New Culture Board and New Vision

The 7^th Working Session of the UBC Commission on Culture, held in Szczecin, Poland, on 2-5 Oct., produced a new board and new vision for the organisation, which aims to boost cultural co-operation among partner cities in the UBC. The meeting, held in conjunction with the opening of the Baltic Biennial of Contemporary Art, drew representatives from 14 UBC cities.

"Once again, we have a small group, but one that is committed to moving forward," said Slawomir Szafranski, who directs the Culture and Promotion Department in Szczecin and was re-elected as chairman of the new CoC board. "Our goal is to focus on different aspects of cultural life in the region and move beyond the sphere of contemporary art." Joining S. Szafranski on the new CoC board are: Tarja Hautamaki, director of Culture Services, Vaasa, Finland and Olov Gibson, Cultural Official, Visby, Sweden. In addition, members proposed that Olga Cherkasova, director of the Mension-Museum of Revikh, representing the city of St. Petersburg, take up a board seat. Further, the board will canvas officials from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia in order to fill the final seat at the meeting in Klaipeda.

Representatives at the Working Session also contributed to the CoC's action plan for 2004/2005. Among the projects contained in the plan are the production of a book detailing the history and culture of cities around the Baltic. Entitled 'A Strand of Baltic Pearls: A History of Cities in the Region. The book will be written by historians and scholars, with the goal of publishing within a 2-3 year timeframe.

Other programs in the action plan include the continuation of a pair of on-going projects. The Baltic Biennial will continue, as will publication of Mare Articum, the Baltic magazine of contemporary art. The city of Szczecin will continue to cover the cost of operating the magazine, with the city of Riga which also proposed to fund an issue of the semi-annual publication.

Looking ahead, board members said that the inclusion of several Baltic countries in enlargement of the European Union next year provides new opportunities for the CoC to extend its network of contacts. They added that this, in turn, will provide UBC cities with the opportunity for new partners, new funding and new projects.

"There will be new challenges," said Gibson, "but it will also provide an opportunity to raise the region's cultural profile. Developing closer ties with Brussels is important."