Conference on Art Institutions as Catalysts or Indicators: The Role of Art Institutions in Gentrification Processes

Where:  Andrejsala, Canteen project space, Riga
When:   6/7 December 2007

The conference on the role of art institutions in gentrification processes will focus on the interaction of culture and art institutions with processes of urban development, and the role of such institutions in gentrification processes in Latvia and abroad.

The conference aims to examine the situation and outline future scenarios on both local and global scale. The local context is provided by the development of Andrejsala, which has been chosen as an example of contemporary urban planning. Andrejsala is the planned venue for the construction of a museum of contemporary art. At the moment the area is home to several dynamic culture organisations that are actively working on implementing their programmes. Collaboration among culture institutions, urban planners, developers and investors in creating a new territory is a relatively common practice worldwide. An “artists’ colony” helps change the image and environment of the territory. Similar processes of gentrification have taken place in several countries of Western and Eastern Europe.

The conference plans to study different practices of urban planning, engage in critical analysis of gentrification processes and outline the role of cultural institutions in these processes. The conference will conclude with a debate of its participants, artists and architects.

participants:
Christoph Schäfer, Margit Czenki (Hamburg), Robert Hamelijnck & Nienke Terpsma (the Netherlands), Marcelo Expósito (Barcelona), Markus Ambach (Düsseldorf), Bert Theis (Luxembourg, Milan), Skaidra Trilupaitytė (Lithuania), Gediminas Urbonas (Lithuania), Kristīne Briede, Santa Mazika (Liepāja), Ieva Zibarte (Latvia) et al.

Thursday, December 6