Creating Art in a Sports Mad Country

Creating Art in a Sports Mad Country

By Eva Nimmo (22224442)

https://wotw.netstudies.org/?p=917  – New one

https://wotw.netstudies.org/?p=852 – Old draft

[link seems to only work if you copy and paste it into Chrome]

Art and sport are like oil and water, you can shake them together for eternity, but they will always separate.  Sporting events in Australia take up a large section of media coverage and tend to be loved by every Australian.  However, is this really the case? 

While elections bring out politicians wearing sporting attire and smiling next to famous athletes, the arts are often neglected like the sad cousin. Why don’t we see our local government members attending musicals, galleries or posing with Australia’s performers before elections?

It is true that sport promotes a healthy lifestyle and brings people together which is why sport funding in Australia is very focused on the goal of involving “more Australians with sport at all levels”. They have very targeted objectives such as achieving 47% of children aged 5- 14 years participating in “at least 2 hours per week of organised sport outside of school hours”.

Art on the other hand offers cultural enrichment, beautifies environments, offers entertainment and provides a reflection of the diverse society in which we live. All extremely important contributions. Yet, the government doesn’t appear to encourage young Australians to embark on a career in the arts. The cost of an Art degree has increased significantly in due to changes in government funding.

According to the Guardian Australia “there was a time when would-be poets, historians and writers could be expected to pay off an art degree at an Australian university in a decade, fast forward to now and they may die with their debt”.  In 2025, a three-year Art degree is predicted to cost $50,000. In contrast, a Bachelor of physiotherapy costs $35,000.    

What does this tell us about Australian’s belief system today and why does this even matter? Why does the government value sport over the arts? Perhaps because political decisions and funding has set the arts up to fail.  It takes a brave soul to embark on an arts career when there’s very limited opportunities, financial insecurity, need for constant self-promotion, resilience to criticism, high cost of materials, lack of superannuation and now a soaring HECS debt.  

Don’t get me wrong I understand why Australian’s love sport. My upbringing gave me an insight into the many benefits that involvement in sport can bring to a balanced life. However, involvement in the arts is just as important and artists should be considered as valuable to society as sports stars. It is up to the government make art available to everyone, regardless of their economic status. If the government values a well-rounded citizen, then promoting the participation and active engagement of all Australians in high quality arts and cultural experience should be high on any agenda.