EROC

EROC – European Regions of Culture

EROC is a pilot program carried out the Culture Program for 2007  - 2013. It aims to expand  European Capitals of Culture Program so that the role of rural areas that have an impact on the richness of European culture is increased.

The EROC Project emphasizes the role that the culture of rural regions play in the process of building an independent cultural identity of countries within the European Union. Three different, distant geographically and culturally regions took part – Cornwall, Southern  Ostrobothnia and Kujawsko-Pomorskie. They work together with observers from Ireland, Denmark, Italy and Bulgaria. The starting point for the exchange of experiences between people operating in the domain of culture was a series of meetings and a residential program for artists. This allowed for discussions regarding local and international communities,  regional economy and enterprise, as well as the diversity of the natural environment. The debate also developed into joint artistic activities from the artists of the cooperating regions and the formation of a multiregional team  which is to work on the EROC model.

For the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship  the EROC Project is a great opportunity to define a common cultural identity , as the lack of a specified  cultural center and a very short history of the region allow for integration under the union of Pomerania and Kuyavia . The main challenge the EROC Project brings, however, is defining a set of common  elements of cultural identity that could be accepted by the inhabitants and  would make our region an attractive spot on the tourist map of Poland and Europe.

This was an interdisciplinary project.  It planned on creating a platform of communication for representatives of local cultural institutions, who apart from exchanging knowledge, had a chance to attempt to formulate the demands of expanding the European Capital of Culture Program. Furthermore, it required appointing three Artists Representatives from each  region that would participate in the residency project. The artists from each of the region participating in the program  in their works within it were to make references to the culture of their regions.

A this stage the steps to appoint the 3 representatives from Kujawsko-Pomorskie were coordinated by the Center of Contemporary Art together with the project coordinators from Cornwall CoCA curators, Krzysztof Białowicz, Daniel Muzyczuk. The candidates were judged on the basis of their application forms and interviews. Three local artists were selected : Rafał Kołacki (musician), Katarzyna Łyszkowska (visual artist) and Danuta Milewska (performance artist).

The other artists taking part in the project are: from Cornwall Rae Chapman (visual artist), Bruce Davies (visual artist) and Paul Farmer (writer), representing South Ostrobothnia Panu Hemminki (painter), Eija Irmeli Lahti (actress and theater director), Henna Mantere (visual artist, fabric designer).

The first out of three organized sessions (presenting the works of the artists) in each of the countries took  place in CoCA on the 24th of April 2009,   and  ended with a conference open to the public. The representatives of the local community, with the Marshall of the Voivodeship Piotr Całbecki, together with the guests from the participating countries discussed the ways of becoming a European  Region of Culture. The panel discussion featured professor Tomasz Szlendak (Nicolaus Copernicus University), professor Piotr Petrykowski (Nicolaus Copernicus University), Jerzy Rochowiak (Regional Center of Culture Animation), Jarosław Pająkowski, PhD, (Lower Vistula Valley) and Przemysław Draheim (Toruń 2016).

The Center of Culture Vanha Paukku in Lapua in Finnish South Ostrobrothnia held the second meeting (3rd – 8th of August) within the EROC Project. The meeting was attended by representatives from the regions participating in the project, and most importantly, the artists from South Ostrobrothnia, Cornwall and Kujawsko-Pomorskie. During the 5-day-long stay the artists worked on projects inspired by the culture of the partnering regions. Their works were presented in an exhibition.

The representatives of CoCA visited South Ostrobrothnia. During the session in Finland, the CoCA team participated in a series of meetings with the EROC team, the local authorities of South Ostrobrothnia and Cornwall, as well as representatives of the local cultural organizations. The international exchange of experiences connected to the functioning of cultural institutions turned out to be very valuable.

On the 13th of November at the University College Falmauth in Cornwall there was a final international conference that summed up the first stage of the EROC Project. The conference was attended by representatives of the local authorities of all the regions participating in the project, representatives of cultural institutions, including CoCA (which is an example of an institution carrying out projects both on a large, global scale as well as with cooperation with local organizations).

A the discussion panel within the final conference, which was attended by representatives of all the participating regions, Kujawsko-Pomorskie was represented by Tomasz Borczuch of the regions Information Office in Brussels, and Katarzyna Drewnowska-Toczko, the press spokeswoman for CoCA. Ann Branch of the European Committee was a guest of honor. All participants expressed their will to continue the cooperation. New partners are planned to join.

In the week prior to the conference the representatives of CoCA had a chance to establish some valuable contacts which we hope will result in 2010 with a series of international projects. More details soon!