Untitled - Narodowe Centrum Kultury

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The organisers get awards and receive press coverage, but local
residents remain in their houses just as before. If we always remember
that people should be at the centre of our efforts, such situations
will certainly not happen.
We enter a local community just like we join a new group of people,
an elementary school class, when we must first undergo quarantine
and find our place among other children, accepting the rules
within the group, before we can start making any changes.
Residents mistrust our actions because they are afraid of the
unknown. They do not know the reasons behind our initiatives, fearing
their effects. And sometimes the organisation of a community is
so ossified as to prevent any communication whatsoever. Therefore,
we give residents space for their preferences, personality and skills
to influence the cultural activities we initiate. The sense of influence
and causative power gives people the sense of meaning and encourages
them to take part in the project. By simply asking for opinion or
suggestions about our activities we break down the barriers between
the organiser (initiator, animator, leader) and the resident who, after
many failed attempts to take control of reality, no longer believes any
change is possible.
Once the concept for an action is ready, we invite residents to
collaborate and try to make the best possible use of our combined
skills and knowledge, involving them in the project from the very start
to ensure that they feel it’s their own action, not somebody else’s; that
it’s just what they would like it to be; that the festival or workshops
bear their mark, meet their cultural needs.
But culture so defined only includes art, and the experience of
many animators is a proof. So before we organise actions that aim
to promote art, unleash artistic potential or educate residents in this
field, we start from doing something universal, something that can
connect as many people as possible, prepare them for the planned activities.
This might be a soccer tournament or a make-up workshop if
it would bring joy to the locals and give them hope and energy to undertake
further activities.
Culture animation in communities tends to be unpredictable
as it often springs surprises on both the community and the animator.
Likewise, culture so understood has no fixed boundaries since the
concept of culture encompasses social relationships, everyday life
and its quality as well as the needs of residents. In this context we can
speak of everyday culture, the culture of living together, of being part
of the same community.
A good example of such efforts are the photography workshops
held in Cyców as part of the project Family Stories, Big and
Small (initiated by the local cultural centre together with Flying Culture
Animators and the Association of Creative Initiatives “ę”, which
is yet another example of successful exchange of knowledge in culture).
a group of young people were given a task to photograph what
they find important – their parents, friends, a local place, thus creating
a portrait of their family, of the place they live in and its history.
This photo story told by young photographers allowed them to identify
with the neighbourhood they come from and do the most authentic
thing they could do – say something about themselves. The young
people were given a chance and tools to express themselves: “this is
us, this is our family, these things are important to us”.
In addition, the project served to strengthen relationships between
generations and encouraged participants to take photos of, for
example, their grandparents, whom they could thus “rediscover”.
Working with local communities is never easy and will always
create challenges even to the most seasoned culture animators. It is
often necessary to revise the original ideas after we have identified
local needs. But this is what it’s all about – our efforts should lead to
a positive change in the community, give it a new lease of life, leave
behind a touch of culture and the tools community members need to
continue our efforts when we have moved on to work in a completely
different place.
agnieszka matan
is currently completing her studies at the Institute of Applied Social Sciences (University
of Warsaw). Her passion is culture animation. She leads Q Neighbourhood
Movement Programme at the Local Activity Support Centre. Agnieszka works with
the third sector, coordinating volunteers and promoting local initiatives.