Saturday, the expert meeting

We started the first day of the expert meeting by a round of introductions. The people present are either curators, artists or work for a network organisation (or a combination of these three). What became clear from the way everybody introduced their work and the space or network they manage, is the focus on under-represented disciplines such as video art, photography and new media art. Also, there was a strong focus on international exchange and the wish to reach out and collaborate with diverse partners. Outreach programs and projects in public space are also common among many of the organisations present.

After the introductions, Gitta Luiten, director of the Mondriaan Foundation gave a presentation explaining the mission and goals of the foundation and the reason for this expert meeting. She posed questions to the group concerning their experiences with international funding and best practices. From the discussion that followed, we gathered some valuable information and tips. The participants came up with some twenty very concrete suggestions and ideas, on the level of strategy but also on a more practical level. It turned out to be a very productive day!

After the plenary session in the morning, two groups were formed. Each group tackled a set of related issues and questions. The output was reported to the group in the afternoon.

The participants of the expert meeting.

Around 5 o’clock we had to leave for the bar Casablanca where we met some 15 people from the local cultural scene. We organised a speed date event (this means 10 minutes of talking per session and then on to the next person) which turned out to be very productive.

Speed dating at Casablanca.

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