Project by Vancouver-based Visceral Visions hosts launch event November 18
A NEW, VANCOUVER-BASED national digital platform aimed at connecting Indigenous and racialized artists with work has just launched.
CultureBrew.Art seeks to counteract systemic racism in the arts by linking up BIPOC artists in performing, literary, and media arts with decision-makers via a national searchable database. The resource, seven years in the making, is aimed at producers, directors, casting agents, and curators, as well as community and social service agencies, schools and educational institutions, government, and media outlets. It aims to spark collaboration, networking, and employment in the arts.
BIPOC artists can join for $25 per year, with bursaries offered to those who find the membership fee a barrier. For those wanting to hire BIPOC artists, CBA offers subscription rates, ranging from $6 to $35 per month, depending on whether they’re individuals or companies of varying sizes.
CBA launches officially with a free nationwide online event on November 18 at 11 am PST, featuring award-winning actor/writer Jean Yoon, Mrs. Kim on Kim’s Convenience, as keynote speaker, as well as actor-playwright Quelemia Sparrow and actor, writer, director and producer Omari Newton.
The project was a creation of Vancouver-based Visceral Visions, a nonprofit arts society with a mandate to champion Indigenous and racialized artists.
“My dream for creating CultureBrew.Art is to inspire exciting new collaborations and more respectful ways of working,” co-artistic producer Valerie Sing Turner said in the press announcement today. “By building the community of BIPOC artists and facilitating the ability of engagers to connect with artists, CBA will accelerate a major shift across the entire spectrum of Canadian society by normalizing the visibility, voices, and valuable contributions of people and communities of colour.”
“CultureBrew.Art provides a safer digital space for racialized artists to connect with each other and opportunities without having to compromise on our members’ privacy and data security,” said codirector Anju Singh in the announcement. “All data in CBA is hosted and backed up in Canada on our own secure server, and we ensure that artists have total control over what identifiable information is shared and who it is shared with. Providing a safe digital space for marginalized communities is a priority for us.”
This city’s artists are leading Canadian efforts to boost the networking and hiring of artists of colour. Two weeks ago, Vancouver-based CALTAC also launched a national database for theatre artists of Latinx heritage.
Janet Smith is an award-winning arts journalist who has spent more than two decades immersed in Vancouver’s dance, screen, design, theatre, music, opera, and gallery scenes. She sits on the Vancouver Film Critics’ Circle.
