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EDITORIAL N O R T H S H O R E SAYS G O O D B Y E ' T O ' F I R S Ï " CULTURAL D E V E L O P M E N T OFFICER T h e N o r t h Shore has been v e r y fortunate to have had C a r o l y n L a i r as their Cultural Development Officer for the past two years. In the short time she has been here she has s p a r k e d a n i n c r e d i b l e a m o u n t of interest i n the community about art, design, dance, art in public places and heritage. A r t i s t s w h o were w a r y of w h a t appeared to be a bureaucratic position have responded to her initiatives w i t h delight. A palpable excitement in the art community has been generated b y her creative approach to all tasks and ideas put before her. This is what the Arts Councils hoped would h a p p e n w h e n the Arts Commission was formed. There is very g o o d r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of f u n d i n g a n d g o v e r n i n g b o d i e s o n the Arts Commission, and wonderful people who are working hard for the C o m m i s s i o n , but that is not enough. It is a different type of b o d y than other N o r t h Shore Commissions, with its most important aspect b e i n g the " C r e a t i v e V i s i o n " leadership it should encourage w i t h i n the community. C a r o l y n created an atmosphere i n w h i c h creative p e o p l e a n d ideas can f l o u r i s h . N o w we are faced w i t h her departure i n August as she goes to San Diego to begin a new chapter i n her life. We are all extremely sorry to see her go, as the Arts C o m m i s s i o n is just getting nicely established w i t h its role better understood by the community. Thanks to Carolyn for her negotiating skills, patience and understanding of the problems faced by artists and cultural groups. We all wish Carolyn all the best in her future endeavours. But we must also face the fact that if Carolyn had been able to stay on the job, the p r o b a b i l i t y that she w o u l d have " b u r n e d o u t " i n another year is quite high. The demands of the job and the expectation that the A r t s C o m m i s s i o n could function like a municipal department or other Commissions with the i n s u f f i c i e n t staff a n d b a c k u p available to them, make the position too Photograph courtesy of the North Shore News Photographer: Mike Wakefield much for one person.Administrative and resource development staff are needed to keep u p w i t h the g r o w t h of this great experiment. M a n y other communities are watching us closely as they take their first steps t o w a r d f o r m i n g the t y p e of A r t s Commission we have on the North Shore. T h e y s h o u l d be e n c o u r a g e d b y the i n i t i a t i v e of o u r p o l i t i c a l a n d c u l t u r a l leaders who are striving to make our Arts Commission the very best in the country. Ella Parkinson, NVCAC Lynn Flipse, WVCAC Dear Ella, Please note my change of address to the one above- particularly as I am not anxious to miss any correspondence & information about the arts on the north shore. I still hold the opinion that you are the most progressive Arts Council in B.C. The world and purpose of the arts is now changing rapidly - hence the standards are being held in question and work illustrates uncertainty as well as diversity. As far as I am concerned an arts council has a responsibility to understand what is happening today - and wlty? The "why" part is the most difficult and quite fundamental because it is the source of artistic inspiration. Yours, Henry E. Henry Elder, Professor Emeritus, U B C School of Architecture Dear Editor, I was interested in PROFILE by Anne McLaughlin, in your spring edition of ARTS ACCESS - but appalled to find this statement by the artist... "He says that the art process begins with his camera. He takes many pictures of his subject believing that the camera's eye is a modern substitute for the sketching pencil". This means that the very base is not there. Drawing is the foundation of art and the most personal part. If the machine is going to accomplish the beginning - it might as well do the whole work. If the artist does not draw and paint from life there will be no life in his work. If we are not going to sketch any more, then we shouldn't use our handwriting any more. I guess I shall die of a broken heart. Sincerely, Unity Bainbridge Letters LETTERS T O T H E EDITOR Arts Access welcomes your input and thoughts about issues of interest to the North Shore community - your participation makes Arts Access a more lively forum for the local cultural community. Printing ami editing of submitted letters is at the discretion of the Editor and depends on available space. Opinions expressed by signed articles nr letters appearing in Arts Access are those ol the authors and do not necessarily represent those of either ot the North Shore Community Arts Councils. ARTS ACCESS SUMMER 1991 PAGE THREE