Can Art Change Romania?

We hear more and more that the world is reaching a tipping point, where the balance between environmental health, the energy we need to maintain (or improve our lifestyles) and globally interconnected economies is rapidly deteriorating, towards a whole new reality. If this new imbalance becomes the norm, can creativity be a tool of innovation that plays an active role in an upward recalibration? Can art, in relation to science and technology, have a positive role in this process? Do artists have a social responsibility in this context?

We believe that the contemporary role of art is to be a catalyst for innovation and positive change and this led us to the point where we founded Marginal. We consider Marginal to be a platform for collaboration between the ever-evolving fields of art, science and technology, to develop collaborative projects with social impact, in a symbiosis where they all work inseparably and simultaneously. With a clear mission in the area of artistic research and production, Marginal will act as a link for the development of the Romanian art, science & technology community in a global context, by developing our specialization and expertise through collaborations with international and local partners.

The Marginal strategy is built upon three main pillars:

• To support artists who are developing a creative toolkit based on science and technology, in a context where the art and creative fields scene is one of the most fragmented industries in existence. Emphasizing collaborative, transdisciplinary initiatives and having a societal stake, we want to create an infrastructure through which artists have production and research budgets available for them, can access a networking system through which to develop these projects and benefit from local and international consultancy, both from the artistic area, as well as that of science and technology specialists.
• help train the next generation of artists through an alternative education platform, complementary to formal education, but focused on an extensive approach to the artistic process. We will address relevant challenges and questions about how to create an interdisciplinary education infrastructure that uses creativity to develop skills that are still insufficiently covered by existing curricula.
• Expanding the public by presenting projects that address, though artistic means, current issues in contemporary society. We believe in the power of art to act as a communication bridge between the technological or scientific area, abstract and often unapproachable, and common language.

 

So, can art change Romania?

We believe in the process, so we aim for Marginal to become an interest group, a structure in which to gather active members from the cultural and creative sector, together with researchers, technology specialists, other public and private bodies. We aim to create a structure that unites those who desire to develop the cultural, social and economic scene. We don’t have solutions for the next 15 years, because the whole context can change, as creative fields are constantly realigning with reality, and we will have to react to these fluid realities. We have defined these three pillars as strategic directions that we will pursue and refine and develop together with our partners, by implementing the projects that will have the greatest potential to produce change.

 

What do you think? Share your thoughts, send us an email: change@marginal.ro.