On August 3, at the Democracy Festival in Kuldīga, DemArt community art commissioners organized a pitch of the ideas of the open call submitted the beginning of this year.
At the end of 2023, the International Institute of Community Commissioned Art (iicca.org) launched an open call for innovative ideas for contemporary work that could be implemented in Kuldīga in 2024. The idea of the artwork had to be developed especially for Kuldīga, aiming to bring more light into the everyday life of the city, and inspire the residents to find and create joy for themselves and those around them. Almost 30 authors responded to the open call, but only one was selected and had the opportunity to realize his idea – audio-walk and animation project Upside Down Kuldīga around the curiosities of historical sites of Kuldīga by Jurģis Spulenieks will have its premiere on August 31, at the International Festival of Contemporary Theatre ‘Homo Novus’.
However, the organizers of the open call wanted to present other promising ideas submitted in the competition to the Kuldīga community and the representatives of the municipality and the cultural sector. Designer Inga Bermak, dance and theater artist Kristīne Brīniņa, visual artist Lība Bērziņa, sculptor Kristaps Andersons and glass artist Marta Ģibiete participated in the “DemArt” pitching sessions in Kuldīga’s Democracy Festival.
After the presentations, the visitors could ask questions to the authors and express their opinion about what kind of public art the residents of Kuldīga want. At the white tables of the Democracy Festival there were discussions about whose voice is decisive in making these decisions and many new impulses for creativity arose. The ideas of the artists seemed to complement each other, jointly creating a comprehensive program that would allow residents from near and far areas of Kuldīga region to have conversations, engage in creative activities, share skills, express their wishes to the “golden fish” and be heard.
The “DemArt” pitching was organized by the New Theatre Institute of Latvia in cooperation with the state research program “Vectors of Society’s Cohesion”, which is implemented by UL Institute of Philosophy and Sociology. The aim of the cooperation is to promote social cohesion by developing approaches to the democratization of art.
DemArt and IICCA is funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
Co-funded by Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia.
