There is a well-documented social turn happening within the arts. This can be seen in festival programming, creative recovery, arts/health and funding models that increasingly require artistic and community outcomes to align. As we see terms such as “socially engaged practice” and “social change” being used more frequently within global art contexts, let’s take a moment to consider the rigour with which we interrogate these claims of social engagement and social change.
As a regionally-based organisation, the Cad Factory has spent many years delivering work in local, national and global contexts with the aim of developing ways for diverse voices to be part of our national story. We’re not a regional arts organisation trying to generate alternative pathways for inclusion in mainstream (capital city) art establishments. Instead, we are attempting to rethink the role of the arts within our contemporary world.
