The Belarusian Council for Culture
The Belarusian Council for Culture Newsletter #2-2024 Dear friends, You are reading the newsletter of the Belarusian Council for Culture. Our team works every day for the development of Belarusian culture, we launch new projects and bring bold ideas to life. Not so long ago, the BCC presented the idea of the Belarusian Patrons Club, together with Ukrainian colleagues we launched a rock radio and started recruiting participants to the art management school — more facts and details about all these activities below. |
ArtPower Belarus, the vast support program that the Belarusian Council for Culture implements together with the Danish Cultural Institute with the financial support of the European Union, is entering a new stage. We are launching an art management school. Its main goal is to deepen the participant’s knowledge in management and marketing of the creative industry as an economic activity. The program will also expand the cultural workers’ competence in organizing the project management process. We look for driven individuals with artistic experience, art managers, and curators.More details about the course syllabus and applicant requirements. Deadline for applications: March 20, 2024. *The Resource Center’s logo contains a fragment of a painting Bird Songs by Belarusian artist Antos Radzivonau. |
The Belarusian Council for Culture is constantly searching for ways to finance culture and create sustainable models for cultural communities’ existence. Not long ago, we launched a Belarusian Patrons Club, this is an experimental project for us, but we believe that it can become the basis for important decisions and promising developments.Belarusian Patrons Club is a community of passionate people who invest in the future of Belarus. The members of the Club re-establish an institution of patronage of arts, which has existed for centuries in the Belarusian territories, at a new level. They contribute to developing prominent initiatives in the sphere of culture, institutions of management, and support of culture. They promote the education of managers in the sphere and the development of cultural industry, and thus take part in the formation of the ecosystem of Belarusian culture and thus strengthen the foundation of independent Belarus. |
President of ABBA Yauheni Bury and CEO of the BCC Siarhiej Budkin signing the Memorandum of Cooperation. Building partnerships and coalitions with Belarusian and foreign organizations is a crucial part of the mission of the Belarusian Council for Culture. Therefore, we’re proud to sign the Memorandum of Cooperation with the Association of Belarusian Business Abroad (ABBA). Together we plan:establish networks between promising projects from the spheres of culture and business,create opportunities for prominent cultural figures to participate in business events,help repressed artists find funding.We in BCC believe that the common experience and mutual support will help both partners in this Memorandum to work more effectively for the benefit of Belarusians, and this case will become an excellent example of cooperation between actors from different sectors of civil society. |
From the first days of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Belarusian Council for Culture actively supported the Ukrainian side. We launched the information campaign #BelarusWithUkraine, within this project, we talked about everyday cooperation between Belarusians and Ukrainians and explained the difference between Belarusians and Lukashenka’s regime. Representatives of the BCC took part in Belarusian-Ukrainian forums in Lutsk and Lviv.One of the new mutual projects is RokRadio BY within RokRadio UA. This wave carries the sound of the independent Belarusian language music. On the air of RokRadio BY one can hear old hits and new tracks by outstanding Belarusian musicians. Every Belarusian musician can propose their songs to be played on the air. Let the editors know and send your tracks in good quality here. |
A repressed Belarusian woman, a cultural actor in exile, asked the BCC for help. She is going through a tough life situation. This young woman experienced repression and persecution in Belarus. She openly spoke out against the dictatorship and helped the families of political prisoners. And her creative personality was too bright, capable of inspiring other Belarusians with her example. Several criminal cases were opened against her for „organizing and financing protests” (Articles 342 and 293), the apartment where she lived with her parents was searched, equipment and valuables were confiscated, and the apartment itself was sealed. As a result, she fled abroad with a small child and parents in her arms. Already in emigration, the woman’s father was diagnosed with cancer (the man became very ill due to stress and the loss of literally everything). Now he is undergoing complex treatment, one more urgent operation is needed. Due to continuous work and stress, the health of his daughter also rapidly declined. Her seasonal job is the only source of income for a family of four. Funds are critically needed for the father: the family is awaiting new medical and post-op procedures.The BCC started the anonymous fundraiser to help the woman cope with this ordeal. |
Repressions in Belarus’ cultural sphere continue. People of culture are getting fired, thrown behind bars, and pushed abroad. As of February 2024, 159 cultural figures are in captivity. |
Stay with Belarusian Council for Culture. We continue to help representatives of Belarusian culture who were suppressed and who are in distress. We continue to work on the analysis of current cultural trends. We are working on new ambitious projects in the field of cultural policy and cultural diplomacy. And we will be glad to tell you about them soon. |
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