The Arts, Politics and Change

Sensible cultural policy frameworks are key to developing a stable cultural sector and flourishing cultural activity. Since the political changes in South East Europe in the 1990s, a participative reform of the previously state-funded cultural system and a strengthening of the independent sector in South East Europe proved to be necessary.

To support this process, in the year 2000 the regional framework programme Policies for Culture commenced, run by the ECUMEST Association, Bucharest, and the ECF, Amsterdam. Following a bottom-up approach and aiming to bridge the gap between the cultural field and the policymaking level in South East Europe, an open platform was established. This platform enabled the various stakeholders to meet and discuss the day-to-day needs of cultural policy and to redesign them.

The first (theoretical) part of The Arts, Politics and Change, entitled Cultural policy in South East Europe, includes essays on the following topics: 1) centralism or decentralisation, 2) transforming regulatory frameworks, 3) rethinking state funding, and 4) the role of the media. The second part of the book, The power of local action, consists of case studies on: 1) cultural policy practices in South East European cities, 2) influencing legislation in South East Europe, and 3) cultural funding in South East Europe.

The programme’s exciting experiments may also serve as an inspiration for the wider community of European and non-European countries and for all institutions and individual researchers involved in examining the role of cultural policy frameworks in politically and socially unstable societies.

Authors:
Ela Agotić, Tsveta Andreeva, Odile Chenal, Vesna Čopič, Milena Deleva, Philipp Dietachmair, Sanjin Dragojević, Christopher Gordon, Vjeran Katunarić, Marius Lazurca, François Matarasso, Delia Mucică, Oana Radu, Cas Smithuijsen, Corina Şuteu, Lidia Varbanova, Yuriy Vulkovsky, Hanneloes Weeda, and Andrea Zlatar.

Contents

Foreword – Odile Chenal, European Cultural Foundation

Introduction: Touching the context: Policies for Culture 2000-2004 – Hanneloes Weeda, European Cultural Foundation

Part 1: Cultural policy in South East Europe

Cultural policies in transition: the issue of participation and the challenge of democracy – Corina Şuteu

Centralism or decentralisation?
New public culture as objective of the decentralisation process – Vjeran Katunarić
Centralism or decentralisation? Balancing the equation under changing conditions – Christopher Gordon
To set things moving : cultural strategies for cities and counties in South East Europe – Philipp Dietachmair and Oana Radu

Transforming regulatory frameworks
Waiting for Godot – Vesna Čopič
From government to governance: e volving South East European cultural regulation – Delia Mucică
Influencing the legislative process in Bulgaria – Yuriy Vulkovsky

Rethinking state funding
Mind the financial gap! Rethinking state funding for culture in South East Europe – Lidia Varbanova
Transforming cultural financing in Croatia – Sanjin Dragojević

The role of the media
Media as an instrument of cultural policy – Andrea Zlatar

Part 2: The power of local action: case studies

Cultural policy practices in South East European Cities
Arad’s cultural strategy: the reformation of a cultural system in Romania – Marius Lazurca
“It is the process that counts!” A cultural strategy for the city of Zagreb – Ela Agotić
Commencing dialogue, challenging cooperation: developing local cultural policies in Serbia – Philipp Dietachmair
Building confidence: community development in Macedonia through the Living Heritage programme – François Matarasso

Influencing the legislature in South East Europe
Technological Park Culture : a Bulgarian laboratory for identification and analysis of issues in cultural management and cultural policy – Milena Deleva
ARCult: an expertise and service support agency for the Romanian cultural sector – Oana Radu
Discussing the future of culture: civil initiative for the debate of strategic cultural development in Macedonia – Philipp Dietachmair

Cultural funding in South East Europe
Revitalising cultural life in Plovdiv , Bulgaria – Tsveta Andreeva
Planning for change: reforming cultural funding mechanisms at local level in Timis and Arad counties, Romania – Oana Radu

Conclusion
Converging cultural policies – Cas Smithuijsen
Bibliography and useful websites addresses – Ineke van Hamersveld