The meetings will focus on art, culture, mission and the place of the artist in contemporary society. The purpose of the dialogues is to gain a deeper understanding of the professional community and the position of artists with BIPOC or foreign backgrounds.

The language of the dialogue is English.

The dialogues will take place on 4th October, 1st and 29th November from 17.00 to 20.00 at Globe Art Point premises on Malminkatu 5, 00100, Helsinki. Click here to read about the space accessibility.

This year’s sessions will host 10 professional creatives. If we see there is a lot of interest in joining this event, we will consider opening the sessions to more people next year and relocate it to the premises of the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike).

REGISTER to participate on 4.10. 2023 => https://forms.gle/77ov2SrAzFLCf24w9.

REGISTER to participate on 1.11. 2023 => https://forms.gle/h7H5mg8qMJxpj19W8

REGISTER to participate on 29.11. 2023 => https://forms.gle/T9utywaoUJxa3KqN6

Possible questions for discussion at the upcoming meetings are:

– What is the mission of the artist today? Does the artist have an impact on society?
– How do migration and contemporary state policies affect artists/curates/art researchers, their work and artistic worldview?
– How true are the concepts of “local/national” and “international/world” art? Are there differences and if so, what are they?
– Does the artist today have a national identity? Is it possible to speak of nomadic artists? Does the artist’s “identity” limit him/her/them?
– What are the artist’s abilities most in demand in a rapidly changing world?

The dialogues are initiated by TAIKE (Arts Promotion Centre Finland). During the dialogues we will write the main topics that will be raised during the discussion, without naming specific participants. The topics will be used in Taike and G.A.P. as important material for the development of programs to support diversity and accessibility of culture and the arts in Finland.

At the dialogues participants openly share what they themselves find important and relevant. We do not judge others in the dialogue, we do not try to come to a common opinion or change someone’s mind. Everyone has the right to his or her own personal experience and feelings. Dialogues help us to understand each other and ourselves better. The opinion of each participant is important!

Our dialogues are built on the principle of confidentiality and mutual trust. In our meetings we use the rules of constructive dialogue developed by the Erätauko. This allows us to respect every participant and every opinion. These rules are:

1. Listen to the others, do not interrupt or start additional discussions.
2. Relate what you say to what the others have said and use everyday language.
3. Talk about your own experience. It is important for us!
4. Raise your hand when you want to speak up. Ask questions if you want to know more about other participants’ experiences.
5. Be present and respect the others and the confidentiality of the discussion. Each participant’s feelings are individual. Together we make sure that all participants feel safe.
6. Find and bring together. Don’t be afraid to express unfinished or unclear thoughts, they may be picked up by others. Don’t be afraid to share what you have not yet found an explanation for.

The Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike) is an expert and service agency for promoting the arts under the Ministry of Education and Culture. Taike’s mission is to promote the arts on both the national and international levels, as well as to promote aspects of culture that are not covered by any other official body.