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Ken Blackburn, executive director of the Campbell River Arts Council, had proven advice to offer when he was invited to the recent Oceanside Cultural Forum at Parksville’s McMillan Arts Centre. “You have to know your community, and the only way to do that is to get out there and talk to people,” said Blackburn, one of three panel presenters invited to the forum. “Do you have an economic development committee? Do you know your city council’s objectives? Do you know who’s working in the social services sector, and what are their objectives and goals?” Blackburn, who straddles the arts, the heritage and the education communities through his positions with the Arts Council, the Museum at Campbell River, and North Island College, said the approach is the same across all three areas. “You don’t go to an organization asking
Ken Blackburn, Executive Director of Campbell River Arts Council, speaks to delegates at the fifth annual Oceanside Cultural Forum, presented Thursday at the McMillan Arts Centre in Parksville.
them for something,” he said. “You’re asking them, ‘What can we do to help you achieve your mission? We’re offering art as a tool for you to achieve your objectives.’” He was attended by a rapt audience of about two dozen arts, civic and community organization representatives in last weekend’s event. Established by Qualicum Beach in 2011, the forum is designed to provide skills development and networking opportunities and to cultivate arts administration talent in the
PHOTO BY J.R. Rardon
mid-Island region, said Patricia Huntsman, project consultant for cultural development for the Town of Qualicum Beach. It was the first year of involvement in the forum by the OCAC, which installed a new board of directors in November of 2014. “We want to build up our organizational capacity to be able to help the arts community grow, because that’s the role of an arts council” said Heidi Abbott, OCAC vice president. “You see here today what Gabriola Island is
doing, what Campbell River is doing. Why not Oceanside?” Blackburn was joined on the forum panel by Kathy Ramsey, president of Arts B.C., and Michelle Benjamin, executive director of the Gabriola Arts Council. “We want to invest in skills development for cultural groups,” said Huntsman. “We’re investing in public art, establishing an arts culture and promoting outreach.” Blackburn’s presentation showed participants how they can expand the definition
of public art, while also highlighting local initiatives like Art in the Hospitals and the arts council’s partnerships with the city and with social service organizations like the John Howard Society. And it’s hardly the first time Blackburn has been asked to share the approach of Campbell River Arts Council. Earlier this year, he held a pair of workshops for Arts B.C. during its annual convention, and said he makes similar presentations in other communities once or twice each year. “It’s a great thing for us in Campbell River, to see that we’re held up as a shining example of how to do things,” Blackburn admitted, then returned to his theme of collaboration. “And I think it’s also an acknowledgement of how much the City and the local community groups have supported us in our work,” he said. “The social services organizations in Campbell River are very progressive in their thinking.”
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