The hibernation of Canadian community engaged art

Judith Marcuse has become one of Canada’s senior artist/producers, with an international career that spans over 50 years as dancer, choreographer, director, producer, teacher, writer and lecturer. In 2007 she founded the International Centre of Art for Social Change, initially as a partnership with Simon Fraser University, where she was appointed an adjunct professor.

Marcuse acted as the lead investigator of a six-year (2013- 19), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council-funded national study on art for social change, the first of its kind in Canada, which involved some 50 Canadian artists and scholars.

On Culture of Possibility podcast #35, Arlene Goldbard talks with Judith Marcuse, based in British Columbia, Canada, and a powerhouse of imagination, production, and advocacy for more than 40 years. Among her projects have been large-scale multi-arts festivals; multi-year collaborative projects with youth; a major, Canada-wide study of community engaged art for social change; a national mentorship project; and a national network.

In January, JMP and ICASC will go into hibernation because of severe funding challenges plaguing the sector; of some 400 Canadian organizations doing community-engaged arts for social change work, 38% have closed over the last few years.

Arlene talks with Judith about her work, her long view of community-based cultural work in Canada, the sector’s financial precarity, the challenges and opportunities to come.