Blokes & the Arts

More recently I have been looking a little more closely at gender differences and the arts. This has been mostly because I was only finding women to talk to. But also because it has come up in a few casual conversations. Particularly in reference to arts and community centres that, while successful for the community, have been underutilised by men.

No surprise that women are more likely to form the arts & craft groups, whereas men are more likely engage in the arts as a solo pursuit. It's interesting though, that in general contemporary music programs have to create initiatives to try and increase female participation, as men tend to dominate the local music industry.

You just have to look at the gender balance at events like the Meekatharra Battle of the Bands. I saw only two women perform on that first day, and they were both soloists. As far as reaching priority target groups within the community, the competition was completely dominated by indigenous males.

There are other areas of the arts, in addition to contemporary music, where blokes tend to get more involved:

1. Graff art or street art.
That is, using spray cans to paint on walls/canvas/skateboards/etc. This also ties in nicely with hip hop, breakdance & rap (modern day storytelling!). So not only do you engage boys in a form of visual art there is the bonus of the performing arts of dance and music.

2. Manual arts (metal work, wood work, sculpture generally, etc.)
This would also include things like emu egg carving and the making artefacts, such as spears, weapons, and other fantastic creations.

3. Movie making and digital arts (film, video, animation, graffic design, etc.)
This can involve set building and acting, or better still, stunts & special effects!

In my experience, think big and loud, plenty of action thrown in with the use of gadgets, tools, or machinery and you won't have any problem engaging blokes in the arts :)