The COVID-19 Pandemic and Cultural Policies: The CERB and Independent Artists
Organized by Michael Maranda of the Art Gallery of York University
This panel was focused on a discussion on the issues raised by the CERB and the government response to the pandemic for professional artists. As noted by the panel organizer, there is no doubt that the effect of the pandemic on artists has been immense — loss of exhibitions, sales, and other opportunities for earnings. The assumptions inherent in government programs devised to address the fiscal effects of the pandemic speak to how government policy envisions artists, and how that vision strays from the reality of the gig economy.
Kelly’s presentation in this panel provided “A Few Statistically-Informed Thoughts About Artists and CERB” (available below in pdf form), including statistics about the situation of artists in Canada and how their working lives are atypical compared with the bulk of the Canadian labour force.
A video of all panel presentations is available here. Other panellists were Michael Maranda (assistant curator at the AGYU and lead researcher of the Waging Culture project), Jessa Agilo (founder of ArtsPond, Groundstory, and the I Lost My Gig project), Maegen Black (Director of the Canadian Crafts Federation), and Konstantin Kilibarda (scholar and activist).
