Arts & International Affairs: Volume 2, Number 2 | Page 69

Echoes of Silence
Eona Craig
Eona Craig (Twitter: @eona_e) is an experienced arts and education professional and Chartered
Manager, with an MA in Education (Effective Leadership and Management), a BA in Dramatic
Studies and a successful 30-year record of working in the creative industries, with a focus on cultural
regeneration, creative enterprise and inclusive educational development. Eona has worked in the
independent arts sector, with public bodies, in the private sector and in higher education. She has
a specific interest in researching and understanding how the arts and creative endeavour can
positively influence and enhance the lives of marginalised learners. Eona is a Fellow of the RSA
(Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) and is a Director of
Life Changes (Trustee) Limited. She is also Director of Articulate (Scotland) Limited, co-owning a
thriving retail business around her award-winning design of The Articulate Gallery. In January
2017, she founded the Articulate Cultural Trust and Hub and accepted a Trustee role with Fearless
Femme, a community interest company that prioritises mental health support for young women and
girls. Eona is also a research affiliate with Policy Scribe, Liz Thomas Associates and Consilium
Research and a member of the Glasgow Flourish Leadership Programme with Glasgow Chamber
of Commerce.
Whose voice is sought, cherished, and amplified in contemporary culture?
There is a tendency to hear only those who are able to shout loudest in the
arts. But that practice does not tell us if the cultural silence of our most
challenged communities is taken as approval, disinterest, or disconnection.
My concern is that the creative voice of the most marginalized and disengaged
in our society is rarely heard; their songs are unsung and their stories are
untold.
My bigger worry, and I worry a lot, is that the ���,��� young people living
in poverty across Scotland—those one in four
who might benefit disproportionately from access
to, engagement with, and participation in the arts
and culture—have so little support for individual,
collective, or community creativity. And thus, their
cultural identity goes unrecognized and their
creative potential untapped.
We know that engaging creatively builds resilience,
raises self-esteem, connects people, and strengthens
identity. Being more creative can play a huge role in
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