Campaign aims to build on work of island art manifesto

A NEW campaign has been launched to highlight island-based artists’ contribution to Scotland’s cultural landscape.

#EvenHereEvenNow builds on the manifesto of the same name which was published earlier this year.

Organisers said that “in a turbulent year in the arts in Scotland, marked by protests over arts funding cuts and an imminent review by the Scottish government of Creative Scotland, #EvenHereEvenNow will platform artists often marginalised in a debate dominated by voices from the central belt”.

The Even Here, Even Now manifesto was supported by Shetland Arts and jointly created by a group of artists living and working in Shetland, Orkney, Uist and the Isle of Lewis.

Those behind the #EvenHereEvenNow campaign said the project will build on the work of the manifesto with:

• a national media and advocacy campaign providing a platform for island-based artists to share their stories
• a series of in-person and online events designed by four artist advocates – Bronwyn Mackenzie (Isle of Lewis), AJ Stockwell (Uist), Jane Matthews (Shetland) and Aine King (Orkney) – that will provide island-based artists with further opportunities for their voices to be heard.
• new opportunities for artists to connect and collaborate between islands.

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Andrew Eaton-Lewis, communications and advocacy lead for #EvenHereEvenNow, said: “Surviving as an artist anywhere in Scotland is increasingly precarious. With this campaign we are highlighting the additional challenges facing artists living in rural island communities through the stories of artists living in the Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland.

“It is a call for recognition of the value of culture in parts of Scotland that are often left out of the national conversation, but where artists are often deeply embedded in the communities they live in, making a vital contribution to those communities – even here, even now –  in a way that deserves wider recognition and support.”

The Even Here, Even Now manifesto was managed by Kathryn Gordon, who leads creative projects at Shetland Arts, with support from Carol Dunbar from Pier Arts Centre, in collaboration with An Lanntair and Taigh Chearsabhagh.

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The project was made possible through funding from Culture Collective, which is a network of 26 participatory projects shaped by local communities alongside artists and creative organisations.

Gordon said: “Even Here, Even Now sums up the spirit, resilience and creativity that define our island arts communities. This manifesto is about change and ensuring that island arts thrive and contribute fully to our cultural landscape.”

The #EvenHereEvenNow campaign is supported by An Lanntair (Isle of Lewis), Shetland Arts, Pier Arts Centre (Orkney) and Taigh Chearsabhagh (North Uist).