Strata Meeting for August

The August Strata Meeting has been postponed until Wednesday 8th August (On account of fireworks, skydivers and general mafecking about in Swanage). Usual time and place - 7.30 at Quarr Gallery, 17 High Street, Swanage. Bring a bottle and have a convivial evening discussing matters of interest to creatives in Purbeck.

Paul Angel asked that we discuss his ideas (below) and I think we should.

Paul Angel - 5th June 2007

30 word simple mission statement:“Strata is a group of creative people who aim to promote and encourage the arts in Purbeck by helping to attract funding, to organise events and to support arts projects.”

Seven things we should be focussing on:
1 - Getting Strata known amongst the broader arts community in Purbeck.How? Hosting a regular informal arts networking opportunity, on the first ……………. of the month in the same pub at the same time - in the style of the Bournemouth & Poole networking evening. Invites should be sent to everyone we can think of with an interest in the arts in Purbeck, both by post and online. This would be something where you might just be meeting a group of friends every month, but NOT a meeting, and not an event, so no pressure for anyone, but worth doing for the networking.
2 - Get the website sorted out.The website should be a potential first point of contact. It should represent both the arts and Purbeck, and should be completely inclusive of all Purbeck’s creatives. People should want to be on it. Personally, I’m happy to work on it without funding, though of course funding would help.
3 - Get some paperwork.We need business cards and maybe even a leaflet. Something beautiful to give to people that we meet, something more than a winning smile and burst of enthusiasm.
4 - Supporting arts projects to raise our profile.How? We already are, with Swanage seen. Exactly as we should be.
5 - Finding funding for an ‘exhibition organiser‘.How? In my opinion, Strata’s key role should be in helping to create ‘showing’ opportunities for local artists, and even for well-known artists from outside. This could be by liaising with local showing spaces, including cafes, pubs etc, with advice on choosing the right artwork for the space, timings, fees/commission, publicity etc.. This could take up a lot of time, which is why funding for the person involved could be important.
6 - Keeping a log of funding opportunities.Working with DCA, perhaps, we need a list of potential funding bodies, either bodies specifically interested in the arts, or with coastal communities. This could be kept on the website. If someone has an idea for funding, they can ask Strata for support, and if we agree that the application is a good one, we can provide support in appropriate ways.
7 - Being inclusive.Some people still question the value of Strata and don’t feel as though they can be, or want to be, involved. The points above would help remedy this, particularly point 1, but it is important to make sure that we are absolutely clear that we welcome all of Purbeck’s creatives, and that we make positive invitations to any get-togethers to all of Purbeck’s galleries, art clubs, crafts groups and festival organisers. We need to get Swanage working together, guys!