STREET ARTISTS IN EUROPE - Fondazione Fitzcarraldo

Street Artists in Europe
contribution to theatre arts. ‘We hope that it will be through greater cooperation within Europe
that this artform will be fully appreciated’ 239 .
3.2.4. Finland, Norway
Northern European countries seem to underrate street arts, unlike circus arts, which receive
political recognition with dedicated funding facilities. That applies to both Finland and Norway,
countries on which the survey respondents give us some information.
The situation of street arts is difficult in those countries. It should be remembered that they are
fairly new States. Norway was a colony of Sweden and Denmark for centuries and only became
independent in 1905. Finland was under Swedish and then Russian rule until it gained
independence in 1917.
Norway’s institutional and artistic history does not therefore go very far back. ‘The professional
theatre is young in Norway’ 240 . The first and only Norwegian theatre school was founded 50
years ago and the alternative theatre school (Fredrikstad) only dates back a few years, as does
the cinema school (Lillehammer). ‘So Norway is a poor art society, and most of the funds go to
build and establish and run conventional arts like fine art, symphony orchestras, theatre
buildings with ensembles and opera, etc.’ 241 .
Although the objectives of Norwegian cultural policy are artistic quality and innovation,
alongside the conservation and preservation of cultural heritage, and easy public access to a rich
and diverse range of cultural events, street arts remain in a very fragile condition. Judging from
the replies to the survey, there is no public intervention specifically for street arts, although
street artists can apply to the funding mechanisms designed for the theatre.
The Norwegian Arts Council and the Department for Foreign Affairs do have funds available
for disseminating works abroad, but applicants must prove that their projects are of high artistic
quality. They have to be ‘formative’, i.e. they have to convince the funders, especially the public
funders, that they form part of a contemporary aesthetic framework, that they represent genuine
artistic research, and that they can serve as a basis for the development and establishment of
contemporary theatre art scene in Norway. These projects are often connected with major
festivals, such as those in Bergen, Harstad and Tampere.
Norwegian respondents to the survey also emphasised that the political decision-makers are
aware that Norway lags behind the other Scandinavian countries. Even though it is difficult to
find public funding for contemporary circus, for example, the institutions are aware of its
existence. ‘They more or less know Norway is light years behind …’ 242 . The new government
(2005) declared that one of its main ambitions is to increase the proportion of the budget
earmarked for culture from 0.8% to 1% over the next ten years.
In Finland, although the development of live performance and cultural policy since the early
2000s means that contemporary circus is now being recognised as an independent art form,
street arts have not yet obtained the same degree of recognition. They remain fairly underrated.
239 Reply to the enquiry by Nicole Ruppert, Director of the Kulturbüro (Bonn, Germany).
240 Sverre Waage lists five professional street companies; he also points out that other street arts projects exist and
have been developed, here and there, by theatre companies.
241 Ibid.
242 Ibid.
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