LT Baltic Audience Links – tai tinklas, suburiantis kultūrines organizacijas, veikiančias Baltijos jūros regione ir skatinančias miestiečių įsitraukimą į vietovių vystymą ir gaivinimą per kultūrines veiklas. Laimikis.lt yra vienas iš šio tinklo operatorių nuo Baltijos jūros šalių, ir mūsų tikslas – užtikrinti aktyvius mainus ir sąveikas tarp Lietuvoje ir Latvijoje veikiančių organizacijų ir platesnio Baltijos jūros regiono organizacijų tinklo. Tam tikslui kartu su kolegomis mes organizuojame aktyvių kultūros inovatorių susitikimus Švedijoje, Lenkijoje ir Lietuvoje. Šiuo momentu Laimikis.lt atlieka tyrimą, skirtą Baltijos jūros regijono nevyriausybinėms organizacijoms, veikiančioms socialinių inovacijų ir dalyvaujamojo urbanizmo srityje, bei jų taikomiems bendruomenių suburimo metodams. Žemiau – nuorodos į programas.

ENG Baltic Audience Links is a network project that aims to develop and deepen the connections between organisations and actors that seeks to foster participatory development through cultural activities and cultural innovations. The aim is to strengthen the cooperation between cultural innovators in the Baltic Sea Region by connecting existing networks and organisations together and inviting new members to join. For this reason together with the partners River Cities (network), Intercult (Sweden), Laimikis runs meetings, events and conferences that bring together cultural innovator, active in the Baltic Sea Region. Please check, fill and spread the profile for your organisation / initiatives!

Networks involved:
River // Cities platform (link); Access Europa (link); Corners (link);

Initiators:
RIVER // CITIES network and INTERCULT (Sweden) – independent production and resource unit that engages in trans-border cultural projects.
LAIMIKIS.LT (Lithuania) – urban games and research lab that promotes participatory urban culture, implementing arts-based approach.

On Feb 21-23, 2o17 the experts from the Baltic Sea Region are going to present their cases and toolbox at one of the sessions at “Audience Links Xchange” event (conferences, round tables, discussions). Check the Audience Links Xchange programme: online & PDF-format. A key-speaker for the overview of the participatory approaches in the work of the communities-oriented NGO’s in the Baltic Sea region is Jekaterina Lavrinec (Laimikis.lt).

During this session (Baltic perspective – Neighbourhoods) we will explore the experience of BSR cultural organisations, that develop cultural formats for fostering local participatory processes. The participants will present their approaches, focusing on the questions, how do we involve various groups in the creative processes? And how the cultural initiatives foster the local communities? After mapping the cases from BSR region, we will focus on the spatial approach and develop a pilot toolbox for creative communication in public spaces. This session is run by Laimikis.lt, urban games and research Lab, and it is a part of the Baltic Audience Links study.

Presenters:
• Kaspars Lielgalvis (Totaldobžė Art Center, Latvia)
• Anna Ochmann (Foundation ARTeria, Poland)
• Ed Carroll and Vita Gelūnienė (Blue Drummers, Lithuania)
• Iza Rutkowska (Forms and Shapes, Poland)
• Evelina Šimkutė (Šilainiai project, Lithuania)
• Indrė Misiulytė (Beepart, Lithuania)
• Jonas Büchel (Urban Institute, Latvia)
• Ekaterina Sharova (Art Arctice Forum, Russia)
• Diana Popova (LCCA, Survival Kit, Latvia)
• Judita Strumilaitė (Street Music Day / Culture Night Vilnius, Lithuania)
• Ieva Lange (Free Riga, Latvia)
• moderator/ curator of the session: Jekaterina Lavrinec (Laimikis.lt – urban lab for games and research, Lithuania)

Short presentations of the participants:

Kaspars Lielgalvis (Totaldobžė Art Center, Latvia): “I am artist, curator, art manager and culture activist. I am co-founder and the head of artists run Art Centre “Totaldobže” which has become as experimental platform for cross-over creation and meeting for artists, poets, musicians, dancers and representatives from other culture disciplines in Riga. Since 2008 in collaboration with other artists and institutions “Totaldobže” has organized more then 300 contemporary art events – artist talks, art exhibitions, experimental workshops, interdisciplinary concerts, poetry slams, public discussions, international interdisciplinary festival and other types of contemporary art activities in Riga, Liepāja and outside Latvia – in Estonia and Spain. “Totaldobže” gets project based funding from Latvian Culture Ministry and Riga City Council every year since its foundation. “Totaldobže” projects has been funded also by European Culture foundation, Swiss foundation Prohelvetia, Dutch Culture Ministry, British Council in Latvia, Goethe institute in Latvia, Embassies of USA, Spain, the Netherlands, Poland and Estonia in Latvia. Since 2014 “Totaldobže” is producing printed Riga Culture maps and online culture events calendar www.culturemap.lv”

Anna Ochmann (ARTeria Foundation, Poland): “President of ARTeria Foundation, where she connects the world of fine arts and music with realisation of a variety projects, propagation of an active participation in culture and development of working in creative industries and in cultural sector. Her ideas are achieved through working out the alternative ways of spending free time, innovative methods of social and cultural animation but also thought an invitation to: shared initiatives, an investment in oneself, a participation in social life, a development of social abilities, simulation of creativity, discovery of the contentment with life and stimulation human’s curiosity for the world.”

Vita Gelūnienė and Ed Carroll (Šančiai, Lithuania / Ireland) are community artists who work independently of institutions in collaboration with others in the area of community culture. Their practice is durational, involves artistic research and engages publics in spaces where community, culture and politics collide.

Indrė Misiulytė (Beepart, Lithuania): “I am Indrė, a projects coordinator at Beepart workshops in Vilnius. I started my appearance here as a volunteer of social project and now am happy worker. I’ve found Beepart only last year, so all the information is still new and fresh to me. Don’t hesitate to ask me anything, because I might question you even more.”

Jonas Büchel (Riga Urban Institute, Latvia): co-founder of Riga Urban Institute. Educated social worker, practicing cultural manager and urbanist.

Ekaterina Sharova (Art Arctice Forum, Russia): art historian, curator, educator. Her background is in Pedagogy, Aesthetics and History of Art from Pomor State University (Arkhangelsk, Russia), University of Oslo (Norway) and Norwegian Institute of Rome (Italy). She has co-curated such projects as The Mobile Institute, The First Supper Symposium, festival Barents Spektakel on the border between Russia and Norway. She currently works with the local art community in her home town Arkhangelsk as well as in Norway. Ekaterina is a co-curator of the largest contemporary art event in the Russian North, Arctic Art Forum, where she has worked with participatory projects, popular culture and the local heritage.

Diāna Popova (LCCA, Survival Kit, Latvia) is a culture and art event producer, currently working at the Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art, Riga. She has been involved in the production of the international contemporary art festival “Survival kit” since 2014 and she has organised and curated a whole year of events dedicated to Latvian avant-garde artist Hardijs Lediņš in 2015.

Ieva Lange (Free Riga, Latvia): “I am a resident of the newly established Free Riga residency for social projects and initiatives related to activation of empty urban spaces and empty buildings in Riga, especially in the Moscow Forschtadt neighbourhood. Since autumn 2016, we have organised a neighbourhood celebration and created a map that introduces various places in the area through short descriptions of their everyday happenings and human interactions. Our aim is to continue building a neighbourhood network and to organise more activities involving people who live or work or are simply interested in Moscow Forschtadt – such as building a sauna in the nearby empty green field and continuing our freeshop and DIY adventures. My own background is in anthropology with an interest in the making of urban (green) space and community building”.

Jekaterina Lavrinec (Laimikis.lt, Lithuania), PhD, urban researcher, participatory artist and educator in Urban studies. She is a co-founder of Laimikis.lt – urban games and research lab (since 2oo7) that serves as interdisciplinary platform for cultural innovations, non-formal learning and catalyst for participatory urban culture. Laimikis platform is well-known for it’s approach toward creative communication in public spaces and neighbourhoods. As an assoc.prof. at Vilnius Gediminas Technical University she is a co-founder of Creative Industries programme, where she teaches courses in Urban Studies and Creative Communication in Public Spaces. Starting from 2o12 she curates annual arts and research week for urban interventions in public spaces “priARTink!” (pARTicipate). In her art and research activities she focuses on the issues of the perception of urban enironment, user experience in public space, temporal urban solidarities and cooperation.