OPEN SPACE: Utopia or dystopia? Future possibilities for cultural policy

Part of The World Transformed 2022

Calling Question: What would a socialist cultural policy look like?

About this event: Cultural policy is increasingly influenced by international trends towards the marketisation of all aspects of the education, training and arts sectors. World wide, governments use culture to reinforce dominant political agendas, increasingly locking out all but the elite from cultural and creative careers.  

Collective Encounters will host a special Open Space event with recorded provocations from international speakers who are enacting cultural democracy in their communities. After these provocations, we will invite all present to consider what a truly socialist cultural policy might look like.

Format of event: Open Spaces are participant-led events where the agenda and discussion are driven by those in the room. At the beginning of the event guest speakers will introduce the key ideas, principles and practices behind the theme of the event. Participants will then be able to propose topics for discussion they’d like to lead or take part in. Everyone is free to move between discussions to follow the topics they feel passionate about pursuing, finding out more about and sharing their own experiences and views.

Speakers: 

Jesus Jaime-Diaz and Mary Carol Combs from the University of Arizona (USA)

Inny Accioly from Fluminense Federal University (Brazil)

Kooj Chuhan, digital artist/filmmaker/producer (UK)

Tickets: Participation requires a ticket for The World Transformed festival, which will also grant you access to the whole range of events, talks and workshops across 4 days. Tickets are priced from £25 and can be booked online. If you can’t afford a ticket but would like to attend, you can request a free ticket by emailing tickets@theworldtransformed.org with the subject header, ‘TWT22 Free ticket, [your name]’.