101 Outdoor Arts' Simon Chatterton: 'Working on a shoestring helped to make me inventive'

How did you start in the arts?

I started my career in a town where there was only a cultural scene if you made it happen yourself. I spent my first 10 years in the arts sticking things together with gaffer tape. Working on a shoestring helped to make me inventive, resourceful and always aware of the privilege of being funded.

What is the best piece of advice you have for aspiring practitioners today?

When 93% of your national portfolio organisation attendees are white, it could be time to take a look around at your audience. If they don’t look like the people that you meet in the street, then perhaps you should consider taking your work outdoors.

What would you change about the industry?

The notion that status is derived from institutions, and the greater the status of the institution, the greater the importance of the individuals in it. Secondly, the challenging conditions many artists have to create work in – financially and often physically. France provides year-round financial support for artists. Here, we claim to value culture but never invest enough in the people who make it. We dedicated 101 Outdoor Arts to supporting artists and the process of creation.

What is the best part of your job?

Finding a new location for a piece of site-specific work.

And your least favourite?

Describing exciting activities in dull ways for event management plans or funding bids.

Which arts practitioners do you admire and who would recommend to students?

Mark Anderson, with whom we made Furious Folly for 14-18 Now (the countrywide cultural programme to mark the centenary of the First World War), is an unsung genius who combines exacting artistic standards with being a joy to work with. Many of us working in outdoor arts also owe a debt to John Fox and Sue Gill of Welfare State International. 

What one skill should every successful theatre professional have?

I agree with Damian and Claire from Periplum when they say the outdoor arts world is like the Dutch football team – it thrives on those who are adaptable and multi-skilled.

Simon Chatterton is strategic lead at 101 Outdoor Arts – National Centre for Arts in Public Space