Coming up

.:: December 2011 ::.
New Media Cross-Border - 2nd Workshop
16th - 18th December, Čakovec (Croatia)
Workshop: Project management
Mentor: Irena Slunjski

.:: November 2011 ::.
Brainstorm 04/11 - GLASIR II: Meeting of the project team
At the Art center we'll be brainstorming together with partners of the project which we applied with for Swiss Contribution Programme.

ACTFEST '11 - mobile structures for performative arts and education
11.-12.11.2011, Čakovec (Croatia)
Themes: free licenses in art, autonomy, nomadic practices
ACTFEST is a self-organized festival so that the work, performing arts, design, music, equipment etc. are organized by visitors. All organizers and participants are at the same time artists, technicians, PR etc. The entire program will take place in a 8 x 2,5 x 3 m container. Art center will participate at the round table about AiR/Mobility and art.
ACTFEST is a part of Transdisciplinary and new media culture in the development of cross-border area (New Media Cross-Border)under IPA Operational Programme Slovenia-Croatia 2007-2013.
More about the festival...

Study visit Academy of fine arts and design, University of Ljubljana
02.-04.11. 2011
more coming soon...

ARTalks
Starting in 2011, ARTalks is set as a series of spontaneous and organized events - screenings, readings, discussions, interviews, workshops and in site mini-exhibitions - focusing on contemporary art world (practices, theory, tools, ideas, events, education, organization and fundraising, etc.). At the end of the first year we will prepare a web reader/booklet, where you will be able to read about the events and discussions, results, find interesting links and literature.
If you are interested and want to join us, please contact us on our e-mail.

.:: October 2011 ::.
Meeting of independent nvo youth organizations
Foundation Pohorski bataljon
Gustav, Pekarna, Maribor; 17 - 19th October
Foundation joins 28 nvo youth organizations from all over Slovenia. The purpose of the meeting is to exchange information about problems that nvo's are dealing with, general overview of the nvo sector and discussion about further developments in the field of youth with director of Office of Youth of Slovenian government. Also, there will be presentation of ongoing research about independent and self-initiated youth nvo's by dr. Rajko Muršič.


Rainbow children; 13 -15th October
International team from Germany, Sweeden and Slovenia is conducting comparative research, entitled: Homophobic Motivated Violence as Experience of Children growing upwith Homosexual Parents in the Context of School. Their working meeting that is going to take place at Art centre Središče, is sixth in a row and last before final conference in Berlin.
The project is financed by EU programme Daphne III.
Read more about the project:
http://www.gender.hu-berlin.de/rainbowchildren

EmploYouth 2011; 6-13th October, Sremski Karlovci (Serbia)
EmploYouth 2011 is 7-days training course on video activism with participants from Serbia, Croatia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, UK, Hungary, Macedonia, Portugal, Ukraine and Slovenia. It seeks to address three topics: youth unemployment, poverty and social exclusion, and to explore possibilities of addressing these issues in the form of video work, and video activism. Art center is one of partners in the project, sending 3 young participants from Slovenia to the training.
Project is co-financed by the EU 'Youth in action' programme.
Read more about the project here.
Check out one of the video works called Have a heart

Art center news

Renovations at the Artists' Asylum
After 4 years of existance and 3 years of running AiR program, Artists' Asylum needs some renovations:
- instead of wood oven we installed air conditioning system (to keep warm in winter and cold in summer)
- renovated wooden floor and beams
- re-painted walls and renovated furniture

We are also planning to heighten part of the roof, where we would like to set up a small but functional kitchen and toilet.

Renovations are made possible by the Art center and KUD Mreža and numerous friends and volunteers.

Library
We would like to thank everybody who contributed books and other materials for the Art center library: Jela Krečič, Stripburger, Peace Institute, Časopis za kritiko znanosti, KUD Mreža, Radio Študent, Založba Beletrina, Association for Culture and Education Kibla, FF University of Ljubljana - Department of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology, Društvo Apokalipsa, Rhiannon Davies, Bogdan Mrovlje, Martin in Ana Pravdič, Ludvik Jonaš, Maja Kohek in Samuel Friškič, Space Gallery (Slovakia), MKKBK, Darja Zaviršek, Office for Youth RS, and so many more... Thank you!

At the same time we would like to take this oppurtunity and invite you to donate books you don't need or think they could be useful here. We will be very happy to share your books with our guests!

Ecology
We were experimenting with ecological technique called lasagna gardening. At the end of the gardening season we are preparing new plans for next year - we will be upgrading our garden plans based upon our experiences and newly built protective net against hail. It's construction will dictate some adjustments of the garden beds as well as offering a possibility of a green-house for early planting.
Also, the time has come to harvest our produce! JOIN US, give a hand and learn something new or read about our work in our mini blog!

Also we would like to invite you to help us collect plastic bottles, cans, glass bottles and car-tyres for our next eco-art project. Read moreabout that soon...

Networking
Art center contribuited building materials for autonomous youth cultural center Izbruh from Kranj, Slovenia. We hope that it will be of good use to you guys!

Art center became a member of international network of art and cultural centres - ENCC. As a part of their project Bridge between European Cultural Centres - BECC, Art center will be part of their staff exchange program in 2011.
Read more soon...

OP IPA Slovenia-Croatia 2007-2013 - 'NEW MEDIA CROSS-BORDER'
The main goal of the project is to strengthen the capacity of organizations working in the field of New Media Culture, to increase the number of collaborative projects and cross-border events, mobility of artists and cultural exchanges in the field of New Media Culture and to create conditions and accelerate the development of cross-border cooperation by establishing an operating joint Agency for Transdisciplinary and New Media Culture that will work on education, counseling, information and programs exchange.

Partners: Autonomous center - ACT, Association for Culture and Education Kibla, ONEJ - Association of Prekmurje Innitiative, Youth Association Varaždin Underground Club
Read more soon...

Voluntary work/Help needed

Workaway
Art center joied Workaway - portal of volunteering oppurtunities around the globe, offered by different organizations and individuals who are looking fo ra helping hand.
Read more about Workaway

EVS at the Art center
Starting a new EVS project in December 2010, Art center will host volunteer and young artist Abel Heijkamp (NL). Next to helping at the Art center, Abel will be doing research and preparing a new documentary. Topic: Temporary work.

Those interested in European Voluntary Service program or EVS at the Art center, contact us via e-mail!

Recent events

.:: September 2011 ::.
Thursday, 15th September 2011 at 18.00, Artists' Asylum, Ljubljana
Series of lectures Material conditions of imagination:
Julij Borštnik - Interesting and boring periods in art
About the lecturer:
Julij Borštnik graduated at the Academy of fine arts and design, University in Ljubljana in 2007. Currently he's writing his Master's thesisin Philosophy at the Scientific research centre SASA. During his studies at the academy he received the International Essl Award and national Prešern award for fine art students. Since 2003 he has been actively involved in the Art center in Goričko, Prekmurje and Artists' Asylum in Metelkova Mesto in Ljubljana. At the moment he's focused on production of new art projects.
Organization: KUD Mreža
Co-organization: Art center

New Media Cross-Border - 1st Workshop
23.09 – 25.09. 2011 at the Autonomous center ACT, Čakovec (Croatia).
Theme: Transdisciplinarity - lecturer prof. Dr. Michael Punt, University of Plymouth

New Media Cross-Border - 1st Study visit
Open call for educational program in the field of transdiciplinary, new media and sustainable development of northern cross-border area of Slovenia and Croatia is now closed. Selected participants of the project are Maja Kohek, Simon Poldauf and Vita Žgur (ONEJ/Art center).
Between 9th and 11th September the first study visit will take place in Bratislava, Slovakia.


Thursday, 1st September 2011 at 18.00, Artists' Asylum, Ljubljana
Series of lectures Material conditions of imagination:
David Verbuč - Ethnomusicology of rock'n'roll: Alternative home concerts in the U.S.
House concerts, fairly common phenomenon in the U.S., are public or semi-public musical events organized by people in their homes. There are different types of house concerts. Some focus on classical music, jazz, or "folk" music. David Verbuč is mainly interested in the research of those house concerts, organized by the youth and cover a wide range of music. There you can hear everything from alternative rock and punk to experimental and improvised music (and occasionally live electronic music or hip-hop). In this way the youth aims to establish alternative music and social scenes and ways of life, running past the conventional, commercial or institutional channels.
In doing so, organization of concerts is partly a necessity, because this kind of music and musicians usually find no place in traditional concert halls and commercially-oriented bars, and partly derives from the need for independence and "do-it-yourself" ideology and aesthetics. Such self-organization of youth, which represents a unique response to neo-liberal and (neo) conservative politics in the United States, often works in close formation with local student or independent radio station that offers support and is an integral part of the scene itself.
The author's research focuses on the U.S. west coast, but in theory he looks at how space, music and social engagement within the alternative house concerts scene contribute to the establishment, maintenance and transformation of communities and scenes, and vice versa, and balance of power, which they produce. The study focuses on the U.S. alternative house concerts for two reasons:
(a) such concerts offer an insight into the cultural politics of everyday life and the creative practice of contemporary American youth, which contributes to a better understanding of contemporary American culture and society in general, and
(b) because studies neglect the "domestic" cultures in ethnomusicology and on the other hand, the lack of intensive ethnographic approach to popular music in popular music studies.
About the lecturer
In 2010, David Verbuč received his MS from the University of ethnomusicology at UC Davis (California), where he continues with doctoral studies. He graduated at the Academy of Music, where he specialized in the field of ethnomusicology. Between 2003 and 2006 he was music editor of the editorial office of Radio Student, Ljubljana. He wrote for magazines Muska, Youth, Deloskop, and is still occasionally active as a music journalist in the Slovenian media. Between 2000 and 2001 he recorded, compiled and documented around 1000 folk songs in Upper Savinjska valley (around 100 singers), the selection of which was published on the double CD Gorse is not people in the world: field recordings of folk songs in Upper Savinjska valley (Mozirje, 2008).
Organization: KUD Mreža
Co-organization: Art center

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