AINSLIE Roddick joined ATLAS Arts last year after working running her own artist-run space in Glasgow. The organisation uses art in a collaborative way and works with businesses, schools and other members of the community as a learning tool.
Name: Ainslie Roddick
Age: 33
Position: Artistic director
WHAT IS THE BUSINESS CALLED?
Atlas Arts
WHERE IS IT BASED?
Skye
WHY WAS THE BUSINESS SET UP?
IT was set up 10 years ago because there was the An Tuireann arts centre in Portree and it had a gallery space. When it was closed there was a public consultation to decide what should take its place. Atlas was set up to be an arts organisation for Skye. I went to art school and studied painting and print making. I set up a small artist-run space in Glasgow’s east end which I ran voluntarily with a friend for five years. I also worked at the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow for seven years and I learned how to think about art and public money. I only started in December last year. The organisation was created from the ground up and the previous director did an amazing job of working in the community and hosting performances, music events and film screenings.
With coronavirus we’re in a unique position as we are publicly funded – we get money from Creative Scotland – so we can adapt and it allows us time to volunteer and do deliveries for people. We are luckier than most.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
WE don’t have a gallery or exhibition space. It’s about bringing art into the process of learning. It spans disciplines – science, biology, the arts and has an ecological aspect with projects related to the environment. One of the most interesting projects right now is CLIMAVORE – a series of apprenticeships with students from Portree High School’s home economics department and food and drink producers on the island. They have to create a recipe and get paid the living wage for it. They are urged to think about oysters, seaweed and foods that clean or take toxins out of the water and create alternative economic models. We want to encourage people to eat them and encourage restaurants to include them on the menu. Restaurants get a new recipe and we pay the living wage.
WHAT IS YOUR TARGET MARKET?
WE don’t really have a target market. Our aim isn’t to make money but to have conversations, engage in culture and make people think about society. We are interested in how we respond to what’s happening around us. We listen to schools, restaurants and the Skye Climate Action group. In working collaboratively we can link and connect people. We see ourselves as a resource for communication rather than selling a product. We help them learn from one another through art. Something we are trying to do through Skye Climate Action is make a new sci-fi film that imagines the future. We are planning to work with different communities to see what the future looks like and the artists job is to create that story.
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM COMPETING BUSINESSES?
WE are fairly unique in terms of arts across Scotland. Scotland has an amazing arts scene but organisations are not as connected to communities. They see themselves as distinct from communities. On Skye you can’t do anything without other people. Other examples of organisations that do what we do tend to be more rural. There are other models but I’m interested in breaking down the distinction between highbrow and lowbrow art that other organisations have. It can feel exclusive in the art world. and all my work is about trying to break that down by telling people there are no rules. It isn’t good when people won’t come into your building because they think they need to be a certain way.
IS SCOTLAND A GOOD PLACE FOR THIS TYPE OF BUSINESS?
THE fact we are publicly funded through Creative Scotland gives us a relative amount of stability. Levels of public funding are not high and we spend a lot of time and energy on fundraising but that’s not unique to Scotland. Skye is an amazing place to think about art – people are connected to each other through things like farming, land ownership and politics. People think rural places are not lively and are just idyllic. Skye is an amazing place to be. City people perceive us as softer without the same cutting-edge exhibitions. For me it is all the same, we all connect and create long-lasting meaningful projects rather than one-off ones that don’t change the conversation or have a lasting impact.
WHERE DO YOU HOPE THE BUSINESS WILL BE IN 10 YEARS’ TIME?
WORKING with communities. I think we need to go carbon neutral and make large changes in how we think about the climate crisis. We need to think about travel and activities. We have to look after our staff and artists and pay well so that could mean doing less potentially. We can’t keep responding to the capitalist urge to produce. We are always open to what it means to run a company in this climate. If people have ideas or want to test something we will help. We are trying to think more about entrepreneurship and artistic projects with businesses are a way to help that.
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