COMPROMISE, the main idea behind the second edition of the City and Culture, turned out to be a perfect starting point for many inspiring meeting and conversations. It also became a context for stories told by guests we invited – they told us about their daily work-life, about the decisions they have to make and challenges they have to face while creating cultural projects in their cities. The metacontext of COMPROMISE is strictly related to the idea of cooperation – in the XXI century, both of those issues exceed specific sectors or social groups. We analysed both of the issues, having in mind that there are various definitions, examples and scenarios possible.
On Thursday (18.11) we were focusing on the point of view of the programmers working in cultural institutes, as we were taking a closer look at case studies presented by our guests. Michał Piernikowski, artistic director of the Łódź Design Festival, shared his experience from the NGO sector and the creative industries based in Łódź, while Dorota Groyecka presented the case of Non/fiction magazine and the reality of independent publishers in Poland. Łukasz Adamski from the Muzeum Śląskie in Katowice described the strategy of the Museum, where no commercial cooperation is welcomed (both business and media relations-wise), and Błażej Grzechnik from New Horizons Association presented the backstage of the International Film Festival New Horizons (the XIX edition was organised without the main sponsor). A summary discussion entitled Compromise in culture - programming, fundraising, audiences and reporting was moderated by Piotr Knaś from the Małopolska Institute of Culture.
On Friday (18.11) we had the possibility of immersing into the CSR reality and getting to know inspiring practices from the commercial industries. Marcin Czarniak from MRPR presented interesting examples of how big developers use their resources to work directly with local communities and support art. initiatives, while Ewelina Jabłońska-Gryżenia presented many CSR initiatives implemented by AmRest Sp. z o.o., with a special focus on the SIEMACHA Spot based in the Magnolia Park Shopping Centre in Wrocław – a community centre for kids and youth launched thanks to the cooperation between the Municipality of Wrocław, AmRest Sp. z o.o., SIEMACHA Association and centre managing company. Monika Tramś was also present during the event and she introduced the case study of the Hestia Artistic Journey competition. A summary discussion was held by Karolina Mróz from Dom Pokoju Foundation.
"City and Culture" also included workshops prepared by researchers, cultural managers, and experts in the fields such as mediations, audience development or time management. Additionally to the main programme, we visited new cultural venues in Wrocław – OP ENHEIM and Tamka Island – and discussed cooperation during Without a compromise? debate moderated by Jakub Szreder. We had the pleasure of hosting the following panellists during the event: Viola Krajewska, Joanna Kiliszek, Aleksandra Szymańska, Magda Sroka and Michał Merczyński.
We’d like to cordially thank all of the participants of the "City and Culture" – our guests and speakers, workshop leaders, everyone who joined and supported the event. We’d like to especially thank PIK.wroclaw.pl (for technological support and online streaming presence) and Drukomat.pl (for prints and scenography).
