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Money, Money, Money
- Funding Support
for Touring Exhibitions: The Touring Victoria Fund.
- Helen
Rayment outlines the obligatory requirements for a successful
funding application to Arts Victoria.
Earlier this year the Touring Services Sub Committee met with
Phil Jones, Arts Officer, Regional Touring, Arts Victoria. Phil
generously discussed the Touring Victoria fund with us. He elaborated
on the processes involved and passed on some very good advice.
The following are some interesting points that came out of our
conversation with him.
Applications are assessed by a panel, which
attempts to encompass representatives from all art forms. For example,
sitting on the March panel were a contemporary art space director,
a regional gallery director, a representative from the Minister's
Council for the Arts, two performing arts centre directors and two
Arts Victoria staff members. The panel is approved by the Minister
and is different for every grant round. The applications are evaluated
by the Panel and then circulated to the Manager, Regional and International
Touring, the Arts Victoria Director, the Departmental Secretary,
the Minister's Arts Advisor and then to the Minister. The Minister
has the final authority to approve or reject funding allocations
based on the recommendations of the assessment panel.
The grants are funded from a designated Community
Support Fund allocation. The primary assessment criteria are to
provide regional audiences with the opportunity to access diverse
art experiences in their own localities, and for artists and producers
to extend the life of their work through touring.
In the March funding round there were twenty
five applications which totalled $650,000 in requests. $190,000
was available to fund touring projects over all art forms from performance
to visual arts and crafts. The eventual decision was to spend $110,000-there
are no specific funding targets and the panel aims to achieve a
good balance. The excess money is carried forward to future rounds.
Tips for prospective applicants:
- don't be afraid to call funding agencies
and discuss your application, for example Phil Jones welcomes
calls from prospective applicants, so never assume anything!
- always follow the guidelines; have you answered
the questions and provided the information requested?
- have a contingency strategy in place as an
application is not viable if it is reliant purely on a large amount
of money from Arts Victoria
- grant bodies liaise so beware! For example
Arts Victoria communicates with Visions of Australia, the Commonwealth
Government's national touring exhibition grant program, and a
summary is sent from Visions to Arts Victoria asking for Arts
Victoria input
- don't just rehash a prior application, make
each attempt fresh and applicable to the fund to which you are
applying
- don't over inflate your budget, rather be
sure that the application is viable as Arts Victoria will not
consider funding over 50% of a project's costs and over 30% is
considered questionable
- it's important that there is some cost sharing
in the tour and that exhibitions are sold to presenting organisations
for an exhibition fee; ask yourself if the destinations are appropriate
Three years ago Arts Victoria was not supporting
touring projects excepting mainstream performing arts. In 1999 visual
arts touring had grown to comprise 40% of touring projects supported.
It is unlikely that Arts Victoria's programs, Touring Victoria and
the Community Support Fund, will continue in its present form during
2001 but it will not disappear completely. A full reassessment is
presently underway. Keep in touch with these developments by looking
up the Arts Victoria website, www.arts.vic.gov.au for funding updates
and always research your options. Don't leave it to the last minute
- it's never too early to start your application. Good Luck!
Helen Rayment in consultation with Phil Jones.
Helen is the Manager of the Touring Services Program at Museums
Australia (Victoria), and Phil is the Arts Officer, Regional Touring
with Arts Victoria. Arts Victoria can be contacted on (03) 9954
5000.
The Touring Services Program at Museums Australia
(Victoria) is supported and advised by a dedicated and generous
sub committee. At the time of the above meeting it consisted of:
Penny Morison, Melbourne Museum; Mae Adams, NETS Victoria; Laurie
Benson, NGV; Sue Hodges, Australian Business Theatre, Clare Gervasoni,
Ballarat University and the Central Highlands Historical Association
and Moya McFadzean, Melbourne Museum.
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