Paper presentation at the 41st Social Theory, Politics and the Arts Conference, 10-12 December 2015, University of South Australia, Adelaide.

1. Cultural Citizenship:
Creative and Organisational Leadership
Cecelia Cmielewski
PhD candidate
Institute for Culture and Society
Western Sydney University, Australia

2. I want to show the stories about Australia that
Australians don’t want to see. (GG, 2014)
Peter Sculthorpe said to me ‘Konstantine, if you want to
be a composer in Australia, learn to draw on your Greek
heritage as your point of difference’. (KK, 2015)
Literally two weeks ago [May 2015] the agent sent me to
a casting and the brief was ‘can you send us an Asian, a
Greek or something?’(AP, 2015 )

3. Khaled Sabsabi, 99, 2010, courtesy the artist

4. Shigeyuki Kihara, Talanoa: Walk the Talk V, 2009
performance by Chinese Dragon Dancers,
Tahitian Drummers and Dance Group, photo by Susannah Wimberley.

5. Xenia Hanusiak, 1000 doors, 2007

6. Different approaches to Cultural Citizenship:
Rosaldo promotes cultural and political citizenship within the public
sphere.
Pakulski idealises full inclusion in society.
Turner addresses ‘issues regarding the ownership and control of different
means of cultural production and of the distribution and utilisation of
cultural goods’.
Craith suggests a “transnational citizenship”:
‘horizontal’ spreading of individual resources complements national
multicultural citizenship - a ‘vertical’ instrument of the state.
Craith connects internal resilience of individuals with resources distributed
by the state to produce ‘discourses of empowerment.’

7. Australian multicultural policy trajectory
1949-1973 End of White Australia policy
1975-1983 Ethno- specific services
1954 Signatory to Refugee Convention
1973 Assimilation
1978 Assimilation continues
Access to resources
1983 - 1996 Cultural Pluralism: ‘cultural rights and ‘citizenship’ model
of multiculturalism
1996-2007 Backlash against Australian multiculturalism and back to
assimilation rhetoric
2007-2013 Brief revival of multicultural concepts and structures
2013- Issues of citizenship and assimilation back on the agenda

8. Creative and organisational leadership are critical to
effect sustained change in the arts ecology.
Creative leadership refers to artists who generate new
developments in creative content as well as to those
who are recognised by their peers and public as artists.
Organisational leadership refers to those in positions
of influence to provide resources and support for NESB
artists.

9. Dacchi Dang
PB565, 2009
Installation at Gallery 4A, 2010
photo by Garry Trinh.

10. Two main areas for attention:
Creative leadership to improve diverse art production and
dissemination
Organizational leadership to improve institutional diversity
kultour was an initiative of the Australia Council for the
Arts that attempted to bring these two elements together.
 a network to exchange artworks as a way of supporting
each other
 expand artists and organisations experience through
working relationship based on artistic exchange

11. Stephen Helper, Café Rebetika, 2010

12. Anake, 2008

13. Yumi Umiumare, Das SHOKU Hora!!, 2007

14. Multi-artform company dedicated to presenting
multicultural artists
State Longevity
Footscray Community Arts Centre Vic 1974-
Darwin Community Arts (formerly Browns Mart) NT 1970’s-
Carnevale multicultural arts festival NSW 1976-2004
Kulcha WA 1983 - 2014
Nexus SA 1984 -
Multicultural Arts Alliance NSW 1988 - 2000
Brisbane Ethnic Multicultural Arts Centre
Merged with QMC 2013
Qld 1990 -
Multicultural Arts Victoria Vic 1991-
Asian Australian Artists’ Association (4A) NSW 1996 -
kultour Nat 2000 -
Groundswell (advocacy) NSW 2011-2014
In 2000, 11 companies; In 2015, 7 companies; 36% attrition rate

15. Diafrix, 2009

16. The arts are integral to being a ‘cultural citizen’.
Creative and organisational issues to achieving creative participation can
be challenged by artists who:
 Generate a campaign to radically alter the negative perceptions that
 they face on a daily basis
 Attempt (again) to establish artform specific creative organisations to
develop and present intercultural works
 Negotiate their way into the mainstream and valiantly bring
colleagues along with them.
It is these resilient artists, who are providing the leadership towards
genuine cultural citizenship through ‘personalised histories’ that can
lead to ‘discourses of empowerment’ (Craith, 2010)

17. Nefes Ensemble, 2010.

18. Naree Vachananda, Opposite My House is a Funeral Parlour, 2006.

19. Darwin Community Arts Centre, Frontline, 2009 -2010, Phillip Eaton

20. c.cmielewski@westernsydney.edu.au