Contemporary Visual Arts Network
The Contemporary Visual Arts Network (formerly Turning Point Network) is a consortium of 11 coordinated regional groups of contemporary visual arts professionals across the 9 English regions. The network engages with around 2000 individuals and several hundred organisations, large and small, commercial and public, international and local. It represents and supports a diverse and vibrant ecology embracing a broad range of artistic and curatorial practice. The individual groups drive programmes of work that not only directly benefit their regional constituents, but also the sector as a whole through shared learning. Collectively we are stronger than the sum of our parts which makes us more resilient, sustainable and effective as a sector.
Our Mission is to strengthen and develop the contemporary visual arts sector in England through collegiate working defined locally and nationally, using the network as a platform to do so.
Our Vision is of a strong, sustainable and supportive contemporary visual arts network, working collectively in order to safeguard the future of artists and our sector as a whole.
Our values are that:
- We are sector led and mutually supportive.
- We celebrate the distinctiveness and different contexts of the regions.
- We embrace a broad range of artistic and curatorial practice.
- We recognise and draw upon the expertise of regional groups to collectively build intelligence for the sector to share.
- We are committed to collaborating, and advocating for each other in order to benefit the contemporary visual arts as a whole.
These values will underpin all network activity and will enable us to deliver our sector's ultimate goal:
To nurture contemporary visual artists and organisations in order to produce internationally regarded, critically engaged work that is valued by our society.
Our messages in support for the contemporary visual arts are that:
- Contemporary visual arts are at the heart of our nation and are central to what makes us expressive and creative individuals within society.
- The UKís contemporary visual art sector is the world leader in this field and therefore our country maintains a true competitive advantage.
- The sector's contribution to national and regional economies and society in general far outweighs the small amount of public subsidy it receives.