This is Our Moment. by National accessArts Centre

Table of Contents Message from the CEO and Board Chair

Setting the stage.

New vision. New mission.

This is our moment.

Building on our success.

This is who we are - and always will be.

Artistic Training

Creation

Exhibition

Sharing

Our new home.

It’s 2023.

Patsy Fluter “The Hand” Embroidery on Linen 2011

Message from the CEO and Board Chair The development of This is Our Moment, the Indefinite Arts Centre’s five year strategic plan, started off with an interesting question: Can we be like the Banff Centre, but for artists with disabilities? To position our organization alongside that of the globallyrenowned Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity may seem like a rather audacious – some would say ridiculous – goal, but to set the bar any lower would not only be insulting, but would also further perpetuate the notion that it’s okay to be “good enough.” No, we believe through and through that the amazing creative potential of our artists must be cultivated and showcased on the local, national, and global stage – much like any other talented,

hard-working, “abled” artist. And in order for that to happen, we need to be bold about what we can become – a nationallyrecognized thought leader, and a national centre of excellence in the areas of artistic training, creation, and exhibition. Thanks to the incredible contributions of our artists and their families, our staff, our volunteers, and our Board of Directors, we are pleased to present This is Our Moment. Yours sincerely,

Jung-Suk (JS) Ryu CEO

Jeff de Boer Chair, Board of Directors

Setting the stage. To imagine the great potential of the Indefinite Arts Centre’s future, we need to understand and appreciate our past. Founded in 1975, the Indefinite Arts Centre (then known as the In-Definite Arts Society) was a place for individuals with physical disabilities to come together and create art. With funding from the Government of Alberta, the Centre was able to provide a truly innovative platform for artists living with disabilities – a first for the country, if not the world. However, it was also this focus on physical disabilities that turned away those living with developmental disabilities – and initially turned away Jane Cameron, an artist living with Down syndrome who would later become one of our Centre’s most prolific artists.

Aside from this change in the artists we serve, the Indefinite Arts Centre’s path to where we are today has remained relatively unchanged. What was once deemed “innovative” in 1975 is no longer the case today. We remain a place – a home – for artists to come, be creative, and create works of art – which, in and of itself, is a noble mission that will always remain at the heart of our organization.

Can our organization begin to think boldly about how to empower and inspire the next generation of artists living with disabilities? And, can we return to fulfilling our initial mission of working with artists with physical disabilities to ensure that we become an arts organization – an arts movement – that serves all artists no matter their disability? The short answer to all of the above is a resounding “yes.” This is Our Moment, our new five-year strategic plan, will guide us on how we turn these goals into reality.

But if we want to be truly innovative today, then we must ask ourselves: Are there ways that we can truly be better in what we do and how we serve our artists and their artistic practice?

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Our reliance on Government of Alberta funding, though it has created a tremendous foundation for our organization’s growth, forced us to make a radical shift away

from physical disabilities to developmental disabilities in the 1990s with a change in funding guidelines, leaving behind a huge void for artists with physical disabilities – a need that still exists and is unmet to this day.

New vision. New mission. 4 INDEFINITE ARTS

New vision. New mission. On July 25, 2017, the Board of Directors of the Indefinite Arts Centre ratified a new vision and mission for our organization.

Our vision.

Our mission.

Every individual – no matter their disability – who wants to find and express their creativity can do so at the Indefinite Arts Centre.

The Indefinite Arts Centre provides artistic training, creation, and exhibition opportunities for people – of all ages – with developmental disabilities, and shares the power of their creativity by advocating for their inclusion in the contemporary arts locally and abroad.

Lynn Johnston, IAC artist

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This is our moment. As Canada’s oldest and one of our country’s largest disability arts organizations, the Indefinite Arts Centre has a tremendous opportunity to take a national leadership role and become the preeminent arts centre for all artists living with disabilities. We can extend our reach far beyond that of Calgary, invite and collaborate with artists of all abilities from all corners of this province, experiment and explore new artistic disciplines and mediums, and contribute – on merits of our talents and perspectives – to the shaping of our country’s contemporary arts movement. This is our moment.

Though we will always remain a creative home for artists with developmental disabilities who are so often limited in their opportunities and choices, we can be even more inclusive, by blurring the lines between professional artists, disabled artists, entrepreneurs, innovators, and storytellers – we can become Canada’s first true creativity hub for people living with disabilities. And we can share their work on more innovative, more farreaching platforms.

As we watch the world struggle with intolerance and injustice, we envision the Indefinite Arts Centre’s call to action not simply limited to the four walls of our organization, but also contributing to the societal conversation about equality, equity, diversity and inclusion through the power of art and creativity. We can - and we will be - a social change agent. Our 2018-2023 strategic plan will look at our four main pillars of artistic training, creation, exhibition, and sharing to help us realize this major shift in how we view our own organization, our artists, our society, and our world.

Whether it is in venues such as the National Gallery of Canada or the Banff Centre, or in public art installations in the City of Calgary, this is our moment to build and develop a whole new arts movement that will make people think differently – and appreciate – the talents and creativity of those living with disabilities.

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IAC artist Cherie Morgan working with a staff member

this is our mom moment. 7 INDEFINITE ARTS

Building on our successes. This is our moment – because we know that incredible successes can be found in our programs and our artists. Whether it is the story of artist Matthew Carberry who developed his portfolio at the Centre, was accepted and later graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD), or artists like Carol Rousch, Jamie Petit, or Michael Robertson who have won local arts awards and exhibited their works in galleries throughout Calgary, we are proud to have played a role in the lives of these artists – and many others – who have chosen to make art a large part of their lives.

We have also started to scratch the surface in securing more prominent platforms that are more far-reaching than the gallery space in our own facility. In 2014, we unveiled A Meaningful Life – a collaborative sculptural piece that showcases the work of our artists under the direction of prominent Calgary artist (and Indefinite Arts Centre board member) Jeff de Boer – as a permanent exhibit at the Alberta Legislature. In 2017, our artists’ works were featured as part of Art from the Unknown, an exhibition hosted by Premier Rachel Notley at the McDougall Centre. And in 2018, the Indefinite Arts Centre will showcase our artists in Hong Kong and Seoul, South Korea – our first official foray into Asia – thanks to the generous support of Alberta Economic Development and Trade and the Alberta Hong Kong Office.

But our biggest success doesn’t come in the form of art pieces completed or exhibited, or the number of pieces sold. It is in the hearts and minds of our participants who exclaim with tremendous pride that they are, indeed, artists. Though they may be seen, treated as, or think of themselves as “disabled,” here – at the Indefinite Arts Centre – that label no longer applies. As we build our strategic plan – This is Our Moment – we reflect on these successes and are inspired to believe that even greater things can happen for our organization and our artists.

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Vanessa Zytaruk, IAC artist

incredible succes can be found

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This is who we are – and always will be. On July 25, 2017, the Board of Directors of the Indefinite Arts Centre approved a strategic framework – alongside our new vision and mission – that would guide the development of this strategic plan. The framework identifies with added clarity the four main pillars of activity that define the Indefinite Art Centre’s work.

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Christine Millson, IAC artist

These pillars are: Artistic training is at the heart of the Indefinite Arts Centre. Our artist instructors help our artists conceptualize their artwork and facilitate, mentor, and train our artists to learn new skills and acquire new knowledge that will help them accomplish their artistic goals. With an average ratio of 6.5 artists to 1 instructor, our artists receive individualized support throughout their creative journey. Creation is perhaps the most important part of what we do at the Indefinite Arts Centre. Across a wide range of mediums in the visual arts, our artists are self-directed and choose to create whatever kind of art they wish – with the help of our artist instructors.

Exhibition is the showcase of our training and creation efforts, where the works of our artists are proudly exhibited both within our own gallery spaces and also in various venues throughout the community. Our exhibitions, wherever they are, are carefully curated to reflect the creative talent of all of our artists.

Our new strategic plan – This is Our Moment – is our roadmap to achieving new milestones and demonstrable success in each of these pillars.

Sharing is a newly identified pillar that positions the Indefinite Arts Centre as a true thought leader and advocate for the inclusion and expansion of disability arts in the contemporary arts world. As one of the world’s oldest disability arts organizations, we believe it is our responsibility to champion diversity and inclusivity in arts practice.

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to reflect the creative talent of

ARTISTIC TRAINING GOAL 1.0: The Indefinite Arts Centre will become a recognized centre of excellence in training for artists of all ages with developmental disabilities.

Initiative 1.1: The Indefinite Arts Centre will resume Friday programming to reduce the waiting list and wait times for artists wishing to participate in our programs.

Initiative 1.2: The Indefinite Arts Centre will launch a program working with children and young adults with developmental disabilities in 2018/19 that cultivates a new generation of talented artists.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S):

• Wait list is reduced 75%+ by 2023.

• Full enrollment (55 spaces/ week) • By 2023, 20%+ of our youth participants will identify the arts as an opportunity for ongoing advancement (as a career or postsecondary opportunity) • Active collaboration with Calgary Board of Education and local postsecondary institutions on career awareness and development opportunities for our youth participants.

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Initiative 1.3: The Indefinite Arts Centre will identify trends and best practices in our own artistic training – and monitor and learn from the efforts of other local and national organizations – that will contribute to a pedagogical standard of excellence in training for artists with developmental disabilities. This work understands, however, that this “excellence” does not assume a “one size fits all” mentality – and that, in many cases, it is a “one size fits one.”

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • By 2020, the Indefinite Arts Centre will develop a standard of excellence in training – based on our own best practices and those of other organizations – that will be made available as a resource for other disability arts organizations across the world.

Pat Dickson, IAC artist LEFT:

IAC artist Susan Brosz working with a staff member

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• By 2023, the Indefinite Arts Centre will launch its own social enterprise, by offering online and in-person modules that will assist arts organizations on how they can work with, assist, and incorporate the works of artists with disabilities.

ABOVE:

CREATION GOAL 2.0: The Indefinite Arts Centre will provide and/or convene opportunities for multidisciplinary exposure and practice for our artists.

Initiative 2.1: In 2019/20, the Indefinite Arts Centre will launch a digital media + music lab – a first in the country – that will introduce our artists to the latest technologies in digital arts and music, and will be a fully adaptable environment that will invite professional artists to convene and collaborate with our artists on new, innovative platforms.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • By March 2019, the Centre will have completed the construction of its digital media + music lab, and developed a program plan to be executed on the launch of a digital media + music program in 2019/20. • Prior to the launch of a digital media + music program, all artist instructors will be provided professional development and capacity building opportunities to strengthen their expertise in training across new mediums.

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• Over the next five years, more than 50% of our artists – in both adult and youth programs – will have completed at least 1 work that incorporates or wholly uses a digital or music platform. • By 2023, 10% of our exhibited works will incorporate or wholly utilize a digital or music platform.

Initiative 2.2: Starting in 2018/19, the Indefinite Arts Centre will establish key partnerships and develop collaborative programs and artist residencies with local arts partners – including Banff Centre, Arts Commons, Inside Out Theatre, Momo Dance, among others – to expose our artists to explore and experience artistic expressions across a wide range of mediums and disciplines.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • In 2019/20, the Indefinite Arts Centre will work with the Banff Centre to launch a unique residencybased program focused on artists with developmental disabilities, where 5-10 of our artists annually will have an opportunity to experience a residency at the Centre alongside our faculty members. This will be the first artist residency program targeting artists with developmental disabilities in the country. • By the end of 2018/19 – and ongoing – more than 25% of our artists will have worked on collaborative projects with another arts partner in the city of Calgary.

• Starting 2018/19, the Indefinite Arts Centre will actively pursue an ongoing artist-in-residence program that will feature artists from across Canada and globally with experience and interest in the creation efforts of artists with disabilities. In 2018/19, there will be two artists-in-residence programs. By 2023, each session will feature an artist-in-residence who will collaborate and work with our artists.

GOAL 3.0: The Indefinite Arts Centre will become a creativity/ innovation hub for both professional artists and artists living with disabilities.

Initiative 3.1: Create and fundraise for a new “innovation fund” that will allow our artist instructors, outside artists, and artists living with disabilities to experiment with new media, collaborate on large-scale projects, and let their creativity be limitlessly expressed and supported.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • In 2018/19, launch the Indefinite Innovation Fund with support from both public and private sources to generate at least $25,000 annually and secure major gifts totalling $500,000 for our 50th anniversary in 2025.

Initiative 3.2: Secure grants at all levels of government, and through private sources, that commission our artists to work on new works of art.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • In 2018/19, secure additional project funding from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Alberta Foundation for the Arts that will fund the commissioning of a new work by one or more of our artists.

• For each year that the Innovation Fund is in place:

One major art piece is developed and showcased every year

Daniel Glinz “The Dog” Pottery 2017

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Jennifer Luykx Various fibre pieces 2017

Specific time and budgetary resources will be set aside to for our artist instructors’ to conceptualize new works (think Google’s ‘20%’ concept)

EXHIBITION GOAL 4.0: The Indefinite Arts Centre will showcase the work of our artists in venues and events that expand – and can measure – our organization’s reach to new audiences, advances their work into the contemporary arts world, and shares the unique contributions made by all of our participating artists

Initiative 4.1: Develop an exhibition strategy that places our artwork in key, strategic locations and venues that directly link to measurable outcomes such as audience reach and intersection with contemporary, mainstream arts.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • Exhibition strategy is completed prior to the beginning of the 2018/19 year. • Completion of exhibition strategy will identify key indicators such as: Audience reach, marketability, opportunities for inclusion in the contemporary arts, accessibility to our artists, as well as an inclusive representation of all of our artists’ works.

Initiative 4.2: Secure partnerships with arts organizations and curators who will be able to align our exhibitions with the exhibition strategy as stated above.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • In 2018/19, secure more than one local, one national, and one global partnership that will align with our exhibition strategy and desired outcomes. (e.g., Hong Kong in March 2018, Seoul in June 2018)

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Initiative 4.3: Look for, and secure, opportunities for public art installations locally or beyond that will showcase or include the artistic contributions of our artists.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • By 2023, at least one prominent public art installation in the City of Calgary will have involved the artistic talents of at least one or more artists from the Indefinite Arts Centre.

Initiative 4.4: Create an archive strategy that responds to increasing exhibition demand of our artists’ works.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • By the end of 2018/19, the Centre will have a fully equipped digital archive room that will allow our staff to create and store digital representations of our artists’ work, and to print their work on canvas or other mediums for exhibition/market opportunities.

Tony Goodison “Sunflower with Christmas Lights on it” 2017 Michael Robertson “The Mountains” Fibre 2017 Brittany Lloyd “Blossom” Acrylic 2017

A packed house for IAC’s #DisArtsYYC exhibition on September 28, 2017.

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SHARING GOAL 5.0: The Indefinite Arts Centre will be a recognized thought leader and a credible, national voice on matters related to the “disability arts” and artists living with developmental disabilities.

Initiative 5.1: The Indefinite Arts Centre will position itself as a lead advocate for the inclusion and advancement of disability arts and artists living with developmental disabilities – locally, nationally, and abroad – through the publication of op-eds, policy papers, and in advocacy efforts at all levels of government.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • Starting in 2018/19, the Centre will author and publish one op-ed annually focusing on issues affecting disability arts to be shared on conventional or social media. • Starting in 2018/19, all exhibitions and public-facing events will have a “media hook” that will garner earned media opportunities for the organization – at least 1 significant media “hit” per year.

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• By 2023, all levels of government – municipal, provincial, and federal – will adopt legislation and/or policy frameworks that incorporate the advancement of disability arts in their cultural policies.

Initiative 5.2: The Indefinite Arts Centre will use conventional and social media to increase brand awareness of both our organization and disability arts in general.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR(S): • Minimum of 15% growth annually in social media metrics (followers and engagements) across all Indefinite Arts Centre’s social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram Beginning in 2018/19, a new social media strategy will incorporate the telling of artists’ stories on a regular basis – putting our artists and their work at the centre of our brand. • By 2023, the Indefinite Arts Centre will launch a new online home that will: Provide a marketing tool for all of our artists to showcase their work and work in progress Provide consumers with the ability to purchase materials and custom order items with prints of our artists’ work to generate revenue for the organization and the artist

artist Mark Brickman being interviewed on Accessible Media.

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ABOVE: IAC

Our new home. By 2023 - if not sooner â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the Indefinite Arts Centre will have a brand new look, both inside and out, that reflects the aspirations identified by our strategic plan.

Architectural rendering of the new Indefinite Arts Centre.

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UPGRADE DESCRIPTION:

Exterior upgrades will create additional windows to let natural light into the facility; removal of the ramp and elevating the grade to create a more natural, accessible entry point; outdoor workshop spaces and garden

ALIGNMENT WITH STRATEGIC PLAN:

CREATION: Opportunities for artists to be inspired by outdoors, work in outdoor workshop spaces EXHIBITION: Opportunities for outdoor exhibits of our artwork for the community SHARING: Creating a more public-friendly, publicly-accessible learning and viewing space of our artists and their work

TRAINING: Increase our square footage dedicated to artistic training for our artists Reimagining/recalibration of main floor to maximize use of space and better traffic flow

EXHIBITION: Convert every space possible into a gallery/ exhibition space, rather than limit it to a specific gallery space SHARING: Our entire interior facility will become an open learning and sharing environment

TRAINING: Provide our artists with digital + music training opportunities Reimagining/renovations of our lower floor to create digital + music lab, and more integrated gallery space

EXHIBITION: Convert downstairs space to a more integrated, all-encompassing gallery/exhibition space SHARING: Our entire interior facility will become an open learning and sharing environment

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It’s 2023. The Indefinite Arts Centre is recognized nationally – globally – as Canada’s creative home for artists living with disabilities. Our programs have expanded to meet the demand, and the launch of a children/youth program has started to identify a new generation of talented artists who will undoubtedly make their mark on our cultural fabric. Our artists’ works are proudly showcased in public galleries that reach new audiences, and Calgarians are proud to showcase a new public installation that has been created by artists with disabilities from the Centre.

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The Centre has started to elevate the conversation around the value and importance of disability arts – and why the perspectives of artists with disabilities matter. Other local and national arts organizations seek the Centre’s counsel and collaboration to make inroads towards a diverse and inclusive arts scene. The Centre has become a true agent of social change.

Our home has truly transformed from simply being a retrofitted community centre to becoming a world-class arts hub that attracts the attention of arts enthusiasts, community members, tourists, and, of course, our artists, prospective artists, and their families. Our outdoor gardens and spaces serve as a place of true inspiration and collaboration that blurs the lines between “abled” and “disabled” artists – it’s a true creativity hub. Indoors, guests marvel at the living gallery space that surrounds the entire interior of the facility, while artists are now able to freely experiment with digital technology that helps transform their works into new dimensions such as virtual or augmented reality, animation, storytelling, and music.

being like the Banff Centre for artists with disabilities. We may not have the view of the mountains, but we have something even better: the smiles and the energy from each one of our artists who call the Indefinite Arts Centre their home.

Thanks to the ongoing support from public funders and funding agencies – in addition to the new interest received from the private, philanthropic community – we have become that much closer to achieving that rather audacious – some have said ridiculous – goal of

RIGHT:

IAC artist Heather Cooke working with a staff member

we have something even better 23 INDEFINITE ARTS

Indefinite Arts Centre Leadership BOARD OF DIRECTORS Jeff de Boer Chair Masoud Shahanaghi Vice Chair Roberta Schirok Secretary/Treasurer David Nolan James Cameron Judith Galbraith Kate Ryder Marion Nichols Sabine Kohrs Jung-Suk Ryu CEO

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LEFT:

Roozbeh Rahnama, IAC artist

STAFF Jung-Suk Ryu CEO Amy Bishop Client Services Coordinator Anna Young Art Instructor Curtis Reynolds Art Instructor Heather Jones Manager, Operations Julie Ridley Director, Programs Maddy Koshowski Art Instructor Matthew Carberry Studio Assistant Nicole Kaczkowski Administrative Assistant Philip Moir Finance Assistant Vanessa Toews Art Instructor

The Indefinite Arts Centre is generously supported by: