Artists Union England AGM

Today I attended the 1st Artists Union England (AUE) AGM, held in the Fine Art Lecture Theatre at Newcastle University.

I recently became a member having moved to England, and am excited to be part of this very important union. It was lovely to meet such a committed group of artists from all over the UK.

There are currently over 500 AUE members, but this is continually increasing and the power of the union will grow with more members, so please do sign up if you are not already a member!

Emily Porter delivered an inspiring and breathtaking presentation about how she set up a union in Iraq. Sadly it became of Saddam's regime.

A number of motions were proposed and agreed, and then reports were given from the various working groups already established.

Current issues that are being raised in the working groups include

The impact of Universal Credit on artists
Student membership and membership criteria to join AUE
Rates of pay
Ageism in the Arts
Conditions of Studios

The event closed with Wajid Jussain giving a wonderful performance of his own poem, It is What We Do

Lots to get our teeth into, but with more members we will have more effect, so please read more and sign up for only £30 per year.

http://www.artistsunionengland.org.uk