Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer 
Kadeen Briscoe of Little Angels Kreative Arts Centre, St. Catherine, won first place (Class 2 ages 7- 9) as the Jonkunnu character (Pitchy-Patchy) at the Children's Jonkunnu costume competition held at the Louise Bennett Garden Theatre on Saturday, December 10, 2005. However, as funding dries up, many persons use Hollywood-style masks instead of making their own. - Andrew Smith/Photography Editor
JAMAICA HAS an ocean of talented individuals and, as such, chief among the island's achievements for the 20th century are the achievements of its artistes. As such, Tony Rebel's claim that "a reggae put Jamaica pon top" is by no means empty. Yet, funding for the arts is an arid desert, with the CHASE Foundation standing as the lone oasis in this almost barren land.
Interestingly, the problem is not generally a lack of philanthropy on the Jamaican landscape. Various entities in corporate Jamaica demonstrate their strong corporate citizenship by giving back to the community. Yet, despite the creative industries, which includes the arts, being talked up as the new super-commodity, it seems that the arts gets the maawga-daawg's share of cash.
In the face of the arguments for the development potential of the creative industries, it is with more than a trace of irony that the cultural industries are struggling for funding. At the seminar on the creative industries recently held by JAMPRO and the International Reggae Day Festival, the case of Brazil was brought forward as a country which used the arts to stimulate national development.
BENEFITS
Yet, as the Ward Theatre attempts to sidestep a crumbling fate and numerous artistes attempt to seek funding for higher education in a landscape which is devoid of scholarships to fund education in the arts, the writing is clear. Though the country may greatly benefit from the development of the arts, the development of the arts is severely lacking in funding.
Kam-Au Amen, director of programmes at the Centre for Caribbean Philanthropy, notes that the way the picture is viewed depends on the colour in which you paint philanthropy. "I would argue that the arts in Jamaica have existed on the basis of philanthropy," he says. "People volunteer their time, people volunteer their talent."
So Amen argues that when one includes the spirit of volunteerism that enriches the artistic landscape, then philanthropy is alive and very well. Its heart only flounders when one limits philanthropy to the image of corporate entities and rich Jamaicans taking out their chequebooks.
Even so, he is willing to admit that the country's artistic endeavours are in dire need of that kind of philanthropy to fund development. As it is, many groups simply find themselves living hand to mouth and the hand is, unfortunately, sometimes empty when it gets to the mouth.
A part of what is necessary are other grant foundations that function like CHASE does, but with possible focus on various areas of the arts. Billy Heaven of CHASE notes that the foundation receives a lot more requests for funding than they have funds to give. As such, those who request beyond the point where the CHASE funds 'maawga and pop' have to simple do without.
Fifteen per cent of the funds available to CHASE are given to the arts and the rest shared among education, health and sports. Heaven explains that the foundation sends out calls for projects twice per year, and though some of the projects they fund will have an economic benefit, the focus is on projects that foster development and generally do not fund those that are commercial in nature.
"The demand really outstrips the supply in any of the subject areas," he said of CHASE funding in general. He noted that the foundation may fund a project for up to three years, after which a project will generally have to seek different funding. This may well spell the kiss of death for even well-managed projects that do not earn money, as they have very few spaces on the local front to turn to.
Heaven points out that CHASE provides the first real opportunity for those in the arts to access funding. He notes that while there are other foundations, he has seen none that pay any particular emphasis on the arts. "I think the private sector will have to play a bigger and better role as they have done with sports," he said.
Alas, corporate Jamaica may not have as yet received that memo. Amen points out that it is clear that corporate Jamaica needs incentives from the government in order to foster a greater spirit of giving. He notes that corporate Jamaican gives out of what he calls "enlightened self-interest".
QUESTIONABLE
Yet, it is questionable whether this enlightenment extends far enough into the future to highlight the value of funding artistic development. Amen argues that it is not that the management of many major corporations do not see the value of the arts, but that this value does not seem to translate all the way to the major executives who would make large scale funding decisions.
In the interim projects like Fi Wi Sinting struggle to get funding. When The Sunday Gleaner attended this year's day long festival, which brought hundreds to the grounds in Portland, its founder Sista P noted that funding was hard to come by though the festival had found a few faithful sponsors. "I don't know if it's because it (the festival) has to do with black or Africa, but they don't (sponsor the festival)," she said of corporate Jamaica.
This is despite the festival's growing attendance each year, moving from a festival in the hills to a sprawling day long event which offers a myriad of Afro-Jamaican heritage. Talking with some of the participants inside the festival makes the need for funding sound even more dire.
Groups like Turbo Plastic find they need funding, but have no idea of where to turn. The group, led by Elva Edwards, which plays traditional rhythms on inventive instruments made from mackerel buckets and shakers using the floater from the bathroom, have earned several gold medals and trophies from the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC). Yet, getting funding for microphones and other equipment has escaped their otherwise inventive imagination.
The Marcus Garvey Jonkunnu group expressed the same plight. "We really need corporate Jamaica to be a little more compassionate," said Dennis Higgins. He noted that the troupe is hard pressed to maintain their costumes, which undergo much wear and tear.
Interestingly, Jonkunnu probably shows one of the most serious ways in which the island's culture is being damaged by lack of funding. More and more, Jonkunnu troupes can be seen with masks borrowed from Halloween style costumes. In 2004 the JCDC was unable to stage its Jonkunnu festival and so one was held by the students of St. Peter and Paul, as the school's drama teacher fostered the activity. What was presented there was some fantastic costuming which, especially when it came to the set girls, rivalled the craftsmanship of many of what passes for costuming in the professional troupes.
The fantastic costuming that has been captured by Jonkunnu in the past or which can be read about in historical texts is nowhere to be seen. Hard-pressed for cash, the troupes make do and the costumed creativity of the form therefore goes undernourished and unexplored.
Alas, Turbo Plastic is symptomatic of more than just the lack of funding. They also point to the other side of the coin, the fact that many groups are not aware of how to go about seeking funding. Heaven points out that learning how to write a proposal to seek grant funding is important to seeking funds, but that too few know how.
Pat Ramsay, who is in charge of CHASE's arts and culture committee, explains that it often takes more than know how in seeking funding in the arts. Seekers, she says, need to be laced with spirit. Ingenuity would probably also be well appreciated.
Yet, of course, it would be unfair to merely paint corporate Jamaica as an unfeeling monster which cannot see beyond its own need to feed. Of course, the temptation is great as though many companies benefit from the arts, whether it is using paintings in their foyer, having entertainment at functions to ease the tedium or using the arts in advertising, the translation is not made to the need for funding development.
A source of one of Jamaica's top financial companies, however, notes that economics does greatly hamper philanthropic hopes, as the bottom line, made bolder by a dollar which slips and slides with the ease of Michael Jackson, and high inflation make giving more difficult.
The source explained, however, that some companies continue to fund though it is a case of "more dogs than bones".
'MORE DOGS THAN BONES'
The source explained that companies intent on brand awareness prefer to be involved with sponsorship, though companies which want to show themselves good corporate citizens get engaged in funding. The source explained that should a company be interested in showing themselves as a company which cares about the future, they may fund education or fund farming to cultivate an image of being interested in the country's development.
So, the question is, what does funding the arts show? The source notes that the apparent lack of funding of the arts is probably merely symptomatic of society's view of the arts. "I don't think it's a deliberate snub by companies," the source said. "I think it's just symptomatic of the greater lack of value that society places on the arts."
Ramsay agrees that the limited funding available is related to how society in general views the arts. Yet, she argues, "We cannot always think about the arts in terms of the bottom lines. What about the spirit of the people we're building?" she asked.
Unfortunately, where the spirit has not yet transformed into the bottom line the funding remains an elusive dream. Until the dinki mini learns to dutty wine or corporate Jamaica realises that there is a line that links the two and the future of the country dances between them, funding for Jamaican culture continues to exist in a desert.
