Finally, the Government is taking cultural capital seriously with a programme to enhance teachers’ and pupils’ aesthetic appreciation and artistic skills. Joe Hallgarten reports on the ‘Find Your Talent’ programme.
Imagine a generation of young people who are as familiar with a piece of clay or musical instrument as they are with a pencil or keyboard; who can read scripts and sculptures as well as they can read books; who feel as comfortable in a museum or theatre as they would in a leisure centre or chatroom; who see schools as places where they can vent their creativity; whose views about culture are always evolving, shaping what they are being offered; whose artistic talents are spotted and nurtured, and barriers to the development of their talents are systematically removed.
Now imagine the same generation as adults: taxpayers, who understand and are prepared to pay for great art. Audiences, who are willing but critical consumers of culture. Citizens, who are contributing to our cultural collateral as participants and creators; and parents, who are playing an ever greater part in helping shape their children’s cultural experiences.
Finally, imagine a society where, through the systematic nurturing of our children’s imagination, England has avoided our industrial revolutionary ancestors’ mistakes.
150 years ago, smug in the knowledge of being the ‘first to industrialise’, we allowed others to overtake us. In the 21st Century ‘creative decline’ has not been allowed to occur, and we have retained our creative edge in the face of increasing global competition.
Imagine a civil society where the quantity and quality of public discourse about culture is continuously improving. And imagine a community of teachers, artists and others, working in unity to sustain this transformation, constantly refreshing each other’s skills to take on this task.