ADESTE+ Online Summer School & European Conference - apply now

Registration is open for the new ADESTE+ Summer School and European Conference. Change within Change: Re-examining the role of the cultural organisation and its relationship with the public. Applications are invited for this re-formatted event, originally due to take place in Rijeka, Croatia. The European Conference is open to all participants. The Summer School has a limited number of places, to be selected by application (deadline: 30 June).

The Summer School takes place in 6 episodes: September – October 2020, online. The Call for participation in the Summer School is open to cultural workers, artists, representatives of cultural organisations, institutions and freelancers working in the field of arts and culture. 

REGISTRATION FOR THE EUROPEAN CONFERENCE: 6 episodes: June – September 2020, online - see website for information on the deadline dates for registration, which vary according to the episode date.

This call is open to cultural operators, artists, practitioners, activists, scholars, researchers, policy makers and funders, directors and decision-makers working in the field of arts and culture.

We see it as our responsibility to facilitate the European conversation on how cultural institutions move on from this world wide lockdown crisis, placing the audience at the heart of every decision. Not only have we adjusted the structure and the formats, we are also preparing to address new, urgent questions and challenges and formulate the way to move forward. The ADESTE+ community has only grown bigger and stronger in this time, and we thank you for your participation, your inspiration and your patience, and we hope you will join us and contribute with your insights and ideas.

Tentative programmes: European Conference & Summer School

Application forms: European Conference & Summer School

Change within Change: Re-examining the role of the cultural organisation and its relationship with the public

The COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis has forced a change of plans, and perhaps of thinking too. The ADESTE+ Summer School and Conference, originally due to take place in Rijeka, Croatia, has adjusted to new circumstances and will take place online, dealing with a range of questions and issues old and new.

The central concept remains the same – looking at what cultural institutions need to do or change in order to become more audience focused. The concept of audience development is transversal, extending from the framing of cultural policy to issues of cultural rights, access and participation. Increasing cultural participation is a crucial challenge for an inclusive and open European society, and growing audiences depends on the ability of a cultural organisation to place the audience at the centre of its practice. However, this theme has taken on greater significance and new urgency as the crisis forces us to address the role of cultural organisations in this changed world. Our empty, silent spaces challenge us to consider if or how the cultural sector will recover, how cultural engagement has changed and what we need to reconsider in the way we work. Now more than ever our actual or potential audience has to be at the forefront of our thinking.

We will examine these key questions in two strands:

• European Conference – exploring the big questions and debates of this subject for a larger number of people in 6 online episodes which will be held according to the following schedule: 15th of June 2020, 31st of August 2020, 7th of September 2020, 14th of September 2020, 21st of September 2020 and 28th of September 2020. Conference is open to all.
• Summer School – delving deeper into the questions and looking at the ways we might deal with the issues in 6 online episodes which will be held according to the following schedule: 23rd of September 2020, 30th of September 2020, 7th of October 2020, 14th of October 2020, 21st of October 2020 and 28th of October 2020. Programme is dedicated to limited number of people who will be selected by application.

Participation at the Summer School and Conference is free. The participation at the Summer School is based on a selection process, while the conference is open to all interested parties but requires registration. The ADESTE+ partners are now (re)opening the Public Call for participation at the Summer School and Conference.

The deadline for submissions to the Public Call for the Summer School is 30th of June 2020.