Fund the Arts, Fund the Culture

Arts is central to our lives. Art is in our food, art is in our presentations, art is in our driving, art is in our relaxation, art is in the way we dress.

We tend not to see the role art plays on a daily basis, so let’s put it in perspective.

An artist was involved in your PowerPoint presentation, an artist designed the car you drive; an artist produced the music you listen to on your way to and from work; the chair, the software, the computer you use at work are designed by artists.

I could go on and on about how art informs our daily life.

However, the question is how often do we think about the artist and not the product?

Many of us never really think about how we can affect an artist’s life or the impact of buying their work or paying them for a job.
Moreover, we barely think of supporting artists through buying their products.

How many times have you asked for a discount from a musician, a photographer, or a DJ? We need to value artists’ skills, effort and time.

COUNTING THE COST

People assume artists simply wake up, to do what they do, and that talent is all it takes to get the job done, that no work goes into the final act.

This is far from the truth.

Let me give you an idea of what it takes to create the final product in music.

The artist must first create a song, then go to a studio which must be paid for (it can cost anywhere between N$1 000 to N$4 000 a song) to record it.

The artist must also spend between 10 hours to three days finalising one song.

They must buy refreshments and food for those days, and spend money on transport to get to the studio.

They must promote the song through interviews and on social media platforms. This requires quality images to accompany the song.

The artist must pay a graphic designer and buy data for promotion on social media.

To gain maximum mileage, the artist must also produce a quality video. In the Namibian context, this could set him/her back by anything from N$10 000 to N$50 000.

So, the question is, why are you asking for a discount? What value do we place on an artist’s effort and work?

We must fund artists adequately because they deserve it, just as you expect your customers to pay you or demand that your employer pays you more.

FUNDING

I want to contextualise the funding of arts and culture development.

Gauteng province in South Africa was allocated N$143 million for arts and culture development for 2023/2024, while the country budget for the same period was N$1,75 billion.

For its part, Namibia allocated about N$39 million towards arts and culture development for the same period.

This N$39 million will go towards the National Arts Council, National Theatre of Namibia, National Arts Gallery, Museums Association, Heritage Council, National Library Information Council, and the Pan-African Centre of Namibia.

One would have expected a bigger budget to do more to promote Namibia as an attractive film location.

Around 70% of funds allocated towards Namibian entities will likely be spent on salaries and administrative costs, whereas in South Africa they have a separate administrative budget.

The National Arts Council, which is supposed to serve as a grant entity for artists’ projects, received about N$3,3 million for 2023/2024.

How can it possibly fund artists’ proposals with such a budget?

Namibia needs at least N$100 million for arts and culture development and must have a dedicated vote of N$10 million for cultural diplomacy.

Exporting Namibian arts and culture needs to be taken seriously if we want to entice investors to Namibia.

LET’S DO IT

Namibians need to appreciate the value of arts and culture; it helps you get through life, helps you have a solid brand, and helps with mental health.

I urge Namibian companies to look into an arts fund as part of their annual budget as most companies use music and visual arts.

I urge the government to put even a little more money into funding arts and culture development instead of just for the salaries of professionals who often have no interest in arts development.

Shebeens, clubs, restaurants, shops, taxis, state gatherings and many other events use music to entertain or make a statement.

Companies pride themselves on displaying art in their offices as they see the beauty in paintings and sculptures.

So, do the right thing and fund the artist, fund the culture.

• Jossy Joss is a Namibian artist and media personality. He writes in his own capacity

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