Government programs to support the arts#4: Sweden

The cultural heritage of Sweden constitutes a balanced combination of the Swedish sensibility and of influences from foreign larger cultures, like the German and the French traditions.[1] Such a strong foreign cultural factor has not surprisingly led to the fact that “Swedish cultural policy began with the defence of national identity.”[2] The Crown and the court’s desire to have a more sophisticated cultural establishment became the second cultural motor, and social movements were the third cultural motor with an aim to make cultural life accessible to everyone. The energy of these heterogeneous forces drove the country to reconsidering the importance of the cultural sector in the twentieth century. Nationalist, elitist or popular, these agents’ legacy motivated the care-taking of Swedish cultural life, and therefore its artists.

State support to culture until the reform of 1960 focused on the two national theatres, a number of museums, few libraries and the preservation of cultural monuments. Already in the 1920s appear some early attempts to create specific policies to provide institutional assistance to the arts. The National Museum of Fine Arts[3] started receiving twice as much money to spend in art purchases and was encouraged to launch an educational campaign on behalf of art.[4] These actions took place in a broader context of a full democratisation of the Swedish Parliament. Representatives of the Labour Movement superseded the Agrarians and stated that “it was the duty of a democratic state to foster at (…) the advancement of cultural activities among the people at large as axiomatic”.[5] This goal obeyed the precepts of folkbildning (community education) a concept that understood “knowledge as a way of cultivating the personality”.[6] The depression of the early thirties hard hit artists with the reduction of grants for cultural purposes. This led to high criticism, especially from the artists’ ranks, who claimed that the state’s patronage of the arts had been and remained inadequate. In 1937, when it seemed that matters had reached an impasse, the Social Democratic government acted.

The Parliament allotted at least one per cent of annual state construction costs towards the purchase of works of art to adorn public buildings. This became the task of the newly-born National Public Arts Council (1937), which should also support the producers of high-quality art and make their work accessible in public spaces.[7] In addition, a fixed proportion of revenues from the state lottery were earmarked for the support of cultural activities, mainly theatre and music. Both measures were abolished (the lottery funds only partly) during World War II and were not immediately restored when the conflict was over. The one-percent rule was replaced by a fixed sum that remained for many years and few shy initiatives were implemented, but all in all “Culture had to take a back seat while enormously expensive social welfare programmes were being implemented.”[8] This situation lasted until 1959, when a lively debate promoted by artists and intellectuals led to few state financial helps and grants for artists. It was not until 1961 that real state actions were defined in cultural matters.

The protests against the poor earnings of cultural workers and the inefficiency of art education forced decision-taking in the cultural sphere. The Minister of Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs, Mr. Ragnar Edenman, promised an immediate improvement of the state’s obligations towards “cultural workers”. The 1961 Declaration contained four main points as priorities for the state cultural policies: to support the artists during their training and to increase their support in their actual work, to increase the public consumption of artistic products and to broaden the cultural environment.[9] As a result, a whole set of programmes were implemented to achieve this. The allocation for purchases of art for public buildings doubled and higher working scholarships were provided to artists (1961), a board for scholarships to artists was created and funds were allocated for exhibitions of Swedish art abroad (1962), a system of artists’ awards was introduced (1964), Swedish travelling exhibitions started on an experimental basis (1965), the National Council for Cultural Affairs was reorganized (1969) and payments to artists increased considerably (1970). What should or not be supported was considered an aesthetic decision left to the artists, while the power to define the areas of responsibility remained with the government.[10]

These measures were quickly designed and implemented. The government planned a well-thought out long-lasting policy though. To achieve this, the 1960′s turned out to be the decade of the official inquiries into the cultural sector. The government devoted great efforts to know the needs and demands of all cultural agents. These inquiries bore fruit in statutory reforms and a new Bill on Culture (1974) was introduced. The bill represented a triumph of the democratic welfare-state model of cultural policy and marked the birth of the Department of Cultural Affairs.[11] The philosophy of cultural policy was regarded as “…part of the work of improving the social environment”…, and related both to public and private activities. The new Bill promoted the idea that the artists’ problematic situation would be improved by employing them for society. Apart of providing greater funding to the National Arts Council to purchase art for State buildings’ decoration, a new system of grants for specific projects was implemented and more job opportunities were provided to artists.[12] The creation of a centralised National Council for Cultural Affairs consolidated the importance of cultural policy-making. The result obtained by these measures was the “…a very substantial strengthening of regional and municipal resources for the distribution and production of quality culture.”[13]

Cultural expenditure has increased through the years. In 1970 the 14% of the national budget was devoted to culture, while in 1980 it raised until 22%. Concerning the several cultural sectors, popular education received the more subsidy with 28,2% in 1975 and 24% in 1981. Museums have a prominent position in Sweden, counting 15 State museums in 1985. This did not reflect upon the annual budget though.  The allocations for museum exhibitions and care of ancient monuments were 8,3% in 1975, and  9% in 1981, against the greatly supported libraries’ sector, with 19% of the budget in 1975 and 1981. Theatre and music followed, with 13% the earlier and 13.5% the latter in 1981. After this period, “Cultural policy was (…) given a higher symbolical value, but not much more funding”[14] Indeed, the Culture Council has been currently allocated SEK 6 543 million, 0,05% of the total budget (SEK 13 billions)[15] The Budget Bill for Culture, 2011 seeks to focus on the right of children and young people to culture (Free Museums’ program, SEK 110 million since 2007), on the heritage for the future (renovation and maintenance SEK 107 million), and on conditions to improve innovative culture (Creative Schooling program, SEK 150 million). From 1973 to 2000, public cultural expenditure has doubled (SEK 8 billion to 16 billion).

Cultural policy in Sweden has experienced a process of democratisation through the twentieth century. From the Royal initiatives to the current concern for popular education there is a long way that has been walked through the implementation of new cultural policies. While the support to the artistic creation has concentrated several state efforts, education remains clearly the focus of the Swedish government on cultural affairs. Libraries, theatres, museums and monuments in this order constitute the key sectors: libraries to study and expand knowledge; and theatres, museums and monuments to disseminate national culture and values. What stems out of this is that Swedish cultural policy looks after an integral training of the population, in order to improve the social environment of people. Even lately, the Swedish cultural policies answer the needs of the population’s by taking a great concern to integrate the cultural and ethnic diversity as a result of the rising migrating trends.

Sources

-”The Budget Bill for 2011 – from crisis to full employment”, Government Offices of Sweden, http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/2798/a/153214 (25/01/2011)

-Beckman, Svante; and Harding, Tobias. “Sweden/ 1. Historical perspective: cultural policies and instruments”, in Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe, 12th edition, Council of Europe/ERICarts, 2011. http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/sweden.php?aid=1 (15/03/2011)

-Enander, Henrik; Helmfrid, Staffan; Larson, Susan Ruth; Norman, Lennart T.; Sandvik, Gudmund; and Weibull, Jörgen. “Cultural Milieu”, in “Sweden”, Encyclopædia Britannica, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/576478/Sweden/30544/Cultural-life (20/01/2011)

-Harding, Tobias. Nationalising Culture. The Reorganisation of National Culture in Swedish Cultural Policy 1970–2002. Linköping Studies in Arts and Science No. 393, Linköping University, Department for Studies of Social Change and Culture: Linköping, 2007.

-Kleberg, Carl-Johan. “Cultural Policy in Sweden”, in The patron state: government and the arts in Europe, North America, and Japan, edited by Milton C. Cummings, Jr., Richard S. Katz; New York: Oxford University Press, 1987, pp. 174-198

-Kleberg, Carl-Johan. The State and culture in Sweden: a survey drafted within the department of cultural affairs of the Swedish ministry of education and cultural affairs / [under the direction of] Carl Johan Kleberg; transl. by Keith Bradfield]; Stockholm: The Swedish institute in cooperation with the Swedish national commision for Unesco, 1970

[2] Carl-Johan Kleberg, “Cultural Policy in Sweden”, in The patron state: government and the arts in Europe, North America, and Japan, edited by Milton C. Cummings, Jr., Richard S. Katz; New York: Oxford University Press, 1987, p. 175.

[3] Sveriges National Museum http://www.nationalmuseum.se/sv/english-startpage

[4] Carl Johan Kleberg, The State and culture in Sweden: a survey drafted within the department of cultural affairs of the Swedish ministry of education and cultural affairs / [under the direction of] Carl Johan Kleberg; transl. by Keith Bradfield]; Stockholm: The Swedish institute in cooperation with the Swedish national commision for Unesco, 1970, p. 8

[5] Kleberg, (1970): p. 8

6  Svante Beckman, “Sweden/ 1. Historical perspective: cultural policies and instruments”

in Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe, 12th edition, Council of Europe/ERICarts, 2011. http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/sweden.php?aid=1 (15/03/2011)

[7] Tobias Harding, Nationalising Culture. The Reorganisation of National Culture in Swedish Cultural Policy 1970–2002. Linköping Studies in Arts and Science No. 393, Linköping University, Department for Studies of Social Change and Culture: Linköping, 2007, pp. 97-8.

[8] Kleberg, (1970): p 9.

[9] Kleberg, (1970): p 14.

[10] Harding, (2007): p. 101

[11] Beckman (2011)

[12] Kleberg, (1987): p. 166-189

[13] Beckman (2011)

[14] Harding, (2007): p. 174

[15] “The Budget Bill for 2011 – from crisis to full employment”, Government Offices of Sweden,

http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/2798/a/153214 (25/01/2011)