“The greatest wealth is between the two ears. This is a phrase that my parents often repeated to me during my youth. Now an adult and mother of a seven-year-old girl, I understand the meaning of this family heritage. Cultural wealth is decisive in the life of a human being.
Access to art is a fight that has always animated me. Quickly, I realized that this cultural richness that I had the chance to develop over the years gives me fantastic tools, which unfortunately are not accessible to everyone, despite the fact that we live in a developed country with protective social mechanisms.
What I have seen over the years is that art is not equally accessible in all spheres of society. I believe that we have a duty to make art accessible, for the sake of social justice. Every child should have access to all possible culture; be it music, theatre, dance, painting; regardless of the form of expression. Beyond artistic practice, what is important is above all to teach children to appreciate art and to take advantage of all the benefits they can derive from it.
A cultured citizen is intellectually curious and endowed with resources that allow him to critique the world around him. His speech is varied; it leads to exchange and sharing. He is better equipped to express his opinions and deal with the vagaries of life.
Access to culture is unfortunately not the same for everyone, in our society where it is too often considered as simple entertainment, and where we favor art forms that are lucrative. Even if I consider that Quebec currently has a culturally inclusive government structure, over the decades a kind of cultural centrifuge has developed within our society that does not allow equitable access to culture. for everyone.
Access to art is increasingly limited in our media, which mainly focuses on what is considered popular. This is where the cultural centrifuge effect kicks in; the less the population is exposed to a varied general culture, the more it focuses on what is popular and easily accessible, quickly and without asking too many questions.
Today, we are more interested in the process than in the final product, because the fruit of several years of labor and research in art is less and less exposed. We prefer to avoid it, and we turn to a culture that is similar to fast food. Faced with this bewilderment, certain artistic forms are described as elitist and inaccessible. A great wall is slowly being built between humans and their cultural history.
We then believe that we must educate the public and democratize this art which seems inaccessible to us. None of this is necessary. We simply need to make it easier to access. Art must be present on TV, on the radio, but also in our schools, our youth centres, our community centres. Art should be where people are; it belongs to everyone, that is what defines it in itself.
The basic intention of this great millennial artistic culture remains the same: to touch humans and connect them to each other. This is what I wish we could give to our children today; this magical toolbox that will allow them to become fulfilled, engaged and happy adults.