“Art and culture is not preoccupied with borders” – Portrait of Kristin Danielsen

A prerequisite for a Nordic region in motion

Three weeks into her new position, Kristin Danielsen is hard at work on The Nordic Culture Fund’s new strategy for 2026-2030, a strategy that will strengthen the fund’s impact and position during her first term. At the same time, 2026 marks the fund’s 60th anniversary since its establishment in 1966, as a result of post-war efforts to forge closer ties between the Nordic countries.

“When moving forward, it is wise to first look in the rear-view mirror. The Nordic Culture Fund, together with the Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers, is part of a binding bilateral cooperation that is unique in the world. This cooperation must be understood in the light of historical developments after the Second World War, when the desire for peace and stability in the region brought the countries closer together. Culture has always been a central part of this alliance and has helped to strengthen Nordic cohesion.

The current geopolitical situation has shown that a cultural fund for Nordic cooperation was a good idea, and that the Nordic region is more relevant than ever as a unified region,” she says. “So when we set the direction for the future, we must show what we were established for.”

Danielsen sees great opportunities in further developing the fund’s role in a time of change and new needs, and places particular emphasis on creating connections between past experiences and future potential. ‘We must constantly evolve,’ she says, explaining that the fund’s work going forward should be development-oriented, flexible and forward-looking. “Art and culture is a prerequisite for a Nordic region in motion. It is in literature, in films, in images and in music that we see the contours of what will become the Nordic region’s next step. Nordic identity is something that is constantly being negotiated; it is in art and culture that this conversation takes place.”

Part of a dynamic ecosystem

In her strategic work, Danielsen is steering the fund towards a role that extends beyond funding arrangements and grants alone. Her vision is for The Nordic Culture Fund to be a place for knowledge and insight into the unified Nordic cultural landscape, which can be challenging to grasp. “There is a great need for new thinking in how culture is financed and managed. We must respond to the needs and developments we see in the world around us.” The fund will act as a catalyst, she says, keeping an eye on trends and tendencies across the Nordic countries and internationally, and functioning as an innovative and flexible player in what she describes as a “dynamic ecosystem” of cultural funding. “We will be the complementary partner for the gaps, the holes, or the places where we see that initiatives are needed that no one else is taking. Sometimes it is a strength to be small. I like to say that we are too small to lead, but big enough to test. The Nordic Culture Fund will not create the new model for cultural funding, but we are big enough to try out and pilot several solutions. And that is the dynamic I mean when I talk about a dynamic ecosystem: the exploratory one.”

Art and culture and the building of bridges

Danielsen originally trained as a dancer at the Norwegian National Ballet School and the Broadway Dance Centre in New York. She later completed a Master of Arts Management in London, where she wrote her master’s thesis on international cultural cooperation at City University. ‘There has been a common thread throughout,’ she says, ‘namely the importance of working outside one’s own little bubble, seeking inspiration, and sharing experience and knowledge across national borders. This has been a guiding principle in everything I have done.’ And Kristin Danielsen has done no small thing. She comes to the position of CEO of the Nordic Culture Fund with experience from important positions such as director of the Norwegian Directorate for Culture, a responsibility she held for nine years, and as chair of the International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies. Prior to this, she was director of the Deichman libraries in Oslo and general manager of Black Box Teater, Ny Musikk and MIC (later Music Norway). She also has extensive experience as an applicant for cultural funding herself, having started and run her own arts management agency with her fellow student Agnes Kroepelien, which worked with innovative performing arts and the implementation of major cultural projects.

Today, sitting in her new office at Nordens Hus and reflecting on her path to the Nordic Culture Fund, she feels that one thing naturally led to the next. “I have become increasingly aware of the need to highlight the impact that culture has on society. I want to show how culture helps to build communities, ensures freedom of expression, challenges our critical faculties and, at its best, can change the course of a life.”

“I am also a supporter of cultural diplomacy, where art and culture build bridges. It is an approach that helps to strengthen understanding between people from different backgrounds. Culture is not a product, it is a method. I have seen many examples of people who meet in cross-border cultural projects gaining a broader perspective on the world and discovering that there are other points of view than their own. In our time, it is more important than ever to have initiatives that challenge us to be curious and truly understand other people’s perspectives.”

International cooperation and insight

The purpose of the Nordic Culture Fund, as set out in Article 1 of the original agreement from 1966, is to “promote cultural cooperation between the Nordic countries”. For the new director, this means “initiating discussions about what we need to know”, which, according to her, requires both knowledge-based and cooperation-oriented work. “That’s how you make things happen. You join forces with like-minded or relevant partners who want the same thing. You are never alone when it comes to a problem, and the big challenges cannot be solved on your own. We can take the initiative to do what is needed, and we also have the opportunity to look beyond the Nordic region. We must take that responsibility.”

Nordic and international cooperation is the key to counteracting what Danielsen describes as a “me first” narrative – an attitude she sees as a direct threat to diversity and cultural development. Now that she has taken the helm at the Nordic Culture Fund, she is firmly convinced that we must hold fast to our belief in international cooperation. This has been a given throughout her career, but now she sees that several countries are withdrawing from established communities, talking about sovereignty and building walls around themselves. According to her, such isolation violates the fundamental logic of culture.

‘Art and culture is not preoccupied with borders,’ she states. That is why Danielsen is also a clear advocate for inclusion and diversity. “If you want to grow and develop, it doesn’t happen in isolation. Artists have always sought out inspiration. Openness to new impulses is a prerequisite in culture. After all, coexistence is our only option – and here we can learn from culture, which always strengthens itself by including new expressions, traditions and practices.”

With a nod to her own experiences abroad, she states in English: “No nation is exceptional. We’re in this mess together.”