The Power of Culture

In recent years, attention has grown in the international art circuit for art from Africa, Asia and Latin America. The numbers of biennials and large expositions are growing, but the same small group of curators and artists from these continents are often invited. In many countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, independent artists' initiatives have developed in recent years that organise activities for a much broader group of artists. Hivos and DOEN have been supporting many initiatives of this type for a number of years.

By bundling their forces in this new programme, these funds hope to do more to stimulate this movement of artists' initiatives and thus the diversity of the international circuit.

Artscollaboratory consists of a fund for supporting cultural entrepreneurship among artists' initiatives and a knowledge exchange programme focusing on three themes: cultural management, the confrontation of artistic visions, and art's reflection in society. The Mondriaan foundation plays a separate part in Artscollaboratory. It places emphasis on the exchange between artists' initiatives in southern regions and Dutch organisations, and on increasing public interest in the Netherlands. The foundation also places great store in getting Dutch art professionals more involved in art from Africa, Asia and Latin America. The fund already organised orientation trips to Senegal, South Africa and Mexico.

A seminar and a public presentation about the programme and its website will be organised in the Netherlands in October 2007.