Ep. 11: Patti Pon

Artful Conversations 2020 Patti Pon interview 

Welcome to Artful Conversations - a podcast about arts and cultural management. Hosts Annetta Latham and Katrina Ingram, interview leaders who help shape the world of arts and culture. We share their stories, their insights and observations. This podcast season has been brought to you with the support of MacEwan University and The Rozsa Foundation.

ANNETTA: Welcome to Artful Conversations. I’m your host Annetta Latham. I am thrilled to have Patti Pon, Calgary Arts Development President & CEO, with us here today.

Patti Pon is a veteran community and arts champion with an extensive track record of leadership and service in Calgary.

She has deep and diverse experience in the arts sector, having served as Vice President, Administration at the EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts (now Arts Commons), with stints at the Alberta Performing Arts Stabilization Fund and Alberta Theatre Projects, among others.

In the community, she serves on the board of The Calgary Foundation and on a committee for the Calgary Stampede. She was a founding board member of the Asian Heritage Foundation (Southern Alberta) and served on the steering committee for imagineCalgary as well as on the board of CKUA Radio Network.

She comes to the position of President & CEO from her most recent position as Director, Resource Development, Calgary Arts Development.

PATTI:  Hi, Annetta thank you for having me. 

ANNETTA: Oh, it's wonderful, wonderful to have you join us today. Can you explain some of the history of mandate from Calgary Arts development and how it's aiming to serve the community? 

PATTI: Sure. So Calgary Arts Development has been around for about 16 or 17 years. And I would say that as an organization, we are building on a legacy of an organization that was called the Calgary Regional Arts Foundation, and it had been around for about fifty five years. And when Calgary when the city of Calgary passed a civic arts policy in 2004, part of that policy included creating this entity that is called Calgary Arts Development Authority. And we sort of took all the best that was associated with the work of the Calgary Regional Arts Foundation and then built on that. 

Ultimately, you know, the thing I think we're known mostly for is we are a funder on behalf of the City of Calgary. We are an arm's length organization, so we have a board of directors, but we have one shareholder and that shareholder is the city council. So we do try to create some distance. But I think it above and beyond our funding programs, and I'm not dismissing the importance and the value of them, this whole notion of what arts development is. How do we include the arts when we think about city building and in particular here in Calgary, I often talk about arts led city building. And so here we are, a public organization stewarding public dollars because the source of our funds are tax dollars from the city, for the benefit of the public good. 

And that includes artists. So we really try to think of our work in that respect, and of course that's about building and strengthening our own local arts sector and the artists and arts workers included in it. But it's also about sharing with Calgarians the role that the arts can play in creating cities that are deserving of all Calgarians, not some Calgarians. 

ANNETTA: So you've been there for over nine years and during that time, what for you was a real strength that you think the organization has grown into over that nine years? 

PATTI: Well, as I said, I described ourselves as a funder, and so always we are championing for our community and for artists and arts workers. And so I would say that from a funding perspective, the most significant transformational thing that's happened to us in that time is that we doubled and then some more our dollars in our lifetime. And we know that in the arts sector, if you're looking for people to stretch that dollar far, look no further than Canada's arts community and particularly those in the not for profit community. So that has been significant, and we really made the case to city council based on what we knew to be the kinds of things that the arts bring to a city, bring to community, how they impact citizens. And so while we certainly did talk about an economic impact, that was not the only thing we talked about. And we were very very fortunate to get the confidence of city council and our mayor in particular, to champion for us, so that's a significant thing. Moreover, on that arts development side, in 2014, we launched a citywide strategy called Living a Creative Life. And the whole premise of that strategy was to ask Calgarians, do the arts matter? Does it matter to have them in your city? And if so, how do you know, what makes you notice? And from that and we actually we're in touch with eighteen hundred Calgarians. 

We had a group of thirty six Calgarians who helped us craft the strategy based on the input we got. We created this strategy, which is about how the arts help create the conditions in our city where Calgarians can live their most creative lives,  whatever that looks like, however you want to define it. And so it's really helped us connect the work of our arts community to how that feeds and so it's not about how do we be a creative city, it's about what are the building blocks in place? Because our belief is creativity is not something you're born with. So that if you didn't get that gene, you're just out of luck, you lost it in the gene pool. It's something that the more you do it, the better you get at it. And so practice, practice, practice. And so that's what we were trying to and continue to try to develop in our work and then kind of seek others to join us in creating those conditions for creativity. 

The other, there's a couple of other things I'll just add here Annetta. I think a step we took into was the importance of research and knowledge and information in Canada's arts community. Not a lot of comprehensive research, especially longitudinal. And so we really wanted to have good data. And I know we hear it all over the place now about big data, good data. How do we use our information in a way that is meaningful? And so I think we are one of the few civic funding agencies that actually has a research and impact department. Now it's a department of two, but nevertheless, we undertake regular surveying, we undertake regular analysis, and I'm sure we'll get into that later. The other thing I just wanted to add was an emphasis in our work around equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. Arts funders, arts organizations have been working in this for years and years. This is not something new. I would say that for Calgary Arts Development, I don't know that we embraced it as intentionally and as transparently as we have in the last four or five years,  so that's a real shift for us. Oh, and then then one other thing is just in our community, in my time here so far, we've had the worst flood in one hundred years and now we've had the worst pandemic in a hundred years. And both of those natural disasters had a significant impact on our arts community. So, you know, it's been interesting times. 

ANNETTA: Let's talk a little bit about the interesting time. But before we dip into that, I really think it's exciting what you're talking about, about research. And, you know, I was talking with a colleague, a lady called Nancy Duxbury, who is a Canadian, I was having a chat with her and she is a researcher, a cultural mapper, and she talks about a future forming research. And I thought it's a really wonderful thing because she's talking about research maybe forward and it sounds like that's what you're talking about as well. And like you say, research can be so enriching and so empowering. But let's dip into the pandemic that is here to embrace our world. So pandemic programming for everybody has been a challenge and Calgary Arts Development has been granted two million dollars from the city of Calgary to develop an emergency resiliency fund. So what have you been able to create from this grant? 

PATTI: So there's a couple of things, and I think just from a context perspective, again, what I want to be clear on is that the two million dollars that was granted from the city of Calgary was over and above the granting dollars that we already had. So we had about 10 million dollars to grant out all things being equal. And that was up from six million dollars the year before.  And then the pandemic happened and we took one point one five million of that envelope and we redirected it from the programs we were originally running at the beginning of the year immediately to relief funding. And then so that relief funding was from an existing envelope. And that was addressing instant concern, as I'm sure you've you've spoken with others about in the arts sector at the moment in Alberta, that the public ban on gatherings happened four o'clock in the afternoon, while seven thirty that night there were curtains that didn't go up.  And then immediately following that, there were phone calls to ticket buyers asking about making ticket refunds, with no idea of when we would be able to ever sell another ticket. So the impact was instant. We know from our data and our research that between March and August of this year, we had a 51 percent cut of staff and an 81 percent cut in artists. So artists' fees stopped instantly so that at one point one five million went out the door as quickly as we could to address those immediate things that happened because of the lockdown.  Then we went to the city council who was looking at all of the different ways that our city was impacted and they saw the severity of the impact in the arts and they granted another two million dollars on top of the one point one five. And that is what is the emergency resiliency fund. And in those two and with that two million dollars, we divided it into two kinds of contexts, if you will. So one is called the recovery fund, and the other million dollars was resiliency. So basically we tried to do relief, recovery, resiliency within the context of a year to try and respond to what we were hearing from the community. So the recovery piece was the million dollars there. They were maximum 50 thousand dollar grants, went out to organizations who, you know, after the grief and the shock had initially worn off, then what do you do? How do you continue on when you can't be presenting shows, you cannot be gathering in large numbers publicly? What do you do? And so that recovery fund was there again to try and address maybe some of the mid to longer term issues people were facing in the year. Once we figured out this was not just going to be a few weeks and then we'd all get back to normal. 

And then, you know, some companies pivoted really quickly. So they started talking about online and how to increase the opportunity and quality and access. Some of it was about cash flow. And if I'm not having ticket income and my donor income has dried up, I still need to have some people here to help us continue to keep the engine running. And so it ran the gamut. And then the last, this last million dollars, which were just in the final stages of assessing right now, is called the Resiliency Fund. And this was you know, the pandemic was not easy on anybody, but if you try to look for the silver lining, it gave us some time to reflect the time that we often don't have as arts producers, presenters, artists in our own right. And so, you know, the thing I always say about artists is you are artists all the time.

It's not just when you're on stage or just when you're in front of your computer typing up that next chapter. Artists are artists, whether they're sitting in their art studios or they're at the grocery store, or that they're at their parent teacher council meeting. They're artists. So they're always creating, they're always looking at life through those lenses as artists and their practice. And so the resiliency fund was about that, was about how we could realize some of the things that this time has afforded artists, when they reflect, when they look back, the artist will be the storytellers of our time. We will remember this time because of their stories. So how do we help express them. Yeah, and that's what the resiliency fund was for, some people might call it innovation. We were looking for new ideas to try to go back to practice, practice, practice doesn't always mean it's perfect. So the resiliency fund, I think, was to try and offer some resources to organizations. We also had an individual project grant. We redirected our project grant to individual resiliency and recovery and that was five hundred thousand to really work through those things. And so, as I said, we're just in the assessment process right now. But the thing I'll tell you, Annetta, is we had two million dollars, we had over six million dollars in requests And, you know, nobody was asking for the sun and the moon and the stars. We had a fifty thousand dollar limit. So that just gives you an idea of how many applications were out there. So back to the severity of the impact on our communities. It is deep and it has not gone away. 

ANNETTA:. And it's coming back to bite us quite severely. One of the exciting things that I heard about that you had done back in May was a partnership with Calgary Economic Development, the City of Calgary and the Rosza Foundation undertaking the survey that you did in relation to with organizations, in relation to trying to understand their plans moving forward during the Covid disruption. Was there anything in that that surprised you?  

PATTI: Anything that surprised me 

ANNETTA: Or that came up and you thought that's interesting. 

PATTI: Yeah, well, you know what I would say that optimism. You know, keeping in mind, this was May. So you're not even three months. And that the results were staggering, I talked about the amount of job loss, the number of artists who couldn't be engaged any further. You know, the estimates of attendance program cancelation, all those things like all those really dire things. And yet there is this sense of optimism and hope of the kinds of opportunities that artists and arts producers and presenters undertook to continue to maintain that connection with their audiences, with their donors, with their stakeholders. That didn't go away. So while the way we had been used to connecting it was not available to us and the statistics were dire and continue to be, that's not stopping people from trying. It's not preventing them. You know, I don't see people throwing their hands up in the air and going, OK, well, I guess we'll just wait until Covid is over and then we'll go back to that. Vast majority of organizations are really trying to understand the time in which we live and how to adapt, be flexible. All those adjectives we're hearing these days:  pivot to a to make that connection to their communities. I would say the one area where I kind of feel and maybe this is just me, we're so busy trying to connect to our audiences and our stakeholders and other sectors, other parts of the social sector, that I think it's come at the cost of actually connecting to each other as artists and as creatives. There aren't the same opportunities like the opening nights where you get to see everybody and you get to hang out and you get to check in. So we're also busy trying to figure out how to help everybody else connect with everyone else. I think we're losing contact and connection to each other. And so that's what I find so heartening about those organizations that are presenting or producing or creating those moments because they are artist to artist, contact, touch, figuratively, not literally. And we need that right. The thing that will feed artists is other artists and that inspiration. 

ANNETTA: Yeah, and I think what you said is really important, that that connectivity into our world and with our worlds, no matter what our worlds are, is extremely important. And like you said, artists have this unique ability to energize each other. Whether they like each other's work or not? I just think there's connectivity that they have that energizes us really is kind of something to be researched really, because it's certainly a thing all of it's own and completely. And it's something that someone like myself who's worked in the arts like you for the last 50 years of my life, there’s real energy in thus. And it's really interesting. One of the other things that I'm aware that you've been part of and yet another group of fantastic organizations in Calgary, you've all come together to work on and launch the Rise Up program. So tell our listeners what that is. 

PATTI: So, again, like everybody in our sector as a funder and as an arts champion, we had to figure out our way of trying to ensure that the arts continue to be present in the community, given that the traditional way of connecting, i.e., person to person in public gatherings, wasn't going to be an option. And as we came to the realization that this was probably going to be a reality for us for much, much longer than a few weeks or even a few months, I mean, we're now talking probably not getting back to a normal, she says, using air quotes, kind of offering of in person season work until twenty, twenty two or later. So we wanted to try to figure out how to keep the arts present? How do we remind people that the arts are still here and that there are live arts experiences that you can have? And so I hope one of the things you've heard through our conversation so far is this whole idea of ‘we're in this together’. 

It's going to take way more partnership, collaboration, co-conspiracy, co-conspiring, I guess would be the word, to get us all through this, in a good way.  And so we always, always have been looking for partners and always look to leverage each other. And I think it's become even more important. So Rise Up, I mentioned the arts were one of the most severely affected sectors, but so was tourism, so was hospitality. And so we partnered with our good friends at Calgary Economic Development, the Calgary Hotel Association, the National Music Centre and the King Eddy, Annerin Productions, Theatre Calgary, and Tourism Calgary. 

Like there's a number of us who work within those three sectors and said, OK, what can we do together to keep the arts present, to let people know that there's amazing things still happening? Most importantly, they take into account safety first for both those who are taking part in the experience and those who are offering it on the stage, that it's hyper local. So we are promoting local organizations, local artists. And the third thing is that it involves partnership and collaboration. So ‘Rise Up YYC’ came into being and it was not about recreating or starting anything new. It was about taking what we already do and the ways in which people are pivoting or changing the way they offer the work and trying to build upon it and trying to build, amplify it accelerate it however we could, so through these organizations, we've had drive in music weekends over the summer that involved some of our favorite festivals who couldn't have their festivals this year, but they can have a concert slot so you can get your fix of the Blues Fest or the Reggae Fest. And so that was called the Rise Up Music Weekend. We have another promoter who did the hotel's live concert. So we have a downtown hotel that has an outdoor pool deck and half of the rooms have balconies that look over to the pool deck. So they put a stage on the deck and you rented a room for the night and you could watch the concert from your balcony. And they had a it was amazing and it was packed. They sold out virtually every concert they had over the summer. And they've now moved into an indoor venue that has an indoor pool atrium with the balconies going out to them. And so we were promoting these kinds of events through rise up yyc dotcom as a way to just remind people that we're still here. Yeah. And we're doing it together. And so the hotels get something, artists get something. 

We have staycation packages that our tourism authorities put together, trying all these different kinds of ways to give Calgarians some options that are safe and fun and involve the arts.  So we launched that in August and we've had a number of programs happen which have been awesome and we look forward to continuing to do that. Theater Calgary will be having a show coming up. They're doing a digital version of A Christmas Carol and they also have a special dinner package so that you can get dinner from the local Fairmont Palace or hotel, that's in the Christmas spirit, and then watch the show, how to watch the show from your home. So all those kinds of things that we're trying to do to really keep our local economy going as best we can and remind people that that includes the artists as well. 

ANNETTA: And I really like that. You mentioned before, this is the long game. 

PATTI: Yeah. Oh, yeah. 

ANNETTA: You're in this for the long game. And the collectiveness between economy and tourism and arts really embraces the fact and acknowledges the fact that we actually are all in this together. And it actually impacts all of us in different ways whether that's through tourism, whether it's an economy, because suddenly, you know, like you say, tickets are suddenly not happening. And then that rolls into a massive reduction of staff who are people who have lost their incomes and all of those kinds of things. And they're all interwoven into each other. A really exciting program. But what were some of the challenges when you kind of came up and tried to think about developing it as an initiative. 

PATTI: Well, we didn't want to be one more thing, on top of what everybody was trying to do is people were scrambling to try and figure out their way through this. We are in a time where people are having to do things with less. 

I was part of a panel discussion earlier today where the theme of the session was twice as much need and half as much money, or half as much resource. And that is the time we're finding ourselves in. So we were trying to be very conscious that we didn't want to keep adding stuff on, so hence how can we use the resources and the capacity we have to maybe group or connect these things in a way that you might not have had the opportunity to do before.  I'm very optimistic that this rise up initiative may lead into opportunities beyond the pandemic once we're out of it,  that these partnerships and these friendships that are developing between restaurants and hotels and arts organizations and all those kinds of things will continue long past the pandemic. So we're trying back to the long game, Annetta, and just being thoughtful that we're not going back to anything. Whatever this is coming out of, the pandemic has to be about building on what we already have and what we're already going to develop in different ways. And as I said before, creativity, the more you do it, the better you get at it. The result of creativity, the outcome is innovation. So everybody's looking for innovation. Everybody's looking for new ways of doing things. We'll get creative, practice your creativity, surround yourself with artists. That's really the big piece. I mean, she says here, while I'm with my people. I'm with my insiders on this podcast. But, you know, my ulterior motive is to have artists at every single table that is talking about how we go forward, that is talking about how we build community, build cities. If you have an artist sitting at that table, you can't not have creativity and innovation. It's just not possible because that's what artists do. 

ANNETTA: Exactly.  And having creativity and culture be a part of city development policy and all of those things is just it bodes well for all of us as we move forward in the future. Bodes well for all of us and for yourself. You know, your role as a leader during this pandemic must be a really interesting kind of field to navigate through. So for you, what do you think has been your primary focus within Calgary Arts Development and the larger Calgary kind of arts landscape during the pandemic? And as we are still navigating our way through this? 

PATTI: I think there are two things certainly I think we've really tried hard not to be an entity or an organization that was contributing more uncertainty to what was very uncertain times. So we've really tried our best to bring information, bring meaningful data, bring dollars in a meaningful way to our community and for the benefit of our community. So I would say we tried to do that. And then the other thing I would say is that back to this Artside city building, because of the nature of how our organization is structured and where it sits within the city of Calgary as a civic partner, we have a number of other sister partners that we work with. So at those tables, I am always there bringing the arts and artists, whether it's a conversation about community building or economic development or tourism opportunities or getting a building, boosting morale or spirit or mental health is a huge issue for us right now, and the arts can be a way to help heal. And so always I try to be at those kinds of conversations where at least there can be one voice from the arts, if not many, and people have been super receptive. So I've been very lucky in that. 

ANNETTA: So would you say your role has had to change its focus or is that still the focus it had? It's just been amplified in the environment that we've had.

PATTI:  I think, yeah, it would be amplified. I mean, we are Calgary Arts Development. So our focus has always been arts centered. I would say that within the context of our art's work during the pandemic, we've really emphasized people first. You know that it is about artists, it is about arts workers, that these organizations that we may have the opportunity and privilege of leading or being a part of, are here for the benefit of artists and for people. And it's people who make those decisions. And so I think this time has afforded us just reminding ourselves of that, who are we here to serve? What is it we're here to do? And without the arts and artists, there's no reason to have Calgary Arts Department - not at all. So we remind ourselves of that all the time. 

ANNETTA: So, you know, during this time, what kind of decisions have been instrumental in keeping Calgary Arts operating and contributing to the landscape? I mean, you've talked about some wonderful initiatives that you've been doing. But, you know, when you bring it just very much in a house, what's the stuff that's been critical to you moving forward and keeping operating and keeping contributing and just as an organization, like any other arts organization, while you're facing what you're facing during this challenging time. 

PATTI: Well, certainly internally, I've had the great honor and privilege of working with my team and every single one with to a person has just contributed well above and beyond we’ve been working remotely for the whole time since the pandemic began. They have worked very hard to be responsive to the phone calls. We've had phone calls, emails, text messages, like all means of communication, of hearing stories, of people finding themselves in very difficult circumstances. And so we've tried to listen. We've tried to respond in whether it's through our granting programs or through the various initiatives. We've tried to be a part of collecting meaningful data like the survey instrument you talked about. We've also been a part of Stone Oliveson’s research around Albertan audience behaviors. So, again, in this time of uncertainty, what is it we can provide you to help maybe give you good data to make decisions on? So we've been partnering with a number of organizations to help to commission Stonehill's and to do a longitudinal survey of audience intention. So all of this information, by the way, you can find at our website Calgary Arts Development dot com, or you can just reach out to us and we're happy to send the links, but we just received the third phase of that data. So they'll do six surveys over 18 months to just see our audience is ready to come back. And if they are, what are the conditions that they're seeking and surprise, safety and comfort, number one. They have to know and they also want to share in experiences with their close cohorts. So it isn't much about being in that group of five hundred, but they want to be sure that they have that tight group that they can share that experience with, in person. 

And so there's lots of really good information and data and ways to talk about how to promote your activities. So we were trying to think about that kind of information that will be helpful to the organizations and individuals we work most closely with. And then, of course, as is the case for everybody right now. How are we rethinking our systemic structures that have had barriers placed for many artists in particular? And how do we change those in a time of great change happening anyway? So this whole idea of what access means, what inclusion and equity mean, are very, very front of mind for us right now and quite heavily influencing our work both at the board and the organizational level. 

ANNETTA: So in the coming months for you and your team, what's in store for you, as you’re navigating your way forward. 

PATTI: Well, as I mentioned before and we've talked about this, we are in a long game as we think about our programs for next year. Twenty twenty one we're thinking about twenty twenty one and probably twenty twenty two in terms of companies or organizations who are presenters or producers being in this uncertain time, you know, and so we want to continue to find ways to bring meaningful, rich information that companies can base decisions on. Obviously, the City Council is debating our budget next week, the city's budget and our allocation accordingly. So we'll be keeping a very close eye on that and hoping that we can retain the dollars that we have worked so hard to access.  We're seeing a real kind of blurring of the lines between the for profit and the not for profit arts sectors. You really can't have one without the other. And so where we traditionally would really focus our work on the not for profit community, we're now having more conversations that are the hybrids, and that's where the rise up initiative, as an example. 

We're working on a creative economy strategy because we believe the creative industries will be a way for Calgary to rebuild and renew our vision coming out of twenty, twenty and all that it has brought us. And I think the last thing, Annetta, that I just want to add is, similar to this notion about the systems we live in and the barriers that have been present, almost since the beginning of arts funding in Canada. To some companies, to some artists, to some entities that are structured in a variety of ways. I'm really inviting all of my colleagues in the sector, regardless of whether you're a producer, a presenter a funder, a donor, whatever it is, we have to think about how we make our way and invite those artists and those organizations to be a part of what will be a different system. You know, and in particular, I would be remiss in not saying that I am speaking with those organizations who are established, major institutions who bring so much to our community. We lean on those organizations in many, many ways that I think a lot of people don't ever give them credit for. 

So that being said, the journey doesn't end and this place of discomfort that many of us find ourselves in when we talk about equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility as an example, is really going to be heavy on those organizations and so having to think about how you make way, how you include those that have never had a chance to be at the table. And your table in particular is going to be really important, and that doesn't mean you have to give up anything. But I do think it does mean you have to think about the ways to come in, to lean in. And unlearn some things and learn other things, which is the story of my life every day. 

ANNETTA: Yeah, very much so. I think that that narrative of unlearning, I think is going to certainly be a growing one for us to do things.  My darling old mum would say, just bring another chair to the table, just wriggle up. Well, there's room for everybody. That was her entire principle. There's room for everybody. Bring another chair in. But like you said,  there's some unlearning that's got that needs to happen and some unlearning or whatever you want to call it. You know, break the mold, all those kinds of phrases. But yeah, definitely there's some journey in that. So as we're about to wrap up, you are leading in an extraordinary time and you are a culture leader in an extraordinary time. What's a little nugget of advice that you would give to our listeners, you know how to lead in the cultural sector during this time of strife and during times of strife? 

PATTI: I've been thinking about this a lot, and I'm still not sure I have that little nugget ready for you, Annetta, but what I will say is I think that as cultural leaders, we have an opportunity. And again, a good colleague and a friend and a mentor teacher to me was talking about leadership and said, you know, sometimes if you think about it, like when you're on a road trip and you've been driving the car for a really long time and then you get really tired and you have your partner drive. 

Well, sometimes leadership needs to be like. No one is expecting you to drive the car all by yourself up for that whole journey, you know, and that as leaders, it's incumbent upon us to recognize when that fatigue has set in and when we need to maybe take our hands off the wheel and give it over to somebody else for a while. That doesn't mean you give it over forever. You'll get your chance to drive the next leg. But I think it is really important for us to use this time that, you know, when I have had the privilege of listening to indigenous elders, you know, they tell us that Covid and this pandemic is a gift because it's given us a gift of time to reflect, to think more deeply about the things in our world that have not been working.  And I think as leaders, we need to hear that and we need to listen to that. And I do not dismiss for a moment and I am talking from absolute personal experience. It is super scary. It's really hard and it's a long time of discomfort. So knowing that, what are the things that you can do to help make the hardship, the discomfort, a little bit less, and I think, you know, again, as artists, I am so honored and privileged to get to work with artists every day, to support the work of artists who I believe so strongly in and who I believe will be, are the storytellers of our time. We will be remembered through our artists. And that is a great thing. And so I do feel very privileged to get to work in that realm. And so when the heavy lifting gets really heavy or I just got to say no, again, I remind myself of why I'm here doing what I do and the great things I've experienced because of it. And, you know, sometimes it gets me through a day, sometimes it's 10 minutes. Sometimes I just need to go hug my kitty cats and just step away from it all for a weekend and watch trashy TV. But I think it's really important for us as leaders to, kind of, as Gandhi said, be the change that you want to be in the world that you want to see in the world. That's the opportunity that we as cultural leaders have. And it is a remarkable opportunity. So don't let go of that. 

ANNETTA: That is absolutely wonderful. That definitely a nugget, you definitely nailed a nugget.  Patti, thank you so much for your time. It's been an incredible privilege talking to you. And I just want to offer you the opportunity if there's anything else you'd like to add to our conversation today. 

PATTI: Well, thank you very much. I'm really grateful and honoured to be a part of a really illustrious group of people who you're interviewing. I appreciate that. And for anybody who wants to connect or learn more about Calgary Arts Development, we always have room for more friends in our circle. And you can find out about us through Calgary Arts Development dot com. And my contact info is on the website as well. It's a bit unwieldy. There's a lot of stuff on there. We try to make it clean, but you'll see the contact button at the very least, and we can help navigate that for you. But thanks again so much for doing this and many thanks to all of you who are listening. 

ANNETTA: Thank you. 

Analysis

ANNETTA: Katrina, I absolutely loved this interview, Patti is extraordinary, her energy is just absolutely amazing, and I love the way that she's almost embraced Covid, and gone ah Covid smovid, but let's just get on with it. I just, it's just amazing. Absolutely. Just that. Just keep going. Just keep going. And this is what it is. Let's get on with it. It was fascinating. 

KATRINA: Yeah, I've known Patti for a number of years now, and she is fantastic, and you're right, she has that energy that just says we got to move to the next thing, we can deal with this. And she's such an inspiration to be around. 

ANNETTA: And the Rise Up stuff that they are doing in Calgary is just extraordinary. And, you know, I mean, I just was fascinated when I was listening, to get a hotel room, a swimming pool, what is this, I need to decide to go see this. But what I loved in that was the importance that she really, really talked about was understanding your partners, having a conversation with your partners, working with your partners and everybody thinking outside the box a little bit. And it's amazing what everybody brings to the table. And I really think that's so important in our sector is to get good partners and build good relationships and work well with them. 

KATRINA: Absolutely, that really came through in the interview, also this idea of research and data, and I know that CAD has done a lot to make sure that they have done the research, that they've gathered the data they spearheaded a lot of the longitudinal research work in the community. And it really paid off because when the time came to roll out some plans very quickly and adjust things, they had the information that they needed to make those decisions. Well, and I think that really shone through. The last point I wanted to add is about access, inclusion and equity. And this is work that CAD has been doing for a while now. And I know it's really been accelerated in terms of its importance and it's really informing the strategic choices that they're making as an organization.

This show was created by Executive Producer and Host Annetta Latham; Co-host Katrina Ingram. Technical Producer Paul Johnston. Research Assistants involved were Caitlin McKinnon and MacEwan bachelor of music students. 

Theme Music by Emily Darfur and cover art by Constanza Pacher. Special thanks to the Rose Foundation for their support and to our guests. Artful Conversations is a production of MacEwan University  and Assistant Professor Annetta Latham, all rights reserved.

Latham, A. (Executive Producer and Host). Regan-Ingram, K (Host). (2020, November 20) [Season 2: Episode 11]. Patti Pon. Podcast retrieved from: www.artfulconversations.com/season-2-1/2021/2/6/ep-11-patti-pon