Keeping Culture Open
This session focuses on the current political situation in Slovakia, particularly the radical and swift suppression of artistic freedoms. It mainly draws from the activities and methods of operation of the freshly formed civic initiative Otvorená kultúra! / Open Culture!, a joint activity governed horizontally by hundreds of Slovak cultural workers and artists in the course of the year 2024. What can be done when ideologically motivated gestures start dismantling a cultural sector built on democratic and transparent grounds when expert opinion and data cease to have value?
Taking the Slovak example as a starting point, the format opens towards debate about the consequences of the current changes for society as well as feasible scenarios or forms of protest, which could activate wider segments of society – beyond people working in the field of art and culture.
is a Slovak civic initiative created in January 2024. It brings together representatives of state- and municipality-established institutions with independent cultural workers from all areas of culture and creative industries in response to the arrogance and incompetence of the current top representatives of the Ministry of Culture. Its operation is based on solidarity, mutual support, and sharing of information and skills, with a wish to act together while safeguarding a sustainable and diverse cultural life in all regions of Slovakia.
In English