Art lovers are invited to provide feedback for the Weyburn Art Gallery's five-year strategic plan.

City Curator Regan Lanning said the previous strategic plan expired and was fulfilled as they moved the gallery into the Credit Union Spark Centre.

"So now that we've been here for a year, and we've settled in, it's time to start looking towards the future once again," she said. "So with this strategic plan, we are really hoping to start our path for the next five years and to have it all in kind of one document so we can easily refer back to that document when we're making decisions."

Examples of what kinds of feedback they'd like to know more about include, "gallery exhibitions, gallery programming in general. If you'd like to see more tours offered, or videos of the artist explaining their work or even the kind of classes that we offer here at the Spark Centre in terms of art."

Lanning said the survey is open-ended and not multiple-choice.

"It's for you to tell me what you want in your own words," she explained. "If you don't come to the gallery, you can still answer this and tell me why don't you come to the gallery. I think telling me that you think art is stupid isn't helpful, but if you do like art and you still don't come to the gallery, maybe tell us why. What's holding you back? If you like art and you're interested in art, tell me what you like, what you don't like. Tell me what the barriers to your involvement are, because this is where I can identify those barriers and I can set devise a plan to surmount those barriers within the next five years."

She said she's working with a coordinator trained in working with nonprofits to develop their strategic plan, and this is the first step. 

"Once we have a document, I'll present it to the Arts Council just to have their say also because while they are not involved in the everyday running of the gallery, they serve as like my Advisory Council. When I have a quandary or a celebration, they're the ones I go to. Then it will be given to my bosses to go over and to make sure that they agree with the direction I feel the gallery should be going in."

Lanning noted that this is an internal document to be used when she applies for grants.

"I send my strategic plan sometimes to granters so that they can see where we are now and how we plan on moving into the future," she told. "Strategic plans are very important for nonprofits because it enables us to chart a path forward and to clearly have that path laid out for us."

She added that she had co-created the previous strategic plan with the Arts Council, and shared it because their goal was to get to the Spark Centre and the new gallery. However, this new one is mostly just concerning the gallery. 

Find the survey HERE.

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