Friends of The Guild – a Report on the 2024 Questionnaire Results
“I’ve been a professional artist for a long time, and I’ve seldom ever felt part of the conversations that shape the cultural sector here. That does not mean those conversations aren’t happening (maybe they are) but they should not be exclusive.”
The Guild has been many things; once a Royal Bank of Canada location that was donated to the artists of Prince Edward Island, the building has evolved along a timeline of memorable events into a place where several generations of artists came of age, together.
In December 2023, news broke that The Guild was facing financial hardship (again) and would begin a phase of rebuilding. In response, Friends of The Guild, a small, grassroots community group, was formed, quickly growing to hundreds of members. Recognizing The Guild as an essential arts hub that was becoming inaccessible to much of the artistic community due to financial barriers, the main motivation behind Friends of the Guild has been to remedy the lack of a mechanism in the governance system for The Guild administration to connect with the needs of artists who use(d) the space.
In order to begin this process, Friends of The Guild distributed a questionnaire in January of 2024. We received 47 responses that demonstrated in depth knowledge of – and experience in – Epekwitk/PEI’s arts and culture sector. Many respondents generously used the questionnaire as an opportunity to make suggestions about a wide array of issues pertaining to The Guild and felt that this was an opportunity for The Guild to return to its early ideals and with some necessary enhancements, suggested this latest ‘crisis’ was an opportunity to “get it right.”
Themes that emerged from the survey included a desire from artists to have a communication channel with an administrator(s) of the space to discuss their needs, concerns, and pitch their ideas. Recurring throughout the responses were complaints of exclusion from decision making.There were calls for more communication via press releases and well advertised town hall meetings, and better, more frequent updates that transparently explain the functions and operations of The Guild. Some respondents reasoned that more communication about the state of The Guild would generate audiences, build community, and reduce the spread of misinformation. Artists who felt left out of conversations that shape arts and culture called for a more democratic approach to decision making about the valuable space.
Survey respondents emphasized that programming, marketing, and focus should not be geared toward tourists, but rather showcase critical and experimental artistic practices and build loyal audiences from our local residents. Prioritizing cultural relevance and the needs of local audiences, would influence tourist’s attraction to authentic representations of Epekwitk/PEI arts and culture, as opposed to commercialized and commodified representations. To that end, the necessity of returning The Guild performance space to its black box origins was expressed strongly, and mention was made of the need to remove/address any lingering negativity associated with the performance space.
Guild performance space renovation, 2024, photo: Brian Markham
There were calls for The Guild to become a multifaceted place of activities where stronger and more inclusive networks of arts groups across disciplines could be established. One interesting suggestion was for the formation of a collaborative committee between Creative PEI, PEI Writers’ Guild, Music PEI, PEI Craft Council, this town is small, Film PEI, Charlottetown Film Fest, The Island Fringe Festival, and all other creative or artistic groups that could serve as a unified collective voice for the arts in Epekwitk. This unified arts lobby group would be focused on the needs of those who currently lack space to produce and show works. The group was envisioned to have a structure that would allow artists to mobilize collectively to lobby for increased supports and to respond collectively in times of need. A formal group could also advocate and advise within the broader community when causes where artistic expertise and professionalism were relevant, thereby underlining the democratic value of the arts in a local mainstream community that has suffered from generations of systemic marginalization of arts and culture.
Taking an environmental scan of local arts and culture venues, it was noted that both The Carriage House at Beaconsfield and the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre have become welcome public spaces for arts and culture events, with the latter being highlighted as an example of a successful community hub.
In regards to organizational structure, there were suggestions by some respondents that knowledge and resources could better be distributed at The Guild within a cooperative rather than through a non-profit board. Others called for an anchor tenant organization that could program the space. this town is small was suggested as an established arts organization that could help The Guild connect with regional visual art network to build relationships and audiences with other galleries in Atlantic Canada. Other respondents worried that the mandate and organizational structure of ttis would exclude many visual artists from accessing the Hilda Woolnough Gallery. Community group shows, supported by professional gallery staff and workshops, were noted as a potential way to include more visual artists in the gallery space.
In 2011, in their article, Evolution of Artist Space, Becka Viau diagnosed a weakness that is echoed in the Friends of the Guild survey responses. Describing the transition of the ownership of The Guild from the PEI Arts Council to the management of Ars Longa, a non profit board, Viau remarked, “Democratic process is extremely important to any organization that was created to serve a membership. Currently there is not much democratic process found in the Ars Longa board… I think their governance needs to be revisited and re-worked to ensure that Island artists have a distinct voice in the workings of the Guild.” And to ensure that the building remains a grassroots art space, Becka also suggested including representatives from other arts groups on Guild programming committees. Implicit in Becka’s analysis and in the survey respondent analysis is that arts groups must actively recruit and be responsive to their memberships and not become disconnected from their mandates, or from the broad community of artists. Transparency in the selection of programming for the Guild was deemed to be essential to strengthening artists’ ability to trust the process of power distribution with The Guild space resources.
A recurring questions asked how The Guild might secure operational funding to make the space more accessible to community groups. The challenge of unionized worker's compensation seems poorly understood by members of the arts community who responded to this survey, as a main barrier involved in the cost of using the space. Perhaps this point could be more explicitly communicated to remove some of the mystery and confusion around the high costs for artist rental of the space. A variable rental cost was suggested as a flexible way to allow a variety of groups to use the communal spaces, as well as a limited number of annual “Guild Grants” that would cover some, if not all, of the IATSE costs for specific productions.
Many community members expressed a desire to help develop fundraising. Survey respondents suggested that Friends of the Guild coordinate committees of volunteers with lots of communication about activities and direct and ongoing outreach to community groups, newcomers, and Indigenous peoples.
Respondents recognized the strain on human resources of fundraising and suggested a sponsorship coordinator position be created, their salary being contingent on what they were able to raise. There were many other ideas for sponsorship suggested, including, sponsor perks like private viewings, priority ticketing and recognition via an ongoing monthly sponsorship/donation (like small amounts of $10.00 etc). Businesses could be recruited to provide a service for The Guild at reduced cost: eg. Maritime Electric (lower electricity rates), Bell Aliant, Eastlink, Telus, etc. (for lower-cost communications). Perhaps a joint project with the UPEI Design Engineering Department to gain insights into ways that might help with costs relating to the building. Data about The Guild’s impact on downtown businesses could be leveraged into partnering packages and sponsorships.
Respondents suggested that increased educational opportunities for performing and visual arts would be welcome for both youth and older adults. The Guild could house educational programs for the City of Charlottetown in the same way that the Robert Cotton Centre does for Stratford and the Cornwall Library does. Playwriting or Filmmaking competitions could be incorporated within an arts education context and partnerships with The Bookmark, Wild Threads and PEI Writers Guild, The Island Fringe Festival, Film PEI, Music PEI, Holland College's SoPA program, Creative PEI, this town is small, Art in the Open, Kitbag Theatre, Oshun Dance, PEI's various drag groups, Black Cultural Society of PEI, BIPOC USHR, PEERS Alliance, Pride PEI, ResourceAbilities, etc. Other suggestions of events included artist residencies, theatre and film festivals, revival of all ages shows, more bold content and challenging programming, local talent showcases, comedy, screenings, rehearsal spaces, workshops and events. Prioritizing the acknowledgement of cultural celebrations like Black History Month, Chinese New Year and consulting with IRSA and the public schools about artistic inclusion of their clients was deemed vital. Programming by and for older artists and including them on selection juries and committees should not be forgotten.
Prior to seeking input via our questionnaire, the Friends contacted the province (Michelle MacCallum, Director of Cultural Development, Innovation PEI), the City of Charlottetown (Wayne Long, Manager, Economic, Tourism, and Cultural Development) and the Board of The Guild to introduce our group and its goals. Post-questionnaire, Heather (MacLaren) Mullen, Hannah Morgan, and Dave Stewart from Friends of the Guild met with Bill Chandler, Mary Nicholson, Joan Turner Adams, Haley Doherty, Doug Dumais, and Shawn Hogan from The Guild’s Board of Directors on March 26th, 2024. The informal meeting served mostly as an opportunity for face-to-face introductions and to elicit a direct, verbal agreement and confirmation of willingness to work together in terms of the Friends bringing the voices of the artists of Epekwitk/PEI to the Board, although the method/process for doing this is TBD. The Friends also shared with the Board some of the most pertinent information found in this questionnaire.
Next steps are to present this report to the Board and to the public. We know that the Board has plans to renovate the theatre space at The Guild and to hire an interim CEO/Director for an 18-month period. Brian Markham, Director of Operations, has been keeping the building operating since the departure of its former CEO in January of 2024. Following this, the Friends must determine the process for bringing the voices of our arts and culture sector to the Board, and present it to the Board. One possibility is to create a dedicated space on the website of the upcoming online cultural journal Meet Us Half Way to act as the focal point for conversation about The Guild.
What the responses to our questionnaire (and the conversation on Friends of The Guild Facebook page) has proven to us is that there is a lot of passion for The Guild, and about what it could be. It is our belief that with the guidance and informed experience of the arts and culture sector here in Epekwitk/PEI, and with the willingness and understanding of The Guild’s Board of Directors, The Guild can reach its full potential as an essential, thriving arts and culture hub that is welcoming to and is patronized by everybody.
Friends of The Guild Steering Committee
Heather (MacLaren) Mullen
Hannah Morgan
Norah Pendergast
Dave Stewart
Pan Wendt