New mapping: Creation and Displacement
Art has the ability to combat marginalization, to foster community, and to platform stories that louder narratives often ignore. As the media narrative around refugee and migrant issues in Europe and internationally grows ever more toxic, and as dispossession is becoming the new normal, we badly need new narratives around migration and displacement to keep our societies open - or simply, to stay human.
Everywhere across Europe and beyond, artists are showing their role as an immediate reaction task-force to help in the humanitarian crisis of people fleeing their countries and seeking refuge elsewhere. Our recently released mapping ‘Creation and Displacement’, presents a showcase of some of the incredible artistic projects taking place in Europe and internationally with a focus on support, solidarity and engagement with those who are recently displaced.
This mapping has the ambition to serve multiple purposes. Artists and cultural professionals engaging, or willing to engage, in work with and for refugees and migrants can find here useful food for thought, practical suggestions and contacts to enlarge their collaborations and develop their own practices in the most professional and successful manner - where success is not based on financial results, but in improving the dialogue between different ‘communities’ living on the same territory. Arts and culture professionals with a refugee or migrant background can find contacts with organisations who can ease or strengthen their connections with the artistic community in their new country. Arts funders and policy-makers at different levels can find interesting initiatives proving the role and engagement of artists in working with refugees and migrants, as well as good arguments to (continue to) support this kind of initiatives.
‘Creation and Displacement’ is co-authored by award-winning documentary filmmaker Yasmin Fedda, arts consultant, researcher and producer Daniel Gorman, and theatre artist and activist Tory Davidson. This IETM mapping is published in collaboration with Culture Action Europe and UCLG - United Cities and Local Governments.
An Annex to the publication lists around 80 additional projects working on the urgent topics of refuge and displacement. We consider it vital to keep the discussion open: you’re welcome to join our members’ forum or to contact us at any time at ietm@ietm.org to share your experiences and thoughts. We’re looking forward to continuing the conversation.
Picture from ‘We are the Persians!’ by Station Athens (copyright: Elina Giounanli)
