Aug 25 2009

East Midlands - Commissioning Toolkits

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Following Frank Wilson’s keynote at the East Midlands event. The delegates were divided into two groups to talk about or devise a ‘Commissioning Toolkit’.

Below are the notes from the flipchart sheets:

Commissioning Toolkit – Group 1

  • Aspire to high production values
  • Commission to leave a legacy, e.g. A tour
  • Link into ISAN
  • Manage commissioning timescales
  • Realistic incubation periods
  • Clear budget guidelines
  • Access to professional services advice

    • Commissioning Toolkit – Group 2

  • Where do I find artists to commission? ISAN, Agency/festivals have showcases
  • Practical toolkit
  • Needs to be generic/bespoke to each commission
  • Is there a one size fits all? General principles
  • Some specific issues covered by ISAN (Outdoor work) Practical stuff
  • Comes out in the process of doing/making
  • Come and develop a creative dialogue
  • Who owns commissioned work?
  • Theatre is commissioned with a view to touring, visual art is not about touring at all – same for street arts?
  • Practical timings (need to know): Contractual, applications; Commissioner needs to know: artists insurance status, risk assessment
  • How do you brief for outside/non-text based work? Be specific, Lots of dialogue
  • Issues of trust are important
  • Commissioning of outdoor and indoor are similar
  • Things go wrong when there are grey areas: Unforeseen costs, Who is responsible
  • First/biggest step is to find the artist
  • Audience is the starting point
  • Reinforce bureaucratic nature of EU Funds
  • Annual get together for artists and commissioners

    • What would your suggestions be? Please add them in the comments below.

    For your own copy of this document, please click here, for more about the East Midlands click here.

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