OTTAWA – A push underway on Parliament Hill to create a new visual artist laureate has been procedurally thwarted, though it's possible the proposal could resurface in the new year.

The proposal was to create a position to represent Canadian art in the same way the parliamentary poet laureate currently does.

Backers say creating this role would be a boon to the country's cultural industries.

However bill, S-234, proposes to create a new position titled: Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate, modelled after the existing Parliamentary Poet Laureate, was recently killed in the House of Commons after failing to secure a sponsor. 

 

The sponsor is an MP who takes on leading the bill through the legislative process.

Liberal MP Dan Vandal had planned to sponsor the bill, but after becoming a parliamentary secretary, his office told CTV News that Vandal had handed Bill S-234 over to fellow Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault.

There's a parliamentary stipulation that disqualifies parliamentary secretaries or ministers from being able to advance these kinds of bills.

Though, according to parliamentary records there was no noted official sponsor as of late November when the bill camp up, and Boissonnault was not available for comment for this story.

NDP MP Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet attempted to save the bill from being killed for not having a named sponsor by proposing a unanimous consent motion to pass the bill at all stages. In presenting her proposal to the House she said because the bill is "totally uncontroversial" she was hopeful all sides would support passing it immediately.

However, an unknown number of members said "no" when the Speaker asked if there was the unanimous consent needed, and so the proposal and the bill were dropped from the order paper, essentially killing it.

Typically that'd be where the story would end but it is expected that the Senate-- where the bill originated-- will try to revive the proposal in the new year.

The legislation was brought forward as Senate "public bill" and was first introduced by then-senator Wilfred Moore in December, 2016. These kinds of bills are the equivalent of an MP-sponsored private members' bill, except they're tabled by senators and begin their legislative journey in the upper chamber.

The bill—four pages in total— prescribes that the mandate of the visual artist laureate would be to promote knowledge, awareness, and development of Canadian art, and over their two-year term the artist may:

  • Produce artistic creations to be used in Parliament, or for state occasions; Sponsor artistic events and exhibits; and Advise the Parliamentary Librarian on the library’s collection and cultural acquisitions.

At second reading in the Senate, Moore said that it’s time Parliament more formally recognized and helped foster Canada's arts community, whom he's described as "the ultimate risk takers."

"The creation of the artist laureate as a parliamentary officer would add a more appropriate and influential outlet for the promotion of the arts in Canada. An officer working to promote the arts on a full-time basis from Parliament would be a tremendous boost to the arts community," he said. "It is time we celebrate these visual artists and their contributions to our culture and the expression of who we are by providing the position of an artist laureate to recognize and represent these exciting artists and their artistic creations."

Moore described his proposal as one that would "augment" the existing laureate position.

The poet position was first created in 2001, in a similar way. Then-senator Jerry Grafstein pushed for and eventually saw a Senate public bill passed that created the role, which comes with a $20,000 stipend, $13,000 for travel expenses, and a budget for planning programming and translation services. To date Canada has had eight, including the current poet laureate, Georgette LeBlanc.

Bill S-234 doesn't spell out any compensation or stipend for the visual laureate, but throughout their study and debate Senators suggested that would be a decision left for the House of Commons to make.

During its study of the bill, the Senate Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee amended the bill to explicitly state it is a visual artist laureate rather than just an artist laureate. Art for the purpose of this position is defined as: "drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, photography, videography and filmmaking."

"I think Canadians and parliamentarians can all benefit from a little more art in their lives," said Government Representative Sen. Peter Harder, speaking in support of the bill in the Senate.

The laureate would be an officer of the Library of Parliament, and the positon would be selected by both the House and Senate speakers, based on a list of three names brought forward by a committee that comprises the Parliamentary Librarian, Director of the National Gallery of Canada, Commissioner of Official Languages, Chairperson of the Canada Council of the Arts, and the President of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

Chief of Staff and Corporate Secretary of the Canada Council for the Arts Joanne Larocque-Poirier testified before the Senate committee, where she said this new laureate "presents a wonderful opportunity to reaffirm the important role that artists play in Canada."

After Moore retired, Independent Sen. Patricia Bovey took on pushing the bill forward, seeing it pass the Senate in May, 2018. Bovey has been closely connected to the Canadian art scene throughout her life. Before being appointed to the Senate in 2016, she was a Winnipeg-based gallery director, curator, and art historian.

During committee study of the bill, Bovey said having a visual artist laureate on Parliament Hill would "bring to the Canadian public the perspective of Parliament, the importance of our democracy today and the issues and work of parliamentarians."

Both Toronto, and Victoria, B.C. have artist laureates, as do some U.S. states, including New York.

"Creating this position will demonstrate Parliament’s leadership in underlining the importance of the arts and the significant contributions they make to Canada's overall economy. We as parliamentarians obviously have a strong societal responsibility, so too do artists," Bovey said.

In imploring his colleagues to pass the bill when he first introduced it in the Commons in June, 2018, Vandal said doing so would send a clear message to Canada's arts community that parliamentarians appreciate and recognize the value of their work to Canadian culture.

"The position of an artist laureate would enable artists from all regions of Canada and of different backgrounds to have a national platform to showcase their work. Arts and culture is one of the most powerful tools we have for making social change," Vandal said.