This week was busy getting ready to go (from my home south of Edmonton) to the Visual Arts Summit (VAS) in Ottawa, so I haven't had much fodder for the blog which is unusual for me.
But, today we (artist Shairl Honey and me) arrived in Ottawa just after the lunch hour and checked into the hotel. We had to run around searching for maps, finding out about internet connections, asking about good places to eat dinner, etc.
Tomorrow is the first day of the conference (I've never been to a conference that started on Sunday before) and I am excited about the opportunities in the next few days.
We register in the morning and then board a bus and go tour the Gatineau Preservation Centre. I understand that this is where they preserve fine art. After the tour I will post a blog telling about the tour.
After the tour, the first of the plenary sessions will be held and it is about issues that have arisen due to the intense growth in the Canadian visual arts sector. The VAS information sheets say the discussion will examine the key developmental events to shed light on how artists learn, practice and earn a living, how the art market functions, how the public connects with contemporary art, and the overall policy context for the visual arts. If you understand that, feel free to enlighten me, but I'll be able to tell you in plainer English what that means after the session.
As the conference continues, I'll write daily updates on what was discussed, and what the general feeling was of the attendees about the discussion.
This gathering of the Canadian art 'world' will surely mean some great ideas flying around, and hopefully some of those ideas will mean good things for artists and the art industry.