System Relevant?! - Art, Cultural Policy and Democracy

Under the title "Systemrelevant?! - Kunstschaffende, Kulturpolitik und Demokratie", a public workshop will take place at the traces Forschungsstation at Lutherplatz in Kassel on Saturday, July 9, 2022 from 2 to 6 p.m., in which artists, cultural politicians and scientists will discuss the following topics with all interested parties:

"Kreativ! Precarious! - System Relevant? - On the working conditions of artists and public policy"
"Art. Power. Democracy - What does art have to do with democratic resilience?"

The symposium is organized by Prof. Dr. Mi You (Art and Economies) and Prof. Dr. Sabine Ruß-Sattar (Comparative Politics) in cooperation with the documenta Institute and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Hessen.

Livestream:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82734317179

According to the coalition agreement of the "traffic light coalition", culture is to be anchored as a state objective. Hardly anyone disputes that culture is essential for a vital democracy and civil society. Art and culture are therefore "system-relevant" - as fields of action, they stand for the experience of meaning and creativity, for self-understanding and reinvention, for critical intervention and empowerment. Artistic-participative techniques of narration and collective imagination also create spaces in which a sense of community and participation can be developed, which is fundamental for democratic coexistence. Art is capable of initiating an open dialogue between people from different walks of life. 

However, the possibility of such an exchange cannot be taken for granted; as an anchor point of civil society cohesion, it must be protected and strengthened by the political side. Against the backdrop of the covid pandemic, the importance of culture and art for the resilience of individuals, but also for democratic society, becomes particularly apparent. Contrast this with the precarious social situation of people working in this field. For the covid pandemic has/had serious consequences especially for the working and living situation of cultural workers.

In the context of the Kassel symposium, we ask what politics - beyond verbal appreciations - has done and is doing for those working in the arts during the pandemic. Does cultural policy in the city and the state correspond to the so often invoked importance of the arts for the German "cultural nation"? In a second phase, we will then look at what art has to do with resilient democracy and what experiences there are in this regard, especially in the context of the documenta and its history.

All interested parties are invited to join us under the title "Systemrelevant?! - Kunstschaffende, Kulturpolitik und Demokratie"     at the traces Forschungsstation at Lutherplatz in Kassel on Saturday, July 9, 2022 from 2 to 6 p.m. to discuss with artists, cultural politicians and scientists.
First discussion round 2 to 4 p.m.: "Creative! Precarious! - Relevant to the System? - On the working conditions of artists and public policy".

Second panel 4 to 6 p.m.  "Art. Power. Democracy - What does art have to do with democratic resilience?"

Discussants:
Dagmar Schmidt (Bundesverband Bildender Künstler:innen), Dr.Tobias Knoblich (President Kulturpolitische Gesellschaft), Dr. Susanne Völker (Kulturdezernentin Stadt Kassel), Michael Göbel (Artist, Kassel) , Dr. Ekkehard Priller (Maecenata-Institut), Prof. Dr. Aida Bosch (cultural sociologist Uni Erlangen-Nürnberg), Jan van Esch (ZK/U CitizenSHIP), Max Winkler (Dynamo Windrad e.V.), Dr. Thomas Bündgen (Literaturhaus Nordhessen), Prof. Dr. Mi You (Art & Economies), Nick Prasse (political scientist), Prof. Dr. Ruß-Sattar (political scientist), Jan van Esch (ZK/U Citizenship)