Description
Balkanik Arts & Culture Festival casts light on the rich cultural traditions of minorities and the best contemporary expressions of their artistic skills in order to share their stories, art and culture and offering them the scope to present their artistic work to the broader public. The three-day long festival consists of live concerts of renowned bands from across Europe, including the Balkans and Norway. It also includes an arts & crafts fair with participants from minority groups in Romania and visual arts exhibitions of photography and painting illustrating the life and culture of the minorities living in Romania and Norway. The festival is followed-up by 4 important workshops with a focus on capacity development, for example in the area of new marketing techniques for traditional handicraftsmen, in the area of traditional fiddler’s music - which is in the danger of becoming extinct - to youngsters belonging to the minorities in foster homes, a seminar on Roma culture and an exhibition at the Intercultural Museum in Oslo with young artists from Romania, depicting the lives and culture of the Roma in Romania. Another action will be a virtual exhibition by a professional Romanian photographer, depicting the lives and cultures of the Sami people. The Intercultural Museum in Oslo is the donor project partner in this project. Amongst others, it will be involved in the workshops, the Balkan Music Festival and the arts & crafts fair.
Summary of project results
The Balkanik Arts & Culture Festival is a socio-cultural project, aiming at creating a bridge of understanding between the Balkanik minorities living in Romania and also between other minorities and Romanians. PP considered the lack of knowledge for the other people’s cultures, habits and interests makes it harder for the minorities to be understood by their cohabitants. The main objective of the project was to develop a cultural asset of local and national interest, to satisfy the needs of the music and Balkan culture lovers, to promote the Romanian values and traditions among participants and to improve the general public access to intangible cultural elements of minorities (music, customs, dance, traditions, etc.) This was achieved through: 1 cultural event (which included Balkanik Festival and Balkanik Handicrafts Fair), 20 Romanian traditional musicians (fiddlers) made known to the public, 3 promotion and information events (total of 253 participants), 1 bilateral relation between 2 entities (RO-NO) for project implementing, 1 virtual exhibition contribution of Saami culture (NO) to the national cultural fund. The main deliverables in order to achieve the planned results were: 1 study for the inventory of artists (research, documentation and inventory), 1 methodology for the inventory study, 1 Norwegian good practices guide for the valorization of traditions, 200 published books that present the results of the study, 200 promotional CDs, together with the book, 1 bilateral workshop, 1 photo-video report about the saving of Saami culture in Norway, 14 well-known bands/artists, including 1 Norwegian band, 1 new band/artist, discovered within the research , 3 days of festival, 4 photo exhibitions, 200 booklets presenting the cultural events organized in Bucharest in the week of the festival, mainly addressed to the foreign public, 40 exhibitors, 29 handicraft and craftsmanship workshops (pottery, gypsy frippery, palmistry), 1 exhibition Saami People, 1 classic exhibition in Norway, 3 events aiming to promote cultural diversity (workshops & seminars), 4 artist from Romania who went in Norway for the exhibition, 24 artists’ works that go in Norway for the exhibition for Roma culture, 1 project website. The main change occurred for the main beneficiaries of the project consist in at least 9000 persons attended a 3 days cultural event where they interacted with minorities and enriched their knowledge about immaterial values.
Summary of bilateral results
The partner involved in the project implementation through frequent communication with the management team; coordinating the organization of workshops, elaborating the inventory methodology based on the Norwegian partner's best practices and one guide to Norwegian good practices for capitalizing on traditions) and organized the classic exhibition in Oslo. The partner was also involved in the development of the event plan focusing on the photo exhibition, especially as the Partner planned an exhibition on the culture of the Roma in Norway. The partner participated in the event as a guest and coordinated the exhibition. The partner has been involved in developing the advertising plan to contribute to the experiences and good practices of their institution. The partnership has added value to the project through the direct contribution of the Partner to increasing international mobility for artists through the presence of a Norwegian band at the festival and 13 consecrated troops with Balkan origins; initiated bilateral relations between cultural actors; contributing to the development of a coherent methodology for carrying out national inventory of artists and / or lautari not known to the general public which contributes to the valorization of traditional Balkan music; the direct coordination of the Norwegian exhibition, an event meant to bring about improvements in addressing the cultural diversity of the Roma in both countries participating in the project: Romania and Norway; on the basis of Norwegian experience, through the development of good practices guide on the valorization of traditions, the relevant contribution to the realization of the Saami culture report.