Outdoor arts aim for broader funding base

Five arts organisations are joining forces with ISAN, the national membership organisation for the strategic development of outdoor arts, to campaign for the future of the UK’s outdoor arts scene. Concerned that the current funding climate is making the future of the sector increasingly uncertain, the consortium aims to attract new sources of funding and raise public awareness of the diversity and vibrancy of outdoor art forms, the role that they can play in bringing communities together, and the more tangible social and economic benefits they can bring. Often free and accessible to all, outdoor arts provide access for new audiences who don’t regularly experience the arts, but, as a result, they tend to depend heavily on financial investment. Helen Cadwallader, Director of ISAN, said: “This is serious art by serious artists… We want to encourage funding to ensure that the outdoor arts have a long-term future.” The members of the group exemplify a range of art forms in the sector: Bureau of Silly Ideas; Emergency Exit Arts; Kazzum; Kinetika; and Tangled Feet.