

A.C.T. – DEMOC(K)RACY, 2011-2014
Art… Cooperation… Transmission…
Democ(k)racy
Project
With the support of the Culture Program of the European Union
In many European countries, there are signs of withdrawal into separatist identities –
alarming evidence of a crisis of democracy.
Europe is now reaching the limits of an economic model which is resulting in
brutal social fragmentation and deepening inequalities between individuals and countries.
The conditions required for the exercise of democracy
are now being suffocated by obsolescent administrative,
legislative and communication structures.
The critical, educational and creative dimensions of art, meanwhile, are fundamental to the development and exercise of democracy.
In an era of globalization,
we believe that difference, discontinuity and contradiction should constantly be cultivated through inter-relating the commonplace and the singular:
these underpin our representations of reality.
In view of all this, we, the partners in the A.C.T Democ(k)racy project:
. Altart Foundation, Cluj-Napoca – Romania
. École européenne supérieure d’arts de Bretagne – France
. Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow – United Kingdom
. Kultumi Centar Beograda, Belgrade – Serbia
. La Criée contemporary arts centre, Rennes – France
. Onomatopee research centre, Eindhoven – Netherlands
. University of arts and design, Cluj-Napoca – Romania
uphold the following convictions:
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In the face of withdrawal into separatist identities, we believe that the ongoing progress of European democracies in the era of globalisation depends on our ability to cultivate a continuous, inter-penetrable, porous dynamic with respect to otherness
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In the face of critical, educational and creative challenges, we believe that art has the capacity to bring historic, cultural and social elements into relationship with each other in order to generate unpredictable representations, unexpected encounters and innovative creations
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Amid a Culture which is over-administrated and decreasingly inventive, we believe that the vitality of contemporary creativity involves constantly tending a dynamic encompassing tension, transformation and the invention of cultural and artistic projects.