New Platform shares knowledge from the Globus Programme

The platform has been developed on the basis of a series of network and sharing sessions, which the supported projects has had the opportunity to partake in throughout 2023. The aim has been to understand and learn more about the work and practices of the projects, collecting and sharing knowledge of the possibilities and challenges related to artistic practices and collaborations working on a global scale. The method and the analysis are developed by strategy and design bureau Bespoke/Manyone.

Inspiration and resource for both artists and institutions

The platform is aimed at both artists and cultural actors as well as funding bodies, organisations and other stakeholders acting in international contexts and environments. The key insights are presented through four dimensions each covering a particular set of pathways and opportunity spaces.

“We hope the platform can inspire new conversations about future practices and international programmes both within and outside the Nordics. The insights illustrate the significance and potential that artistic and cultural exchanges across geographies and cultural contexts hold – especially in our current times. But they also call for new narratives and rethinking of existing structures”, says Anni Syrjäläinen, Senior Advisor at the Nordic Culture Fund.

The four dimensions address current issues in cultural policies and funding systems, which might get in the way of creating a more mutual collaboration and exchange. Furthermore, the experiences of the projects point towards the importance of creating long term and flexible approaches to funding that can meet the unpredictability so often experienced by artists and organisers.

The platform’s four dimensions:

• Challenging unequal structures

Transnational collaborations are often tackling complex structural challenges and inequalities that are reflected in the planning and realisation of projects.

• Fostering the human foundation of mutual collaborations

Promoting linguistic diversity and ensuring time and space for human interactions are important prerequisites to build trust and mutual understanding in collaborations.

• Shifting to sustainable values and ideals

The experiences of the Globus practitioners emphasise the need to renegotiate values and ideals traditionally associated with internationalisation efforts in the arts and culture sector.

• Enabling change through transnational art practices

This dimension calls for a stronger international orientation in cultural policies and governance, based on a renewed understanding of the transformative role of art and culture in societies.