10 culture news headlines from 6 countries in September
Armenia
Culture ministry comes up with a proposal on a new cinema-related law. Armenia’s culture ministry makes draft law on cinema subject to the public gaze, encouraging in such a way population to discuss the proposed legislation, culture ministry’s official website informs. Ministry of Culture of Armenia
11th International Music Festival kicked-off in Yerevan. A total of 12 interesting and colorful concerts will be held within the festival, Panorama.am reports. After the concerts, the guest soloists will deliver master classes for young Armenian musicians. The festival is set to last till 27 October. Panorama.am
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan’s deputy culture ministry highlights successes in cinema sphere. The successes were highlighted during Azerbaijan’s deputy culture and tourism minister Adalyat Veliyev’s meeting with young cinema professionals. Among positive developments, Veliyev pointed at the sufficient increase in funding of country’s cinema sector over the recent years. “In 2006, when the ministry was established, the cinema budget was AZN 3,3 mln., while in 2016 it increased up to AZN 5,9 mln.,” the official emphasized. Moreover, according to Veliyev, the number of cinema theaters in the country has increased, as well as 10 young cinema professionals have been trained abroad, in Russia, Turkey, Canada, England, etc. Azertag
Baku to host 1st edition of IMAGINE Euro Tolerance Festival. The Festival will be held on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome, Azernews reports. It will present a dense calendar of events: musical performances, debates and discussions, film screenings, art exhibitions, etc. IMAGINE Euro Tolerance Festival aims to promote values of the intercultural dialogue and tolerance through different expressions of art. Azernews
Belarus
Culture minister: Belarusians living abroad safekeeping national culture. Addressing the participants of 3rd Festival of Arts of Belarusians Worldwide, Boris Svetlov, country’s culture minister, expressed confidence that Belarusians that are living in other countries are safekeeping national culture and traditions, Belta reports. More than 200 Belarusians from different countries took part in the Festival, which was held on 7-11 September. Belta
Georgia
Culture minister inspected Turkey-based Georgian architectonic monuments. During his visit to Turkey, Georgia’s culture and monuments preservation minister Mikhail Giorgadze visited numerous Georgian architectonic monuments of Middle-aged era placed in Turkey, Orthodox churches and monasteries, among others. During Giorgadze’s meeting with his Turkish counterpart, an agreement on proper preservation of Georgian architectonic legacy was achieved. Newsgeorgia
One of the most distinguished Georgia’s sights gets a donor for renovation. Georgia’s Municipal Development Fund has announced a tender to renovate the area surrounding the Katskhi Pillar, one of the most distinguished sights in Georgia, Agenda.de reports. The Fund reports GEL 1,5 mln. is anticipated for the renovation works and the donor is the World Bank. Agenda.de
Moldova
Academician: culture in Moldova lacks appropriate funding. Culture determines the image of a country. In Moldova, this area is not financed appropriately, as in other civilized states, academician Mihai Cimpoi said, quoted by IPN.md. “I see in culture also a means of communicating and opening ourselves to Europe and the world. The economy can be good or worse; politics is as it is, while the real image of the state is created by culture,” Cimpoi emphasized. IPN.md
Ukraine
Contributor points at some imperfections in new cultural reform. In his column, ZN.ua contributor Oleh Verhelis, criticizes one of the aspects of ongoing cultural reform in Ukraine, namely competition for displacement of heads of cultural institutions in Ukraine – theaters, art galleries, state-owned exhibition bodies, etc. As he explains, while trying to move within European integration wave, cultural reform inspirers are suffering lack of effective tools to put it in place properly; the competition aspect is one of the challenging issues within the current reform, the author believes. Verhelis assesses the competition system under new rules as “ineffective” and “defective”, pointing at foreign – French, Canadian, British, German – experiences in this sphere as the most prominent ones. ZN.ua
Design thinking forum was held in Kyiv. Design for Ukraine: From Design Thinking to Design Doing Forum, organized by EU-Eastern Partnership Culture and Creativity Programme, gathered more than 150 participants to discuss design’s global role and its impact on the development of creative industries in the country. EU-Eastern Partnership Culture and Creativity Programme website
More information about the Forum
More information about the agenda of the Forum
1st Ukrainian festival held in Prague. About thousand people gathered in Prague to take part in the festival aimed at promoting Ukrainian culture in Czech Republic, UKRINFORM reports. Bands performed at the festival, and visitors could taste Ukrainian dishes, buy souvenirs, in particular embroidery. UKRINFORM
Ukrainian mount will be placed at Frankfurt book fair. Ukraine’s main topic during the Fair will be Understanding Ukraine, Understanding Europe, which is set to attract discussion on how the country may respond to global challenges of nowadays and how the artist can influence the changes in the society, LB.ua reports with reference to UKRINFORM. UAH 2,5 mln. from culture ministry and USD 12,6 thousand from foreign ministry have been earmarked for this year’s Ukraine’s performance in Frankfurt. LB.ua, UKRINFORM
