN countries

• Travel expenses • Accommodations • Venue and equipment hire

The Asia Center Fellowship Program

• Specialists from Japan or ASEAN countries, who are engaged in research, creative activities

• Travel expenses • Living and Activity expenses

Grant Program for Promotion of Cultural Collaboration

• Organizations based in ASEAN countries or Japan

• International collaborative projects in Asia

• Travel expenses • Accommodations • Venue and equipment hire • Interpretation and translation

costs

All in all, the centre is interested in developing network and relationships among people in Asia which can be sustained for a long time. The Japan Foundation Asia Centre is open for ideas and suggestion. It hopes to become the catalyst that will help deepen relationships between the people in Asia, and to share its culture and creativity to the world.

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Session 3: Info Cell B – Enacting Citizenship Through Arts

Panelists:

Mr.Pang Khee Teik Founder of The Special Bunch, Malaysia Mr. Mark Teh Director and Research Mr. Fahmi Fadzli Performer and social lactivist Ms. Khoo Gaik Cheng Associate Professor of University Nottingham, Malaysia

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Ms. Khoo Gaik Cheng Associate Professor of University Nottingham, Malaysia Walter Berns, an American constitutional law and political philosophy professor explained citizenship as “a sense of belonging to a community for which one bears some responsibility. In a word, citizenship implies public-spiritedness, which is akin to patriotism, and has to be cultivated.” It is interesting to note the word “cultivated”, which means something needs to be actively done. It is in collective action and doing, i.e. when people come together, that they share a common goal and values. Beyond this, citizenship could be expanded to the large concept of cosmopolitan. This is when a person believes that he or she is a citizen of the world, as oppose to a citizen to a nation. The notion of Ummah in Islam for example, is one such expression. There are two contrasting view on citizenships: • Liberal-individualist conception – which focuses on the person’s economic nature; based on

enlightened self-interest motives; and where citizens are passive politically and are sovereign, autonomous beings with duties to pay taxes and obey the law.

• Civic-republican conception – which focuses on the person’s political nature; where citizenship is about democratic participation; of which citizens can channel legitimate frustrations and grievances on matters of common concern; and where citizenship happens in public sphere and includes active political participation.

The latter definition as above implies that citizenship is connected with the person’s environment and it is the social issues that pull people together as citizens. In Malaysia, the public sphere is hampered by laws that restrict freedom of expression. But the internet, due to protection from censorship accorded in the multimedia act has evolved into a public space for expression. This however has also become increasingly becoming restricted due to the Sedition Act. Nevertheless, the democratization of the internet has enabled many film makers and the general public to produce and display their films and videos at a much lower cost and in a convenient manner. They are making films not just for artistic appeals but also as acts of citizenship. In the past few years, the were numerous examples where people used videos and films as acts of citizenships, such as: the various public awareness video on voter and electoral education prior to the general elections in 2013; music video on the BERSIH rally; an online TV show called the Effing Show which uses comedy to discuss social issues; community arts projects such as “Jom Angkat Rumah”; documentary videos on the LYNAS issue on radioactive hazard; and Nasi Lemak 2.0, a long form socio-political satire by Namewee. There is a balancing act to ensure that the films are speaking strongly but yet subtlety on the subject issue, and not to be too radical and lose potential audience.

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Additionally, there are also some mainstream films such as Talentime by Yasmin Ahmad which challenges issues of race relations. It is important to also have these representations in mainstream films, not just in the independent films sphere.

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Mr. Fahmi Fadzli Performer and social lactivist In Malaysia, about 60-70% of people have internet access, especially the young. There are 14 million Facebook accounts and 1.4 million twitter accounts. Under the MSC Bill of Guarantees, the internet will not be censored, but there has been a rise of cases where people are charged for posting dissenting remarks. At this day and age, citizenship is no longer a unilateral relationship between the state and citizens. With the rise of technology, consumers can also be producers; and so citizens have the power to become a filmmaker, photographer, or publisher. This displaces the locus of power, and could be unnerving for the state in terms of what can be controlled and limited. This presentation will look specifically at the use of “meme” in discussing the act of citizenship. A meme is an image, video, piece of text, etc, typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users, often with slight variations. It has been widely used by Malaysians and all around the world to express their thoughts and ideas. It becomes a counter or alternative narrative on an issue which otherwise may have seen the light of day. There are numerous examples to illustrate this trend in Malaysia, such as: • An car incident in Kuantan, Pahang where a lady’s – by the name of Kiki – car was knocked by an

elderly man’s car. The elderly man apologized but Kiki was deeply angered and took out a steering lock and started beating the man’s car in rage. This incident was captured on video, and went viral in social media. In response, people started creating and posting various satirical meme to state their outrage and disapproval on the behaviour.

• In January, the Malaysian Prime Minister made a passing remark that the price of kangkung (a kind of spinach) has gone down despite inflation and taxes, and that people should be thankful for this. Instead, the statement created an outrage among the people because it felt that the Prime Minister did not understand the increasing economic hardship that people are facing. Meme were used to assert their dissatisfaction.

• A sinkhole appeared in Pudu due to a broken pipe in construction. People were quick to take photos and superimpose it with superheroes causing the sinkhole. This was in context where there were often defective and sub-quality infrastructures in Malaysia.

The use and popularization of meme has shown that more and more Malaysians are realizing that they can make commentary on socio-political issues. It can be done creatively and layered with humour. This is especially important when freedom of expression is increasingly being restricted in the country.

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Mr. Mark Teh Director and Research The notion of citizenship always overlaps with the concept of public space. The presentation will highlight three projects which intervened into the physical, political, and artistic landscape of Kuala Lumpur between 2011 – 2013. These projects have limited use of resources, but leveraged on larger parallel events in the public sphere. The three case studies are: (1) Occupy Dataran; Malaysian Spring; and (3) Reclaiming Merdeka Park. (1) Occupy Dataran Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) in downtown Kuala Lumpur is a very important and symbolic space because of the multiple spaces and temporalities overlapping it. During the course of day, it is a space used by many people – tourists, families, couples, homeless, commuters, workers, etc. At times, Dataran Merdeka is used for public celebrations such as the New Year countdown, and it is also the desired locus of public rallies such as the Bersih and Reformasi. Finally, it is a place of birth and death – it symbolizes the end of the British colonization of Malaya, and the birth of a new nation. The Occupy Dataran project was inspired by the global Occupy Movement which has, at that point of time, gained mass support in Spain and USA. It began with a series of weekly meetings, where people met and discussed about democracy in a more direct and participatory ways. Two weeks before the Bersih3.0 rally (a major public protest for free and fair elections), the Occupy Dataran group has evolved into full public view. The students and activists activated this public space by organizing free lectures, workshops, and art events. What’s interesting is how the space would shift and transform on a daily basis. The city hall enforcers would come and confiscate the tents and other belongings; and the next day, the Occupy Dataran group would set it up again. A public space in Malaysia really means that the space “belongs” to the state. It is not a neutral that is free and assessable to all because it is policed and governed by various laws. A few days before the Bersih rally, the city hall cleared the space and erected barricades lines. In many ways, the barricade was the city hall’s work of art – a public installation of sort, which frames the notion of public space.

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(2) Malaysian Spring The project was initiated by Ng Sek San, a landscape architect, and took place in a roundabout in Lucky Garden, Bangsar, which is predominantly a residential area. Sek San gathered around 60 people who lived around Lucky Garden and started creating a landscape in the roundabout by planting “flowers” (which are multi-coloured flags). The flowers symbolizes a hope for a new Malaysia as the general elections was upcoming at that point of time.

The City Hall intervened by dismantling and removing the flags. But later on the same day, residents who were not involved in the initial planting began to rebuilt the landscape. The incident later went viral on social media, and more people started customizing and replicating the idea in different areas. A few days later, the ruling political party decided to put their party’s banners and flags around the roundabout. The Malaysian Spring project was able to shift the debate on the politics of space to the backwards of citizens – a small roundabout that was previous insignificant had become important and symbolic to the community.

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Marco Kusuma Wijaya, an Indonesian architect once said that “common spaces are characterised by their capacity of communities taking matters into their own hands, of doing things by themselves, relatively without the dependence to the mediation or services from the state.” (3) Reclaiming Merdeka Park The Merdeka Park was the second oldest national park in the country which was situated next to the Merdeka Stadium – where the nation’s independence was declared. It is no longer in existence and the place is now ironically a construction site for the Menara Warisan Merdeka (National Heritage Tower). The Merdeka Park group started by posting up flyers and photos of the iconic mushroom shed sculpture which was once situated in Merdeka Park. In the Cantonese language, “Tunku” refers to mushroom, but symbolically in Bahasa Malaysia, the word referred to Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s founding father. The posters had captions expressing that the “Tunku” is missing – referring both to the physical mushroom and also Tunku Abdul Rahman’s vision of Malaysia.

The group later created a mini park outside of the construction area. They’ve planted artificial grass and held picnics in the area. Families and children would come to participate in the space; and even the construction workers used the space to rest. Finally, they built a replica of the mushroom and planted in in the middle of the construction site

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The projects described in this session were temporary but strongly reminded us to question the notions of private space and public space, especially to think more about common spaces, which is really lacking in Kuala Lumpur as it is increasingly becoming privatized and restricted.

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Mr.Pang Khee Teik Founder of The Special Bunch, Malaysia Part of the theme of this year’s Borak Arts is on sustainability. However, perhaps some things should not be sustained. Using the Annex Gallery –a space that speaker was previously managing – for example, the management was increasingly curbing the programme and content organized there. In the end, what’s being sustained is just a shell without purpose. With regards to funding, the relationship between funders and artists need to be improved with regards to reaching a common understanding on the themes or topics of the art. There could be compromises made in receiving the funding and support, for example, that the art should not be “political” in nature. The arts is a space for people to enact their citizenship. Citizenship, as a concept, doesn’t always need to be a status given from the top to a person; instead it is something that people can perform, express, and create. It is a common space created by people themselves to stake their claims and identity; and the arts certainly has a role in this. Part of the concept of citizenship is the need to compromise – that people have duties to perform in order to enjoy the rights of being a citizen. This is the debacle that people submit themselves to – that compromises need to be made in order to, for example, express their art and thoughts. The public domain is a space that is socially constructed – that people collectively determine what is should be. When a person steps into a public space, he or she becomes produced as a public subject itself; hence blurring the lines of individuality. For example, the person may be called against being himself or herself because the public is not ready for it. In 2008, Pang and Jerome Kugan co-founded the Sexuality Merdeka Movement (SM). During this process, there were a lot of criticisms, including from within the LGBT community – that the issues shouldn’t be made public as long as it was tolerated in the private sphere. In 2011 when SM invited Dato Ambiga – who is a prominent human rights lawyer – to officiate the SM Festival, the movement exploded into the limelight and resulted in various protests against SM. SM was eventually banned and declared illegal. The police also came and stopped a talk on non-discrimination in workplaces. During the incident, there was an argument with the police on whether the event was in a private or public space. SM argued that it was a private event as it was held in private gallery and it was never intended to be a public event. It is interesting to note how one’s sexuality has that potential to be a radical force and makes people anxious when it is brought to the public sphere. As such, people recede more and more into private spaces, where they can negotiate their own subjectivity and private thoughts outside of the influence of the state. But as human beings, there is also a desire of wanting to belong to society; hence the need to compromise. Likewise for artist, the notion of space and citizenship constantly shifts. In discussing issues of funding and mobility, we also need to think about how we collaborate, i.e. to negotiate a commonality where ideas can be expressed in a common space.

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Special Session: Arts and Cultural Support for a Creative and Vibrant Society Panelists: Mr. Taneo Kato Executive Director of Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan Ms. Yasuko Ogiwara Executive Director of Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan

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Mr. Taneo Kato Executive Director of Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan In Japan, the citizens are actively involved in arts and culture. There are numerous exhibitions and performances held throughout the year; however, citizens are not just consumers but are also actively participating. After the earthquake in 2011 for example, there were local traditional performances in the affected areas. Citizens themselves are the carriers and performers of the arts. Japanese corporations play a major role in supporting the arts. In the beginning, corporations that support the arts are mostly newspaper and train companies. For the newspaper companies, they support a lot of the concerts and art exhibitions. It was also a trend for local train companies to development a specific city of area; therefore they built the art facilities such as museums and theatres. In return, the corporations get publicity and increased branding. In 1990, the KMK was established to encourage corporate support to the arts, without prioritizing returns. As a result, there are several thousand of museums and theatres in the country, and probably a third of them were established by corporates. After 2000, there was a rise of non-profit arts organizations in the form of private initiatives. The relationship between the corporations and the arts then turned into a partnership-based model. In Japan, the arts received a lot of western influences. There is a gap between citizens who are actively involved in the arts in their everyday life and artist who are more experimental and contemporary in their artistic expression. Part of KMK’s role is to close such gap and foster a creative society. It is sometimes difficult to convince corporations to support new and contemporary forms of art because they are very conscious of their brand and how society is evaluating their action and sponsorship. The Japanese government has not been paying much attention to the development of arts and culture. Instead, the private corporations are taking the initiative. The corporations have been inventing a lot of new strategies to support the arts. Japan will host the Olympic and Paralympic games in 2020. Although it is a sporting event, it is also a cultural occasion. As such, KMK has been leveraging on the Olympics to foster greater support towards arts and culture. In this regard there are two specific focuses: to revitalize local areas in japan which are on a decline by using art; and to promote Japanese art and culture to the world. In international relations and politics, Japan has been in difficult position with Korea and China. It is hoped that these difficulties can be overcome via arts and culture. KMK hopes to continue advocating for policies that would benefit both citizens and corporations in terms of the arts. The organization is part of the government’s committee on cultural policies and has advocated on issues such as access to funding. The government is also in the process of setting up an arts council. The citizens and corporations should work together to support the arts and to influence the national cultural policy.

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Ms. Yasuko Ogiwara Executive Secretaryof Kigyo Mecenat Kyogikai/Association for Corporate Support of the Arts (KMK), Japan Corporate support of the arts started about 100 years ago during the modernization period. At that point of time, huge corporations like mining companies, hotels, and train companies started supporting the arts by building concert halls and exhibiting paintings. Many of these collections of paintings are now part of the national collection archive. In Japan, the culture agency under the Ministry of Culture only started in 1968; so can see how the corporates were way ahead in terms of supporting the arts. Established in 1990, KMK seeks to create a cultural platform to encourage the development alliance between corporations, the arts, and citizens. KMK wants to contribute in building a creative society that is vibrant, diverse, and respectful. KMK puts a clear line between corporate marketing activities and support for the arts; so arts is not used just to promote the company. In the past 25 years since establishment, the characteristics of corporate support have changed. There are now more types of programme and methods adopted by corporations in supporting the arts. In terms of management, the process used to be a discretionary approach, but now it is part of the annual budgeting process – hence more sustainable. There is also shift in mind set – that support for the arts is an investment rather than a donation. New bearer of arts such as non-profit organizations and citizen organizations are emerging. In terms of KMK’s membership, there are 139 corporate members and 35 foundation including art and culture organizations, and 14 individuals. There are some minimum regulations and conditions if a party is interested to join KMK, but in general, the door is open to all. KMK also reaches out directly to potential members; but experience has shown that it is a difficult task to increase membership. There are five key programme areas that KMK works on: (1) Research This programme is to collect data on corporate support on the arts. Based on a recent research amongst 420 companies and corporate foundation, approximately USD695mil was contributed to the arts. In comparison, the national budget allocated to the agency of culture by the government is approximately USD879mil. In terms of the category of arts supported: 59.7% for music, 49.1% for art, and 21.2% for traditional festivals & local performing arts. The two main reasons why corporations in Japan support the arts are because they want to contribute to the creation of a vibrant society, and to contribute to the younger generation and social education. (2) Certification and Commendation This is an award programme to recognize corporations who have been active in supporting the arts. Usually there are over 100 candidates, and an average of 7 corporations receive the award. It also raises the profile of corporate support for the arts.

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(3) Information and Publicity This refers to the dissemination of information regarding corporate support activities. In addition, KMK also organizes seminars and conferences where stakeholders and corporations can share their experience and learn from each other. (4) Funding Scheme This is a grant programme for artists and groups. However, the funds are not from KMK; they are funds from corporations channelled through KMK. As KMK has a tax exemption status, corporations are encourages to donate through KMK. In the past 20 years, this scheme was able to generate over USD120mil in support. A fund was also established more recently in respond to the 2011 earthquake in Japan. This fund is to assist in the recovery process of the community affected by the earthquake via arts and culture activities. The fund generated about USD1.1mil. A new scheme called the 2021 Funds for Creation of Society by the Arts and Culture was also create with the aim of investing in arts and culture post-Tokyo Olympics in 2020. This programme focuses on sustainability beyond the 2020 Olympics. (5) Counselling, Cooperation and Coordination KMK is involved in policy advocacy. It aims to create a platform for corporations, citizens, arts organizations, and the government to discuss about policy issues. There are many good examples and case studies of corporate support activities such as: • Shiseido Gallery – The founder of the corporation, Shinzo Fukuhara, believes that its corporate

strategy and growth should not only be in terms of profit but also cultural capital. The Shiseido gallery was established in 1919 and had hosted various exhibitions;

• Kyoto Costume Institute – which was established by Wacoal Corporation, a lingerie company, to collect and preserve the history of clothing, including researching on and exhibit them;

• Nakamura Brace Corporation – In the 1600s, Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine was producing 1/3 of the world’s silver. There are about 200,000 residents in the area. However, when the mine was closed in 1923, the population dwindled and the city started declining. The CEO of Nakamura Brace Corporation revitalized the area by turning it into a tourist destination. Empty houses were turned into corporate dormitories and souvenir shops. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage site;

• Iyo Bank Ltd – which supported grassroots cultural promotion in the local area in which the bank is operating. The bank understands the importance of having a community that is vibrant in its area of operations;

• East Japan Railway Culture Foundation – which supported a lot of cultural programmes in eastern part of Japan;

• Toyota Motor Corporation – which started the Toyota Youth Orchestra Camp to enable creative education for the young people. In line with its innovation in the automotive industry, Toyota believes that creation and innovation starts from creating a creative society;

• Asahi Breweries Ltd – which supports non-profit art activities which focuses on the creation of culture through citizens;

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• Chishima Real Estate Co Ltd – revitalizing an old shipping area into an arts centre and creative village. The area was previously vibrant because of the shipping industry. However, when the industry started declining, it also affected the price of real estates. The new arts centre improved the value and image of the area, and made it vibrant again;

• TOA Corporation – as a company manufacturing sound engineering systems, they support musical activities for education by contributing their sound hall to high school students for concerts. Through the programme, the staff works with the local students and community, resulting in stronger engagement and relationships;

• Canon Inc – Implementation of the Tsuzuri Project, where Canon used their printing technology to make real life size replica of Japan’s rare heritage paintings. The purpose of the project is not to replace the works, but to increase outreach so that people can better understand their arts and cultural heritage;

• Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company – which supports people with disabilities through their “Able Art on Stage” project;

• Toyota Motor Corporation – their Kokoro Hakoby Project is part of a reconstruction assistance programme which works with children in the earthquake disaster area. This project involved the collaboration with amateur orchestra organizations, who worked closely with the children.

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Session 4: Investing Time in Networks What does networking suggest? Are networking platforms an avenue for fund searching or a great excuse for a break? Or are networking activities a vital and increasingly accepted part of the professional development of artists? Moderated by: Grey Yeoh Arts Manager of British Council, Malaysia Panelists: Ms. Hiromi Maruoka President of Pacific Basin Arts Communication (PARC) and Director of Tokyo Performing Arts Meeting (TPAM) Ms. Claire Mooryng Sung Programme Director of Daejeon Arts Center, Korea Mr. Yohann Floch Coordinator of Fresh Arts Coalition Europe (FACE), France

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Ms. Hiromi Maruoka President of Pacific Basin Arts Communication (PARC) and Director of Tokyo Performing Arts Meeting (TPAM) PARC was established in December 1990 with the objectives of organizing basic data regarding performing arts, build information and human network related to the arts, promote international exchange and regional activities with a focus on performing arts, and to widely support advancement of the arts and culture for the benefit of society. One of the main projects of PARC is the Performing Arts Meeting in Yokohama (TPAM). The executives of TPAM comprises of four organizations: PARC, Japan Foundation Asia Center, Kanagawa Arts Foundation and Yokohama Arts Foundation. PARC is in charge of the programming and operates as the secretariat. TPAM started off as the Tokyo Perfoming Arts Market in 1995. In 2011, it moved to Yokohama but the acronym TPAM is retained as many people are already familiar with it. TPAM is a platform for network building. It was started at a time where there were various performing arts market happening across Asia. These markets accelerated international networking in Asia, but they are mostly unilateral in exchanges, i.e. the participants’ objective is to disseminate their performing arts production of their own country to the world. For international participants, such markets were cost-effective opportunities to view and trade art products. Because of the numerous performing arts market happening around the region, the participants would often meet again after a short period of time. Over the years, the participants began to realize that the importance and influence of such meetings. As a platform, the performing arts market is a place where any art professionals can be involved as long as it is in line with the objectives. Such platform provides opportunity to explore and learn about new forms of creativity. There are two important aspects to note when organizing a performing arts market such as this. Firstly, it has to organized continuously and regularly for a period of time. This may sound simple, but in reality it is difficult because of constraints in resources. Secondly, the objectives must be feasible and focused on specific genres and targets. When the speaker was first appointed as the TPAM director in 2005, it was made clear the TPAM will focus on contemporary performing arts because traditional performing arts already has its own market and platform. In the performing arts markets, various products and productions were displayed and exhibited. There are active discussions among buyers and sellers, but usually the transaction is not made so soon. The main function of such network is actually to share and build long term relationships. A network can either be an association, project consortium, or an open network. TPAM functions as an open network – which refers to a non-hierarchical network with a horizontal structure. Through the process of mutually understanding different activities and different cultures of the members, this network creates new values and can be sustained organically. The membership can be renewed easily and the members are free to enter, exist and come back again if needed.

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In terms of programmes in TPAM, there are two broad categories: • Exchange programmes – where groups meet to discussion and exchange ideas through activities

like speed networking, discussion sessions, lectures, and information cells; and • Shows – through TPAM Direction – a unique showcase programme for young presenters to

experiment and create new collaboration with artists – and TPAM Showcase – where various artists and companies perform their work in a diverse and broad setting.

The next TPAM would focus on South-east Asia. This would involve key persons in the arts industry from the region – which includes artists, presenters, and policy makers. International collaboration is one of the model in cross-country performances and has produced a lot of positive outcome. In thinking about the next steps, TPAM is trying to develop a co-production scheme in Asia, which could be the next step in network-building. Network-building is not magic; there may not be immediate impact or collaboration, but the intrinsic benefits are invaluable.

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Mr. Yohann Floch Coordinator of Fresh Arts Coalition Europe (FACE), France FACE is an international network based in Europe that supports and promotes socially engaged, contemporary cross-disciplinary art forms. What’s interesting about this network is its focus on using physical performance in a public space. This means that projects are implemented and designed for a specific building, space, or community in the public sphere. Although it is based in Europe, any organization from other regions are welcomed to join as long as they are in line with the organization’s mission and demonstrate a keen interest in collaborating with international organization. The network creates opportunities for art organizations from different countries to work, grow and cooperate transnationally. The aim is to equip members with new ideas and concepts, tools, and contacts. This would assist them in developing their works internationally. FACE has 43 members across 21 countries. The profile of each member is very diverse; it includes artists, presenters, venues, residency centres, magazines, vendors, etc. This diversity enhances and enables members to learn across sectors. Such cross-disciplinary approach is a key principle of FACE. Originally, the network started by trying to define the different artistic fields and areas, but later on realized that all the members share the same passion for the arts. FACE adds value to the members by bringing in an international dimension to their work and experiences. This gives them opportunities to work trans-continentally and experience different culture. The key component in this is the spirit of comradery among the artists in defending and fighting for the arts. Although there structures and processes in FACE, in the end it is about the relationships between people. In terms of activities, the network works in partnership with the members to organize programmes. FACE does not reinvent the wheel; but instead utilize existing activities or programmes that the network members are already implementing. Among the programmes organized by FACE are: • Meeting sessions – general and regional meetings between members; • Fresh Connection Programme – an exchange programme that enables members of the network to

discover new artistic areas in a vibrant and exciting context; • Accelerator/incubator Programmes – a programme where members come together to experiment

and test out new ideas, and to facilitate the early steps of collaboration, e.g. matchmaking with potential collaborations and pilot programmes;

• Services – skill-based workshops on various topics such as improving overseas outreach, marketing and communication, and consultancies.

• Collaboration with other groups – joint campaigns with other networks to avoid duplication and reinforce each other.

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Networks could also contribute to audience development. Through networking and collaboration, new audiences could be attracted by the resulting higher quality projects. Additionally, network members could exchange ideas on strategies to build and grow the audience base.

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Ms. Claire Mooryng Sung Programme Director of Daejeon Arts Center, Korea Daejeon Arts Center has recently presented a work in collaboration with European partners. This was made possible because of the contacts and networks made over the years. At the initial stage, the work was not yet properly developed, but we still proceeded with it because we trust the people whom we’ve built relationships over the years via networks. In collaborative works, personal contacts are very important. Human beings are intrinsically social in nature; so it is only natural to work together for the optimal results with the resources available. Networks are usually built within the framework of an arts festival or arts market. In Asia, performing art markets allows relatively new comers to have opportunities to build networks. In contrast, the more established performance arts industry uses festivals to build and sustain networks. Building networks and relationships take time; and platforms such as these are good starting points. There are various mechanisms that facilitate network-building, such as speed networking, and matching producers/artists with potential presenters. Cultural institutions in a country can also be a source for networking as they have contact database that could be utilized. A person or organization should be clear about their goals and objectives of networking before investing time and energy into it. Once this is clear, it would be more effective to identify and focus on a small and relevant network that is in line with the goals and objectives; thereafter, it would be possible to extend into larger circles and networks. Informal networks are an importance aspect of networking. Parties and luncheon organized during performing arts market could be a more effective way to get introduced and discuss ideas. However, it could be difficult to get access or be part of these informal networks. The benefits of networking lasts a long time, possibly beyond the person’s generation as the organization and successors could continue to sustain the network. In the future, networks would probably be less formal because after all it’s about the people and relationships, not the system. A networking market may not exist anymore but the informal relationships will definitely be continued. Networking in essence is about working with people we like, so we should invest time in building these relationships.

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Pecha Kucha City Update: Ipoh

 Mr.  Mohd  Jayzuan    Founder  of  Projek  Rabak   Ipoh is a town in Malaysia situated between Kuala Lumpur and Penang. Being an old town, it has many scenic pre-colonial architectures and is more peaceful and calm in comparison with other bigger cities. In the mid-1990s, Ipoh was well known for its vibrant indie music scene. In the last four years, the creative and arts scene in Ipoh blossomed. There were various art spaces, local street wear brands, and literature movements established. This was led by a movement of new and young artists and creative entrepreneurs. Project Rabak was founded in 2011 in Ipoh and it functions as art collective for musicians, poets, writers, photographers, filmmakers, painters, and all things art. Since its establishment, Project Rabak has actively participated in more than 100 shows and performances. This has made the arts scene in Ipoh bloom; and public interested increased especially among the youth.

In 2012, Rabat-Lit was established as the publishing arm of Project Rabak. The publishing house publishes fringe and alternative writings by local poets and writers. This is part of an initiative to be financially sustainable. In 2013, Khizanat opened its door to the public. Khizanat is a café/bistro-cum-book store. It has an open space in which artist can organize events and programmes. After a year in operations, Khizanat have sufficient funds to renovate and improve the place further. Besides Khizanat, many other creative spaces started opening up as well. They were self-funded by the artists themselves. The performing art scene in Ipoh however, is quite scattered. Most youth in Ipoh are disconnected with the performing art scene because it tends to focus more on traditional performance art. The performing arts group are mostly from universities groups. Sometimes, these students from universities gathered and perform during theatre festivals. In January 2015, Project Rabak will organize a local festival called “Ipoh Creative”. This festival will gather various artist form Ipoh and events and programmes will be held over seven days in multiple

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venues. At present, the festival is self-funded by the artists, and any form of sponsorship and support is appreciated.

 

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Session 5: Cultural Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Management models and leadership approaches are constantly changing but is there a right answer when it comes down to it? What role do cultural entrepreneurs play today in the leadership of culture and how do they bring about innovation?   Moderated by: Mr. Umapagan Ampikaipakan Presenter at BFM 89.9, Malaysia Panellists:

Mr. Samuel Seow Managing Director of Samuel Seow Law Corporation, Singapore Mr. Masanori Okuno Open Network for Performing Arts Management (On-PAM ) and Precog, Japan Ms. Nori Abdullah Chairperson of Budi Penyayang Foundation, and founder of Kita-Kita, Malaysia

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Mr. Masanori Okuno Open Network for Performing Arts Management (On-PAM ) and Precog, Japan On-PAM was established in 2013 to look ahead into the future, with consideration of the current and past situation surrounding society and performing arts. It is an open network of people who work closely with society in the performing arts. On-PAM aims to raise the recognition towards the social role of contemporary performing arts and is open to people who are interested to connect with artists and audience – presenters, producers, managers, administrators of arts projects, editors, researches, students, etc. As oppose to having an association or project consortium structure, On-PAM s an open network. All members are connected horizontally and take collective ownership of the network. There are a total of 178 members in On-PAM, consisting of: 155 full member, 12 supporting members, and 11 student members. Full member can attend general meeting and vote, while supporting members and student members do not have voting powers. On-PAM has three main committees, i.e. the committee on • Cultural policy – a committee for forward thinking, i.e. to envision the context of the performing arts

industry in the next ten years; • Community-based co-working – that discusses the role of performing arts in communities and

society; and • International exchange – to connect local members to international networks. The organization also organizes symposiums and exchange party for members to meet, network, and discuss issues. Additionally, there are members-proposed activities from time to time. On-PAM also works on information service for members, where important news related to the network and performing arts are shared and exchanged. In terms of commercialization of the arts, it must be balanced against the core purpose and artistic vision of the artists.

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Ms. Nori Abdullah Chairperson of Budi Penyayang Foundation, and founder of Kita-Kita The Global Centre for Cultural Entrepreneurship defines culture entrepreneurship as “(…) drive global change, create economic value and promote cultural preservation and innovation, in which communities generate self-determination and self-reliance (…) wherever culture is thriving cultural entrepreneurs are busy building businesses and organizations that express ideas, values, traditions, and perspectives – sharing across cultures through markets and commerce.” The Budi Penyayang Foundation was founded by the late Endon Mahmood, who as a public figured, was involved in various charitable work. In 1999, the foundation was set up to bring all her efforts and causes together under a professional and publicly accountable entity. The foundation works in a variety of fields – healthcare, education, volunteerism, etc – but is most known for its work in the arts, especially on batik. Batik is a traditional textile made with wax-resist dying technique. In 2003, Budi Penyayang Foundation and Endon Mahmood started the Malaysia Batik: Crafted for the World movement to act as a long-term vehicle in championing the batik industry in Malaysia. The batik industry at that point of time was declining and not as popular as the Indonesian batik which is renowned for its high quality of craftsmanship and fineness. There were approximately 200 batik producers back then, and the industry is worth about RM2mil. The objective of the batik movement is to revitalize the Malaysian batik industry, and showcase it locally and internationally, and to create a market for its consumption. It also seeks to ensure the relevance, growth and progress of Malaysian batik industry and improve the economic welfare of batik producers especially those in rural areas. In terms of programmes, there were various activities organized such as the Piala Seri Endon batik design competition, street carnival, workshops, and facilitating matching between business and producers. During the Kuala Lumpur International Convention and Exhibition on Batik – of which batik enthusiast from all over the world were gathered together – the World Batik Council was established. Today, the number of batik producers has increased to 800 and the industry is worth RM80mil. However, batik is an inherent part of the Malaysian identity and heritage; it is not just about assigning economic value to it, but also to value it as the soul of the people and as something that defines the nation. On the other hand, Kita-Kita is a social enterprise in a form of a retail outlet which aims to present, promote, and trade in crafts with a Malaysian identity. This is done by sourcing for creative talents who are producing crafts and marketing their products. There would be a contract signed between the producers and Kita-Kita, where goods are sold on a consignment basis. Cultural entrepreneurship is about people understanding and having the skills on the business side of things. This adds value and brings forward the appreciation and love for the arts in a sustainable way.

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Mr. Samuel Seow Managing Director of Samuel Seow Law Corporation Samuel Seow Law Corporation started off as an entertainment legal practice, and later expanded into the arts. This was based on the realization that many artists and organization needed legal assistance, but few actually engage for legal service because it is deemed too expense. The firm initially started off by giving free legal consultancies to the arts industry and practitioners; thus building the relationships and networks. In the longer term, the industry started giving back by employing the firm for legal services. It is important to know what copyright is. In short, a copyright is a protection for the creator against other people copying their work. A copyright arises when there is originality in the work; and more importantly, the work must be reduced into a material form. For example, a person who was transcribing or recording a creative brainstorming session would have copyright over the content, as oppose to the people were came up with the idea. As such, it is important to have copyright to be protected from infringement. In setting up an enterprise for cultural entrepreneurship, we need to know the tools of the trade – such as copyrights and contracts. For a start, the entrepreneur should register a legal entity to protect the trade. In this regard, there are many forms of legal entity to choose from. There must be some level of pragmatism in the arts in terms of sustainability. This means to balance the artistic work with the need to be financially sustainable by including business and commercial aspects. The funds generate for this could then be used to support other artistic contents.

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Closing Remarks

Mr. Brian Lowe Co-founder & My Performing Arts Agency (MYPAA) Over the past two days of Borak Arts, many insights were shared and networks and relationships forged. MYPAA thanks all participants for investing time in the Borak Arts experience. MYPAA wishes to thank all speakers for sharing their knowledge, and to the organizing team from MYPAA, Rantai Art, mapKL, and various freelancers for working tirelessly in making Borak Arts a success. Special thanks to the presenters – JKKN and Sime Darby Foundation – and partners – Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur and Asia Centre, French Embassy, Culture 360, NSTP, and mapKL – of Borak Arts Series 2014. Borak Arts Series will definitely be back in 2015 as we continue to gain momentum and attention. We hope to organize the first Malaysian regional performing arts market, focusing on ASEAN. To this end, we hope everyone will continue supporting MYPAA and Borak Art for the years to come.