Kiri

Q 1 2 Q  Table of contents Introduction – General considerations 4 European Capital of Culture 1. Contribution to the long-term strategy 6 Candidate City 2. Cultural and artistic content 13 3. European dimension 52 4. Outreach 62 5. Management 67 6. Capacity to deliver 96 7. Additional information 99 Introduction – General considerations Q1 Arts of Survival: how our concept has evolved since the preselection stage A year closer to 2024 Arts of Survival the latest parliament elections herald of Culture must find both tactful and makes even more sense for Tartu, Estonia the rise of populism, xenophobia and insistent ways to be inclusive as well as and Europe. Arts of Survival deals with attacks on the liberal European values instructive beyond the artistic comfort the human impact on the escalating cli- also in this country. Is Europe losing zone of the welfare society. That’s what mate crisis, aggravated social divisions Estonia? Is Estonia losing Europe? we’ve worked on the most in improving and mental welfare issues, the struggle our concept and programme. of small cities and rural communities for Yet this is precisely why Tartu needs the persistence and renewal – all of which ECoC chance and challenge. We’ve In 2018, Tartu was redefined by a major are burning realities bound to linger been searching solutions for these civic protest against industrial invasion into the 2020s. The disruptive power of tensions for some time; we’re ready of the riverside of Emajõgi – the biggest arts has still not been disruptive enough to try them out in practice. Behind the public outcry since regaining Estonian in tackling these issues with the neces- recent political turn is the pain and fear independence. It jolted Tartu out of the sary scale and drive. of those who feel insecure, left out, smugly insular “doll city“ image, prov- and culturally snubbed at. There are ing that concern for environment can These are both global and local con- many people like that in our Southern unite people across the political spec- cerns. However, Arts of Survival is also Estonian region. There are many more trum and give artists a fresh and strong an agenda for Europe. It’s an agenda to all over Europe, losing the sense of cause to fight for. Most crucially, it gave be expected from a European Capital Europe in their hearts as Europe might the people of Tartu the self-assurance of Culture. This year has also revved be losing sight of their woes. that they can alter the course that their up the debate on the fate of Europe. city takes in the greater scheme of So far, Estonia seemed to be on the We can reverse this process with Arts things. So, a major focus of improving safe side of democracy, openness and of Survival. To succeed in 2024, a city Tartu’s ECoC 2024 bid is „everyone’s artistic freedom. However, the results of bidding to become a European Capital ecology“ – what is it that each of us in 4 Introduction – General considerations Tartu, Estonia and Europe, in city and countryside, can do to has already grown in spirit and practice. The Arts of Survival better the state of the world. The arts have huge potential to courses of action also correspond to the three focal concepts bring on changes in lifestyles, consumption habits and prac- of our cultural strategy KU30 – Environment, Generations tices passed on to next generations – by aiming to be striking and Community – and the ECoC endeavour has taken us and surprising where outright sermonising fails. much closer to the goals for 2030. Still, for us it’s just the beginning of handling the crucial questions for the city, the Lamenting the decrease in traditional skills and real-life region and Europe. How can the arts help to bring in major human interaction is also not enough in itself. The need urban change via ”everyone’s ecology“ and sharing the best for long-term solutions has inspired us to hone our Arts of practices of mutual learning across Europe? How to make Survival by involving schools, universities, cultural institu- cultural/educational/social shared paths not just transver- tions and social care NGOs to create shared paths for arts, sal and transgenerational but also truly transnational? How STEAM education and transgenerational interaction. The next to reassure local communities that their identities will be generation can’t wait until 2024, for the European Capital of strengthened, rather than diluted, by greater international Culture we dream of, the future Tartu and Europe we want cooperation and artistic exchange? How to reinstate their to happen – they need to be involved right away with all the sense of belonging in Europe, contributing to its diversity optimism they’ve still got. and relevance in the global Arts of Survival? Tartu has grown so much more aware of the alienation from Tartu has worked hard and is ready to work harder to find European values among people in smaller cities, municipali- the answers – the answers to secure the lasting ecological, ties and rural areas. Southern Estonia dearly longs for Tartu to social and cultural impact for the city, the region and Europe be a European Capital of Culture in 2024, as Tartu aims to boost well beyond 2024. their cultural vibrancy, accessibility, European outreach and sustainable local economies. Otherwise there will be further silent decline – not just for the region but for Tartu too as the flux into our schools and universities from the region dries up. Yet, we’re also witnessing the most ardent fight against alien- ation in the region with pride of place and identity. This is our greatest discovery of the year – the true will and cre- ativity of the Southern Estonian region to support the Tartu 2024 bid for European Capital of Culture. Those findings and improvements have greatly enhanced our artistic programme with an expanding network of local and international partners. Contrary to traditional Estonian demureness, many Tartuvians admit that in this year, the city Introduction – General considerations 5 Contribution to the long-term strategy Q2 KU30 cultural strategy improvement: how Tartu 2024 contributes to its priorities Tartu’s cultural strategy KU30 was approved by Tartu City Council on 28 June 2018 and is outlined in detail in our prese- lection bid book. KU30 aims to make Tartu “an open, bold and friendly city of culture” by 2030 by taking strategic action within three major themes: Environment, Generations and Community. Those three themes are reflected in the three programme lines of Tartu 2024: Tartu With Earth, Tartu With Humanity and Tartu With Europe. The first revision process of KU30 is due to be completed by early 2020. However, prompted by our ECoC bidding, several major improvements are already underway. Generations and Community (with special focus on inter- A thorough reform of the financing system of cultural national outreach). The new grants system also includes projects from the city budget is bound to have a pro- mobility, investment and development measures for cultural found overall impact on reaching KU30 and Tartu 2024 organisations, making it considerably easier to upscale their goals. From 1 June 2019, there are much more diverse activities for more international reach. This funding model opportunities for organisations to apply for grants: small- and the closer connection between KU30 cultural priorities, er-scale applications being open several times a year while 1 overall city visions and Tartu 2024 bidding process should and 3-year grants are available for larger projects. The latter ensure the long-term survival of a dynamic, responsive and are expected to address the key priorities of Environment, inclusive cultural environment in Tartu. KU30 theme Tartu 2024 Common strategic priority Action 2019 programme line Environment Tartu With Earth Ecologically sustainable development Revising the public space policies of Tartu of Toomemägi and the river banks of with a stronger focus on environment and Emajõgi into thriving cultural and social biodiversity spaces Transversal and ecologically and socially Engaging creative hubs like Aparaaditehas and conscious creative industries TCCC in pioneering green and social entrepre- neurship with the ECoC projects Generations Tartu With Humanity Schools as key partners in sustainable The Shared Path cluster of formal and non-for- artistic and cultural development mal educational activities connecting arts and other creative processes with learning for the next generation Universities as key partners in sustainable Talks with top executives of the University artistic and cultural development of Tartu to fully integrate the ECoC city and regional activities into the emerging University strategy Community Tartu With Europe International openness and artistic Tartu UNESCO City of Literature Strategy 2020- outreach of communities and cultural 2024 being drawn with a focus on sustainable operators development goals and more intensive interna- tional cooperation Kultuurikompass capacity building programme Completed the first stage of the Tartu Night Economy Strategy 6 Contribution to the long-term strategy Q3/Q4 Intended long-term impacts of Tartu 2024 with monitoring and evaluation plans Our long-term impacts build on the values that Arts of Tartu 2024 social impacts – Tartu With Humanity: Survival stands for throughout the cultural and capacity Forward To The Roots. Tartu 2024 succeeds in reinvigor- building programme. Compared to the preselection, the ating the self-belief and ambition of Tartu and Southern long-term impacts and the indicators for impact measure- Estonia. People of Tartu develop new platforms for ment are developed in more detail. In some cases the impacts civic activism and involvement in city affairs. The region are reworked in order to reflect the aims of the refined cul- is engaging and hospitable to visitors and residents tural programme more closely. of diverse cultural backgrounds. Cultural events are more accessible to the segments of the population Our designated impacts correlate with the KU30 cultural currently detached from cultural scenes. The people strategy of Tartu. We also want to support its ambitious goal to lead more active lifestyles while being more open and test the solutions intended to tackle the challenges of the 21st compassionate to mental health issues. All of this makes century. Tartu 2024’s bid for ECoC aims to do exactly this. We Southern Estonia an attractive place for the younger strive to find the solutions to pressing cultural, social, mental generations locally, nationally and across Europe. and ecological issues in Tartu, Southern Estonia, Europe and around the world through learning, doing and sharing. Tartu 2024 cultural and economic impact – Tartu With Europe: Greater Smaller Cities. After 2024, Tartu is How will we define “success”? awakened from provincial complacency, its artistic and creative industry scenes are operating on a much more The success we envision for Tartu 2024 is in alignment with international scale. Artists and cultural managers are the Tartu KU30 cultural strategy: “in 2030 Tartu will be an making broader and more inventive use of the aca- open, bold and friendly city of culture”. demic and innovative-entrepreneurial assets existing in the city to embrace new audiences. The ECoC brings Tartu 2024 ecological and urban development impacts Tartu and Southern Estonia to the radar of European – Tartu With Earth: Ecology Before Economy. City cultural tourists and urges the public and the private planning in Tartu after 2024 puts long-term ecology sectors to improve the accessibility of Tartu and the before short-term economy. Cultural and hospitality region to the rest of Europe. sectors around the region have adapted the princi- ples of sustainable cultural management and tourism. These impacts, distributed into three groups – ecological People of Tartu are conscious of the ideas of sustainable and urban, social, cultural and economic – also reflect the development and have altered their waste disposal and major themes of KU30: Environment, Generations and commuting habits. Urban population has a stronger Community. affiliation with nature both within and without the bor- ders of the city and people all around the region have rediscovered basic survival skills. Contribution to the long-term strategy 7 Indicators of the impacts gathered from four distinct sources: statistics, population perception surveys, mobile location data and (social) The indicators measuring the desired long-term impacts and media monitoring. the related measuring instruments presented in this bid were developed in cooperation with experts from the University of Already existing data gathering and survey instruments will Tartu and specialists from different departments of the Tartu be used as much as possible. An asset of Tartu is that the City Government responsible for collecting statistics and City already conducts three regular population surveys that data about the city. partially cover the data we need for the indicators, but they can also host additional questions related to the ECoC. We Our indicators for the long-term impacts fall into two cat- believe that greater integration into the existing monitoring egories: those measuring the reach and impact of specific instruments also helps to guarantee the continuity of the events and projects within the ECoC programme and oth- ECoC legacy beyond the official end of the project. ers that measure the more general cultural, social, economic and ecological developmental goals of Tartu and the wider The following table describes in some detail a list of indica- region that coincide with the key challenges laid out in tors developed in cooperation with the University, Tartu City the ECoC programme. The data for the indicators will be Government and Artistic Programme project leaders. Impact Indicators Data collection LONG-TERM ECOLOGICAL/URBAN IMPACTS Tartuvians value sustainable Average New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) scale of The People of Tartu and the development Tartuvians Environment survey Tartu and region are pathfinders in No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 re- and upcycling Share of people actively waste sorting and The People of Tartu and the recycling Environment survey Tartu is a pathfinder in developing Share and distribution of green urban areas Data collected by Tartu City Govt. and biodiverse human-scale urban spaces in Tartu European Environmental Agency Use and no. of species in pilot parks Data collected by Curated Biodiversity team Share of people walking, cycling or using public The People of Tartu and the transport Environment survey Tartu and region are pathfinders in Share of sustainably managed events Data collected by Tartu City Govt. environmentally sustainable event (Dept. of Culture) management No. of related training courses; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 Cultural managers’ self-evaluation of related skills Cultural managers survey New eco-friendly tourism products Share of tourism enterprises with Green Key certif- Data collected by Enterprise Estonia and services icate in Tartu and region No. of new successful Green Key applicants No. of tourism services with ecotourism quality Data collected by Estonian Rural mark EHE in Tartu and region Tourism Urban dwellers reconnect with natu- No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 ral environment in Tartu Share of people who value spending time in The People of Tartu and the nature Environment survey 8 Contribution to the long-term strategy Revived appreciation for nature skills, No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 crafts and DIY Share of people who value these skills The People of Tartu and the Environment survey River Emajõgi back in active use No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 No. of catering, accommodation and recreational Data collected by Emajõgi cooperation facilities/services at riverbanks network No. of mooring and port facilities on Emajõgi LONG-TERM SOCIAL IMPACTS Enhanced participation in arts for all Enhanced participation in arts for all major social Data collected by Tartu 2024 major social groups in region groups in region Share of Tartuvians not participating in cultural Tartu and the People of Tartu survey events; their demographic breakdown Share of Tartuvians with at least one cultural hobby Participation in ECoC events as organisers, Data collected by Tartu 2024 + post- volunteers and audience; socio-demographic ECoC survey breakdown People of Tartu/region are hospitable Share of people with positive attitude towards Tartu and the People of Tartu survey to short- and long term international foreigners visitors Evaluation by foreign tourists of the hospitality of Tourism survey, internet monitoring Tartuvians Local youth considers region attrac- Share of local youth satisfied with leisure activities Tartu and the People of Tartu survey tive place for their future and per- in Tartu sonal fulfilment Share of local youth satisfied with Tartu as place for self-realisation Share of local youth having strong affiliations with Tartu Tartuvians are active in city life on the Share of people active in city politics and Tartu and the People of Tartu survey street, neighbourhood and munici- development pality level Share of eligible electorate voting participatory Data collected by Tartu City Govt. budget in Tartu Share of people satisfied with participation Tartu and the People of Tartu survey options in city planning Better access to culture for disadvan- Share of cultural institutions in Tartu with access Special monitoring of accessibility by taged groups for disabled Tartu City Govt. Share of ECoC events with access for disabled and Data collected by Tartu 2024 support services for people with special needs People of Tartu/region are aware of No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 and active in their health and lifestyle choices Share of people rating their health good or very Statistics Estonia health survey good Contribution to the long-term strategy 9 People of Tartu/region are aware of No. of related ECoC projects; no. of participants Data collected by Tartu 2024 and open to mental health topics Share of people empathic to mental health issues Tartu and the People of Tartu survey New culture-driven connections Share of cultural events focused on intergenera- Data collected by Tartu City Govt. between generations tional bonding (Dept. of Culture) Share of people considering intergenerational Tartu and the People of Tartu survey relationships as strong LONG-TERM CULTURAL/ECONOMIC IMPACTS Tartu is international city of culture No. of international cultural events Data collected by Tartu City Govt. (Dept. of Culture) Tartu and region have easier and No. of destinations of direct flights and flights per Data collected by Tartu City Govt. and faster access to Europe week from Tartu airport Road Administration No. of international bus departures per day from Tartu No. of international train departures per day from Tartu Tartu and region are fastest growing No. of foreign tourists in Tartu and region Data collected by Statistics Estonia; cultural tourism destinations mobile location data by Positium Region receives extensive media cov- No. of ECoC event mentions in national, interna- Media and social media monitoring erage in Estonia and in neighbouring tional and social media countries Increased cultural vibrancy of No. of ECoC regional cultural events; no. of Data collected by Tartu 2024 Southern Estonian rural areas participants Participation of people from outside Tartu in ECoC events as organisers, volunteers and audience Tartu is increasingly attractive to No. of ICT companies and No. of employees in Data collected by Statistics Estonia and creative and ICT talent Tartu ICT sector Business Register The number of ICT students in Tartu higher edu- Data collected by Ministry of Education cation institutions and Research Creative industries of Tartu and Annual turnover and export sales of CCI sector Data collected by Statistics Estonia and region develop in national and for- Business Register eign markets No. of employees in Tartu and region CCI sector Tartu and regional cultural manag- No. of European cooperations in ECoC cultural Data collected by Tartu 2024 ers and institutions networking on programme national and European level No. of cultural managers in international networks Cultural managers survey Cultural management and entrepre- No. of international cultural cooperation training Data collected by Tartu 2024 neurship experience sharing in region courses; no. of participants and Europe Cultural managers’ self-evaluation of international Cultural managers survey networking skills 10 Contribution to the long-term strategy New culture-driven cooperations No. of ECoC projects involving Tartu enterprises Data collected by Tartu 2024 between arts, science and business and scientific institutions sectors No. of cultural managers having cooperated with Cultural managers survey scientific and business sectors Cooperation among cultural institu- No. of cultural projects in cooperation between Data collected by Tartu City Govt. tions involving new audiences from several cultural institutions (Dept. of Culture) Estonia and Europe No. of people having discovered a new cultural Post-ECoC survey field within ECoC programme No. of audience development training courses; Data collected by Tartu 2024 no. of participants Cultural managers’ self-evaluation of audience Cultural managers survey development skills Cooperation with Russophone No. of ECoC events in cooperation with Data collected by Tartu 2024 cultural managers, artists and civic Russophone institutional partners society No. of ECoC cultural events featuring performers from Russia No. of events with partners and participants from Data collected by Tartu City Govt. Russia (Dept. of Culture) Who will carry out organisations will be used. Before 2024, the Department of the evaluation? Culture is also planning to carry out an accessibility monitor- ing of cultural institutions in Tartu in accordance with the prin- If the bid for the ECoC title is successful, the ECoC team will ciples of universal design. hire a special Social Studies and Outreach Manager who will be responsible for implementing the monitoring and eval- Cooperation with the ECoC team has already led to the rede- uation plan, developing the monitoring system of the ECoC sign of the statistical data collected by the Department of events and the coordination of data gathering in cooperation Culture from the cultural managers organising cultural events with different departments of Tartu city government and exter- in Tartu. The new culture monitoring database of the depart- nal parties, including the universities and the private sector. ment will include many new indicators inspired by the ECoC indicators, e.g. the measures taken by cultural managers for The main aim of the monitoring and evaluation system is to sustainable event management, etc. The new culture moni- ensure the compatibility between the artistic programme and toring system can be used as a base for developing the mon- its desired impacts in both the short- and long-term perspec- itoring system of the ECoC events which will continuously tive. However, as the long-term goals of the ECoC artistic and track the data for designated indicators. capacity building programmes go beyond the realms of culture, another, more indirect goal is to help enhance the monitoring Another key instrument for collecting data are surveys. The and data-driven goal-setting capacities of the different depart- city of Tartu already conducts three regular surveys: Tartu and ments of the city government, as well as a stronger coopera- people of Tartu (last conducted in 2018, next rounds in 2023 tion between different departments. With this aim in mind, the and 2028) and People of Tartu and environment (last con- future Social Studies and Outreach Manager also works in close ducted in 2016, next rounds in 2021 and 2026) conducted cooperation with another major initiative of the City of Tartu, by the General Planning and Development Service and the the Smart City Tartu programme, which also defines one of biennial survey of cultural managers (since 2018) conducted its goals as the development of a more comprehensive evalua- by the Department of Culture. The surveys will be comple- tion and monitoring system for city planning and development. mented by new questions that are necessary to determine the impact indicators. Baseline studies and surveys Aside from the traditional statistics and surveys that form the backbone of the evaluation and monitoring of the long- For statistical data, the main source is the statistics gathered term impact of the ECoC, the ECoC team also plans to use by the departments of the City Government of Tartu. In addi- more innovative measurement instruments. In cooperation tion, data gathered by Statistics Estonia and other national with Positium, a spin-off project of the University of Tartu, and international institutions as well as dedicated third sector mobile location data analytics will be used for gathering Contribution to the long-term strategy 11 data about the number and origin of the participants in dif- Dissemination of results ferent ECoC events. Media monitoring and social media data mining will be carried out from 2020 to 2024 to study The Social Studies and Outreach Manager will be the reach of Tartu 2024 and its events in local, international responsible for the dissemination of the collected data and social media. and publish reports in 2023 and 2025. Evaluation objectives If Tartu succeeds with its Arts of Survival, we are going to set and timeframe a great example of culture-driven sustainable development of a city and a region. Based on this, an applicable development The collection of statistical data will start after the designa- model can be created for European cities and regions with tion of the ECoC in 2020 and will be carried out biannually. similar challenges and aspirations. Generalising Tartu 2024 Next rounds of the surveys will be carried out in cooperation experiences and sharing them in city networks and among with the ECoC team during the pre-ECoC period in order to future ECoCs will be an international legacy task for the Social define the baseline of the impact indicators that will then be Studies and Outreach Manager. repeated in the following rounds after the ECoC (see timeta- ble). In addition, special feedback surveys will be carried out They are also expected to present data based development among the participants of the major projects (e.g. the capac- plan proposals to the City of Tartu (for updating the KU30 ity building programme Kultuurikompass) and the audiences cultural strategy and other relevant documents) and share of ECoC events. There will be a special survey conducted at the results with other municipalities and major stakeholders the end of 2024/early 2025 (the post-ECoC survey) among included in our ECoC, thereby igniting new public discus- the inhabitants of Tartu and the wider region that includes all sions on the desired future impact culture and participation the questions used for indicators as well as questions on the should have on Tartu and Southern Estonia. immediate impressions of the ECoC. In 2028 another check-up will be conducted to measure pro- gress towards the Tartu 2024 ECoC legacy and the delivery of Tartu’s strategic goals for KU30. The timetable of data gathering Baselines for statistical data: 2020, then biannually until 2028 Baselines for indicators: 2020 (A survey of cultural managers, Curated Biodiversity study), 2021 (The People of Tartu and the Environment), 2023 (Tartu and the People of Tartu) Monitoring system of ECoC events: 2022-2024 Post-ECoC survey: late 2024/early 2025 Surveys after ECoC: 2026 (A survey of cultural managers, The People of Tartu and the Environment), 2028 (Tartu and the People of Tartu). 12 Contribution to the long-term strategy Cultural and artistic content Q5 Tartu 2024 cultural programme: artistic vision and strategy Arts of Survival is Tartu’s vision to make nature matter more of cultural projects, a crucial step for putting those links in in humanity, humanity matter more in arts, arts matter more practice right away. Lake Peipus Arts Route in the region in Europe and Europe matter more in the world for the sake and Mapping Russophone Tartu in the city have far-reach- of human survival on a surviving planet. We need the ECoC ing plans for involving Russian-speaking minorities, while process to find the boldness in arts, education and entrepre- Diversity Land Line engages international students for a neurship to ask big human questions that won’t go away. large-scale cultural integration programme of newly arrived workers and refugees in the region already in the ramp-up We are now even more convinced that Tartu can become years. Naturally for an ECoC, we expect all projects to pro- a great European Capital of Culture if we provide a broad, vide events for both international and multilingual as well as international, inclusive and artistically fulfilling cultural pro- local monolingual audiences. gramme – one which reinforces faith in Europe for the whole Southern Estonian region and enriches Europe through the awareness of goodwill, artistic endeavours and cultural diver- sity in the region that’s driven and represented by Tartu. We have improved the Tartu 2024 – Arts of Survival bid and cultural programme along the strategic criteria stated in the preselection: TRANSVERSAL, TRANSNATIONAL, TRANSGENERATIONAL. TRANSVERSAL – extensive interdisciplinary cooperation between institutions, festivals, NGOs and communities HOW? We initiated a series of expert interviews with the leaders of the University of Tartu as well as the leaders of other higher education institutions in Tartu and UT cooperation has TRANSGENERATIONAL – creating shared paths for already boosted the development of projects such as AOS people of different ages and backgrounds for exchang- Urban Nature Festival, Tartu World University, European ing knowledge, skills and artistic practices Students Opinion Festival and Toomemägi Revisited. The Tartu Centre for Creative Industries is now also one of the HOW? Shared Path is our expanding cluster of develop- key partners in boosting arts as the guides towards ethical ing educational programmes for schools with cultural and and ecological economy with ReVogue slow fashion festival, science institutions (such as AHHAA Science Centre) and a fresh addition to the programme. Environmentalists have involving more schools in several of our projects (Growing the leading role in developing Curated Biodiversity and With Your Food, Creative Connections: Art Museums Growing With Your Food. Psychologists and social work Preventing Bullying, Psühhoteek). Enter Woodland NGOs cooperate with artists for mental health projects like Spirits Digital Art Festival is a new project bringing trans- Creative Connections: Art Museums Preventing Bullying generational knowledge into the media that’s attractive to and Stand Up For Your Mind while outsider art and youth. The multi-museum Beetroot Washing Machine sports converge with the innovative social care approaches exhibition now also aims to provide professional support for in the Hidden Worlds Expanding/Outsider Football Sharing Generations transgenerational workshop series in Tournament collaboration. the city and the region, featuring extensive contribution from Tartu Men’s Shed which combats loneliness of middle-aged TRANSNATIONAL – involvement of ethnic minorities, and elderly men. By 2024, we intend most of our projects to international students and newly arrived workers, refu- have a formal or non-formal educational side programme. gees and tourists in our daily cultural fabric We look forward to a very special year of exciting, inspiring HOW? All projects have now confirmed long-term interna- and transformative culture. Tartu 2024 has a solid and trust- tional partners – this forms a solid base for a broad tempo- worthy base of city and regional stakeholders, an expanding rary (residing) or permanent presence of artists and manag- network of European and international partners and a strong ers from other cultural and ethnic backgrounds in Tartu and public consensus that Arts of Survival is an artistic vision for the Southern Estonian region (see also Q11). Transnational 2024 that reinvigorates the common future prospects of the involvement of organisers is also a priority for 2020 funding city, the region and Europe. Cultural and artistic content 13 Q6 Tartu 2024 cultural programme: structure and main events Inciting and supporting artistic projects for the Tartu 2024 cultural programme has been our priority from the word go. Already in preselection, we delivered 30 project ideas for the three Tartu 2024: Arts of Survival programme lines: TARTU WITH EARTH: ECOLOGY BEFORE ECONOMY – biodiversity and ecology in urban planning, as artistic inspiration and community incentive TARTU WITH HUMANITY: FORWARD TO THE ROOTS Nearly all of the projects have survived into the final round with – arts and crafts, social and nature skills as the basis of a few added ones. The projects have grown in scale, structure creative education and community action and partner networks and most of them are ready to start with pilot events and ramp-up activities as soon as possible. TARTU WITH EUROPE: GREATER SMALLER CITIES – rewriting city narrative through its subcultures and Each of our programme lines features one flagship project mavericks, reimagining urban spaces, regional and in the city and the other in the region. Each programme line global contacts. ends with an „anchor“ project which is characterised by an especially high level of community engagement. 14 Cultural and artistic content TARTU WITH EARTH: ECOLOGY BEFORE ECONOMY Biodiversity and ecology in urban planning, as artistic inspiration and community incentive FLAGSHIP EVENT IN TARTU: championship of science theatres has been held in Geneva ARTS OF SURVIVAL URBAN NATURE FESTIVAL and Hannover. As Tartu’s PsychoBus has been a successful regular, this contest comes to good hands and brains. We The writing’s on the wall: we’re facing a global climate disas- aim to host the International Degrowth Conference for ter if we don’t change our ways. Some still say that an individ- Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity with top green ual can’t do much, artists can’t do much, even a whole city of thinkers also contributing to the public talks programme. culture can’t do much, but it’s surely worth trying. For those AOS Urban Nature Festival is also an associate in the UHHUU in the world looking up to European quality of life, we must Pseudo-Science Exhibition in the Toome Revisited project. prove that welfare doesn’t mean overproduction and over- consumption. However, do we really know nature around us Survival. A programme of activities on hiking trails is also or is it just a dumping ground, at best a picnic spot or a sce- challenging the ones willing to test their stamina, endurance nic backdrop of blurry greens? In the urban nature of Tartu, and wildlife skills; adrenaline seekers of all ages can get their there’s plenty to be aware of, get in touch with, experience thrill at the woodlands of Tartu Adventure Park. and express – that’s what the festival is about. Stages. A network of talk stages in urban parks, woodlands Species. Tartu is a city where one can spot a beaver, an otter, and botanical gardens present our primer of eco-friendly three species of woodpeckers and a tawny owl all in the same arts and sharing environmental know-how. The rotating set night. There’s a whole lot more to see just a short walk, boat of performers features ecologists, researchers, urbanists and or bike ride away. A wide range of expert-guided hiking, semioticians from all over Europe, discussing sustainable cycling and canoe trips will take you to our greatest venues solutions, synergy between human welfare and biodiversity and best lineups day and night – the ecosystems with their and the future of environmental art. All stages and audience multitude of species in forests, marshlands, wooded mead- areas will be built from recycled elements, decorated with ows and riverbanks. Also, the world’s first urban biodiversity moss graffiti and mini-gardens as well as supplied with natu- database will be created, by visualising species and conser- ral lightning solutions and noise isolators. vation values in the urban environment. Songs. The lineup of live performers on the stages will cele- Science. To boost thirst for knowledge in harmony with brate European and global cultural biodiversity with a range respect for nature and with the help from Ahhaa Science of nature-inspired world music acts. David Rothenberg is Centre, we will bring Science Me!, the European Science one of the confirmed headline acts. The Leigo Lake Music Show Competition to Tartu in 2024. So far, this European festival will also float the Musical Rafts event on river Emajõgi Cultural and artistic content 15 with 20 rafts of sonic installations and live performers mixed The exhibition themes so far include punk and countercul- together live, peaking with a riverside song and dance event ture (2014), bringing back once promising artists who left the on the stage built from the rafts. arts (2015), dialogue between various religions and spiritual- ities (2016), metropolitan artists tackling challenges of wild- Duration: A week in June 2024 (build up 2020–2024) life (2017), women artists on environmental and daily-life sen- sitivity of arts (2018), local heritage vs virtual information as Partners: University of Tartu Natural History Museum and Botanical sources of worldly knowledge (2019). Four additional themes Gardens (EE), The Chair of Biodiversity and Nature Tourism (EE), with international curators will be appointed for 2020–2023. Estonian University of Life Sciences (EE), Tartu Environmental To provide further source material for the installations, the Education Centre (EE), Estonian Naturalists Society (EE), Ahhaa gallery initiates the Gulyanye programme of collecting and Science Centre (EE), University of Tartu Department of Semiotics presenting local folklore and community history. The curato- (EE), Intsikurmu Music Festival (EE), Leigo Lake Music (EE), University rial teams are also expected to highlight local and European of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy Music Department (EE), NGO issues in need of long-term solutions (fading traditions, inter- Seiklushunt (EE), Jaakko Pernu (FI), Patrick Dougherty (US), David cultural relations, rural struggle with bureaucracy, etc). Rothenberg (US), Science Me! European Science Show Competition (DE/CH), Degrowth (DE), Leeuwarden-Friesland 2018 (Welcome to The gallery also extends its own sculpture garden and makes the Village Festival, NL), Salzkammergut 2024 (H2O-OH-NO, AT) it accessible throughout the year, runs curatorial tours and holds an opening and closing event for the programme. Besides a regular, scheduled bus and bike and walking tours on the Arts Route, there will also be impromptu tours when the apple trees blossom and the onions are ripe, the maples go red or sudden snow falls, thick fog arrives from the lake, thousands of brants and geese descend, or a supermoon is casting its light – it all transforms the experience of human- made landscape art. An additional Story Stations programme is curated by the current Tartu City Writer, Vahur Afanasjev. It presents poetic re-imaginings of the mythology in the Tartu-Peipus area, unit- ing fiction and history in a narrative unravelling in space. In the ramp-up years, an international team of authors creates a set of stories, starting from Tartu and leading to the Lake Peipus Arts Route. In each physical location, a story will be presented as a book-like nature-friendly display in six lan- guages (Estonian, English, Finnish, Russian, Latvian, German). FLAGSHIP EVENT IN THE REGION: Story Stations appear in three types of locations: points of LAKE PEIPUS ARTS ROUTE interest, scenic views, or utilitary places like gas stations. As with the whole Arts Route, the Story Stations are marked on Lake Peipus is the largest transboundary lake in Europe, a digital map. expanding over most of the Estonian-Russian border. Its surrounding area on the Estonian side is also a cultur- Duration: August–September 2024 (build up 2019–2024) ally and biologically diverse hinterland for Tartu 2024. Of special interest to seekers of a different kind of Europe is Partners: Installation curators: Kiwa (EE), Mari Kartau (EE), Sandra the Onion Route, a string of villages distinctive for tradi- Jõgeva (EE), Peter Belyi (RU), Pauliina Turakka Purhonen (FI), Valts tional rural lifestyle and vernacular creativity of Russian Old Mikelsons (LV), Indrek Grigor (EE); Onion Route (26 organisations in Believer communities. In recent years, however, the area Lake Peipus Area) (EE), UNESCO City of Literature Tartu (EE), Serge van has also inspired contemporary ecological art curators and Duijnhoven (BE), Novi Sad 2021 (Food Dialogues, RS), Veszprém 2023 award-winning fiction. The rich potential of this cultural (Bakony Express + Great Lakes of Europe Network, HU), Salzkammergut amalgam is presented to international audiences on Lake 2024 (Tavern Lab, AT), Bodø 2024 (Arktisk Mat Festival, NO) Peipus Arts Route. The hub of the project is the Voronja Gallery of contempo- ENTER WOODLAND SPIRITS rary art, a scenic rural household which has hosted themed (DIGITAL ART FESTIVAL) exhibitions across its versatile territory each summer since 2014, presenting a range of startling installations, sculptures, In Estonia, we take pride in our digital technology advance- videos and environmental art. Celebrating its 10th anniversary ment. Yet we also wonder if it keeps each new generation in 2024, Voronja Gallery brings together its past annual cura- further removed from nature and our ancestors. Enter tors who revisit their exhibition themes and create an inte- Woodland Spirits guides us back to wildlife and folklore grated concept for mounting large-scale open-air installa- through digital arts with European artists who are only start- tions along the Lake Peipus Arts Route. ing to discover the land, the tales and the songs. 16 Cultural and artistic content The Estonian Folklore Archives in the Estonian Literary Museum share a treasury of Southern Estonian lore on how people used to communicate with spirits in trees, waters and living beings – asking permission for hunting, getting punished for being too greedy, but also giving a helping hand when the spirits came to their aid. Made available in several languages through an online database, the tales and songs serve as inspiration for European digital artists – sublime, uncanny, reassuring or spectral multimedia instal- lations revive the spirits, take them to town and hack our minds into the experiences our ancestors could have had and help us reconsider our own place in the living and sur- viving natural world. Cultural and artistic content 17 The artists will be provided with a period of time to explore the archives and the Southern Estonian places related to the sources. The project also serves the long-term aim of mak- ing the Estonian Folklore Archives better accessible through translation and online databases for a more enriching pres- ence in European artistic inspiration. Duration: September 2024 (build up 2019–2024) Partners: Taive Särg (co-curator, Estonian Literary Museum, EE), Peeter Laurits (artistic curator, EE), Martin Rästa (EE), Rodrigo Lebrun (UK), Margherita Paoletti (IT), Esch-sur-Alzette 2022 (LU), Cyprus Institute (CY, through Dornbirn 2024, AT), Holodeck VR (DE, through Dornbirn 2024, AT), MoTa Museum (SI, through Dornbirn 2024, AT) WILD BITS 2024 EXHIBITION The Wild Bits Exhibition invites to contemplate, question and explore different aspects of the technological society, its influence on our behaviour, perception and thinking and the human impact on natural processes. At a time when our senses are becoming ever more networked, so do our bod- ies as they scatter amid new technologies. Our patterns of behaviour and the environments we inhabit interact with technologies envisioned by global markets. Subsequent generations awaken as natives to new technological normal- ities becoming disjunct to the realities of their predecessors. Digital natives wander in fields of wild bits to explore and expand what was already there. Partners: UIT Urban Festival (EE), Taavi Suisalu (EE), RIXC Center for MAAJAAM (Earth Station) is a rural project space in an old New Media Culture (LV), Estonian Academy of Arts (EE), PLACCC farm in Neeruti, Southern Estonia, operated by the artist Timo Festival (HU), Kaunas Artist House (LT), Kaunas 2022 (Matters, LT), Toots and his family. Its topics are closely linked to his own Veszprém 2023 (House of Arts in Veszprém, HU) artistic practice: researching, experimenting with and reflect- ing on the relationships between people, technology and CURATED BIODIVERSITY nature. Substituting the urban environment with a hilly rural landscape allows us to observe technology in its purest form Does a city grow inevitably on nature’s expense or can they while reaffirming ties with nature and rural life. Mixing the grow together? The future city is no longer just wire, glass past technological wonders of the historical farm with pres- and steel. The future art contributes to wildlife rather than ent day hi-tech brings on a radical shift of artistic perspective imitating, exploiting or rejecting it; the future artist doesn’t away from the white cube gallery spaces in the city. just admire nature from a safe distance but learns to create inside and along with it. Human designs can and must sup- Throughout 2020–2023, MAAJAAM will host 8 interna- port, rather than override natural ones. tional technological artists gathered through an open call. Amongst them are two artists from our ECoC twin city, Curated Biodiversity transfigures the parks, the riverside Kaunas and two from another ECoC twin city, Veszprém. and the public spaces in the Tartu city centre. It secures urban Inspired by themes such as Water, Cold, Human Impact, living space for plants, animals, birds and insects as well as the etc., they work and create their interactive installations, people. It provides room for food growing allotments, com- sound installations and interventions of technological art munity gardens and orchards (in cooperation with Growing during a three week residency period. The large Wild Bits With Your Food). It creates areas that are themselves works expo in summer 2024 places those works across open land- of art but also spaces for art. scapes of Southern Estonia, but within walking distance for an environmental art experience that’s at once overwhelm- Main lines of action: ing and integrated. Ramp-up exhibitions are held near Kaunas in 2022 (theme Cold, in winter) and Veszprém in Everyone’s Ecology – raising civic awareness of biodiver- 2023 (theme Water, near Lake Balaton). sity and promoting the application of small-scale conserva- tion activities in urban and rural areas to improve the con- Duration: summer 2024, with residencies 2020–2023 and ECoC ditions and habitats of species. Everyone can be a curator partner exhibitions 2022–2023 of biodiversity at home by knowing its ecosystem, mowing 18 Cultural and artistic content less, creating flower beds with local grasslands and threat- GROWING WITH YOUR FOOD ened species, etc. We are what we eat. Food is a primary expression of our Growing biodiversity is an ongoing process from 2019 to cultural heritage as well as our global language, but aren’t 2024 and beyond. It starts with drawing and implementing a we taking it too much for granted? Do our children speak landscape architecture plan for rearranging the three central the language, can they share it across the globe? When was parks (Uueturu, Kaubahoovi and Vabaduse), closing some of the last time you made apple juice from fresh fruit grown in the areas to allow the vegetation to grow, to reopen them by the city? Do you eat anything that you planted or is it all from 2024. Access is granted to research groups. the supermarket? Installation competition for architecture and design schools Growing our own food is a great way not just to educate kids and bureaus will be launched viaan international open call in and ourselves but to transform urban lifestyles and econo- 2023. We are expecting ten site-specific interactive installa- mies. Local food helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions tions to help people connect with the newly redesigned park and contributes to improving our carbon footprint. Eating environments. local means that you help maintain the green spaces and gardens in your community. The experience of growing and City as a Habitat Exhibition held with WILK Open Cluster of selling your own produce already from the early school age Design (Poland) will present designer habitats for urban ani- instils it with a much stronger sense of value. mals, birds and insects designed by local and Polish designers. Growing With Your Food starts a network of community Events programme will include educational programmes and gardens and greenhouses open to schools and kindergar- workshops on urban ecology, architecture and design and gar- tens: children can grow into growers of clean local food for dening, as well as a shed/treehouse building camp for school- the community and enter into ecological trade. By 2024, a children (in cooperation with AOS Urban Nature Festival). community greenhouse is built to serve as the key venue for audience oriented activities. GWYF also produces learn- Duration: 2019–2024 and beyond ing and teaching materials, provides agricultural education tours to the countryside and, with Serbian partners, runs a lit- Partners: University of Tartu (EE), University of Life Sciences (EE), Tartu erature/visual arts creative training programme We Should Environmental Education Centre (EE), WILK Open Cluster of Design All Be Nature that teaches to share the experience through (PL), MARELD landscape architecture bureau (SE), Leeuwarden- artistic means. Friesland 2018 (Joop Mulder, Sense of Place, NL), Kaunas 2022 (Kaunas Landscape Festival, LT), Veszprém 2023 (Hello Wood, The central event for international audiences is Lõikuspidu Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest /MOME/, HU) (the Harvest Party): Cultural and artistic content 19  Picnic of local food on the community square displaying innovation as well as glamour in sustainable fash- ion. The festival and fair are the culmination of activities Food Fair with live music planned for 2019-2024: GWYF Conference with a top European chef as a keynote speaker Let’s help our kids fall in love with food – clean local food. Let’s learn together and grow with our children and with our food! Duration: Permanent, starting from 2019; Harvest Party in Autumn 2024 Partners: Estonian University of Life Sciences Research Centre of Organic Farming (EE), Click & Grow (EE), Tartu Art School (EE), Estonian National Museum (EE), Elav Tartu (EE), KBH Madhus (DK), Fible (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, CH), Bio Forschung Austria (AT), St. Pölten 2024 (Where Does Your Food Come From?, AT) ReVogue practical workshops for designers: sustainable fabric production, zero-waste apparel crafting techniques, supply chain and production transparency. ReVogue conceptual workshops for broader audiences (high school and university students, 30+ professionals, young designers etc): seminars, lectures, discussions and brainstorming on the ecological and ethical future of fashion. ReVogue hackathons in cooperation with Garage48: devel- oping startups in recycling, reworking, repurposing, etc. ReVogue social media campaign: reaching out to broader audiences through social media campaigns for “remixing” one’s outfits. Main target audiences are the future consumers (age groups 16+). REVOGUE FASHION FESTIVAL ReVogue photo exhibitions: public photo contest on sus- AND FAIR   tainable fashion. Awarded photos will be exhibited in differ- ent locations across the city as well as online (as a part of the In the nosy noughties, the in-crowd from the capital labelled interactive social media campaign.) Tartu and Viljandi bohemians “cardigans” and “shawltread- ers”. We retaliated by strutting our stuff of alternative cool, ReVogue documentary film programme on sustainability, proving to be ahead of a global trend. Now that European the fashion industry’s effects on nature, etc. haute-couture as well as prêt-à-porter are undergoing an eco-conscious revolution, Tartu aims to take the centre stage In addition to the already developed connections we aim to col- in the advent of slow fashion. ReVogue is a fashion week laborate with big international partners who share similar val- for environmentalist fashionistas, designers, producers, ues on sustainability: cultural ministries of Latvia and Lithuania, suppliers, consumers, academics, retailers and publi- internationally acclaimed fashion media outlets, a wider range cations. Hosted by Eff (Estonian Fashion Festival), it’s a of international fashion weeks, fashion industry trade fairs. major initiative for putting ecology before economy by mak- Duration: June 2024 (build up 2019–2024) ing the fashion industry and customers more aware of the environmental effects of their choices, helping to curb harm- Partners: Tartu Centre for Creative Industries (EE), Pallas University ful overproduction and overconsumption and implement of Applied Science (EE), University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy sustainable practices. (EE), University of Tartu Student Days (EE), Enterprise Estonia (EE), Estonian National Museum (EE), Fashion Cinema (MoeKunstiKino) ReVogue festival and fair 2024 will unite street artists, fash- (EE), Garage48 (EE), Reval Denim Guild (EE), vintage shop Sergei (EE), ion designers and tech industry for a range of spectacular, yet Reet Aus (EE), Ukrainian Fashion Week (UA), Helsinki Fashion Week thought-provoking performances and urban interventions, (FI), International Design School in St. Petersburg (RU), Manchester 20 Cultural and artistic content School of Design (UK), Lund University (SE), Reykjavik School of Visual ships, ship masts and 100 m² of sails will transform into Arts (IS), Aalto University (FI), Sourcebook (DE), Tengri (UK) stages for live music and contemporary circus performances, shadow plays on sails based on legends of European nations and a “boat drive-in” cinema on sails that introduces the her- RECLAIMING THE RIVER EMAJÕGI itage of European rivers and lakes. AND THE GREAT LAKES The supporting programme of workshops and activities Running through Tartu, the river Emajõgi also joins the Great includes making barge models, building local boat types, Estonian Lakes: Võrtsjärv and Lake Peipus. This unique fully exploring water biota, fishing, animated cinema workshops navigable 600 km of fairways is an uncut diamond: until now, and various water sports (sailing, SUP-boarding, kayaking, there has been no connection to the Baltic Sea, no access water skiing). The harbours programme raises awareness of to the multitude of boats sailing it. This symbol of Southern human belonging in nature, of ecology coming before econ- Estonian remoteness is undergoing a great change – by omy and of sustainable synergy between culture and envi- 2024, a boat trailer service from the Gulf of Finland to Lake ronment. The river parade peaks in Tartu with a huge festival Peipus will be in action. This will open up the river as well day and night on the Liberty Bridge at the site of the oldest as the Great Lakes and their rich cultural, natural and naviga- river crossing in Tartu, marking the birthplace of the city. tion heritage for Europe to explore. It will also open the area for a resurgence of sustainable, nature-friendly tourism with Duration: July 2024 proper ecological care for the river and the lakes. Partners: Peipsi Region Tourism NGO (EE), Discover Lake Võrtsjärv To promote and celebrate this opening, Emajõgi Barge NGO (EE), Local Action Groups of LEADER (EE), Tartu Environmental Society NGO takes a fleet of historic ships on a river Education Centre (EE), Wildlife Estonia NGO (EE), Development Center parade through 16 major local ports in the area for a of Estonian Contemporary Circus NGO (EE), Kinobuss NGO (EE), grand arrival in Tartu. The hanseatic barge Jõmmu, viking Riverwolves and Lakewolves Academy NGO (EE), Norsk institutt for boat Turm and kale ships Paula, Liisu and Laura can be joined naturforskning (NO), Baltic Nordic Circus network (SE), The Animation by hundreds of boats from Europe and land travellers for a Workshop - VIA University College in Denmark Animated Learning Lab series of cultural landings at the ports. Every night, the historic (DK), Veszprém 2023 (Great Lakes of Europe Network, HU) Cultural and artistic content 21 TARTU WITH HUMANITY: FORWARD TO THE ROOTS arts and crafts, social and nature skills as the basis of creative education and community action FLAGSHIP EVENT IN TARTU: Food For Future court. Lab-grown meat. Self- POSTMARKET STREET FESTIVAL decomposing food packages. 3D printed food. Algae. Edible water bottles. Dumpster dining. Fake fish and The Aparaaditehas quarter used to be a dull and grey area seafood. Insects. Sonic enhanced food. for decades. Even though it’s close to the Tartu railway sta- tion, the city centre and many arts venues. In 2014, the com- Street performers (circus, theatre, street art, sports, light plex of derelict Soviet industrial buildings was revived as a shows and installations) cultural/CI hub and is now one of the most thriving places in the city. It won’t be resting on laurels for its tenth anniversary Alternative city tours in 2024.The Postmarket Street Festival is much more than a grand birthday party – it aims to take the hub, the area, the Postmarket Talks city of Tartu and the European Cultural Factories Network into a whole new era of urban lifestyle choices. Duration: 3 days in August 2024 (build up 2019–2024) Postmarket reclaims the area from heavy car traffic to create Partners: Vanemuise/Vaksali/Riia Area Cultural Cluster of Tartu a huge temporary autonomous zone for walking, cycling, (with 15 cultural institutions) (EE), Põhjala Culture Factory (EE), mingling and artistic discovery. The festival features a wide Maitseelamused Grupp (EE), UT Institute of Physics (EE), TaDaa Street range of activities showcasing the cultural factories at the Performance Festival (EE), University of Tartu Photonics Club (EE), Trans Europe Halles biannual convention in addition to Trans Europe Halles Network (SE), Eskistuna ReTuna (SE), Tallinn 2011 the numerous local arts institutions in the area. It is also (LIFT11, EE), Salzkammergut 2024 (Critical Mass B145, AT), Bodø the time and place to get the gist of Tartu 2024 programme 2024 (Arktisk Mat Festival, NO) with pop-up events from most projects. Nonetheless, there is ample room for flaneurs and improvisation – to see the unseen, transform the non-places, turn them into perfor- mance spaces on a small scale just as the Aparaaditehas and Tartu 2024 are doing on larger scales. It’s all about the city being taken back and passed on by and for the people! Other main features of the festival programme: LIFT24 urban interventions series (inspired by LIFT11 at Tallinn ECoC 2011) Third-hand market for recycled and upcycled items, on-the-spot upcycling + innovation fair of modern materi- als and technologies – everything from innovative textiles to solar harvesting roads; from robotic delivery vehicles to smart infrastructure FLAGSHIP EVENT IN THE REGION: Workshops in the Recycling and Upcycling Mall, commu- YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME nal building of a Rube Goldberg machine out of dis- carded objects Inspired by the regional upheaval programme in East Groningen, Netherlands, the Southern Estonian communities Off-grid mini-houses in unlikely locations (treetops, launched its own National Geographic Yellow Windows wastelands/non-places) with self-adjusting founda- route a decade ago. The resulting 25 landmark frames cele- tions, taking water from air and steaming gray water, brate the ongoing cooperation for raising awareness of the with solar panels inside the windows, etc. for testing as natural beauty, diversity of cultural identities, sustainable future homes lifestyle and innovative solutions in the area. For Tartu 2024, the people’s arts around the Yellow Windows locations are Live music of artists mixing heritage and folklore with brought to the attention of the whole of Europe with an excit- cutting edge sounds ing series of events and community outreach initiatives. 22 Cultural and artistic content Cultural and artistic content 23 The programme of 4 large-scale events spread across Medium Scale Event; time: October 2024 the counties of the involved region (Tartumaa, Võrumaa, Valgamaa, Põlvamaa) and 20 small/medium-scale events SIMPLE LIFE: Vastseliina European Pilgrimage from Pirita, will start in 2022 and peaks in 2024. Like windows them- Tallinn to Vastseliina Episcopal Castle. Pilgrims from all over selves, the events serve as two-way portals for increasing Europe are welcome to the journey of discovery, contempla- understanding and cohesion in Europe, promoting grass- tion, new human and spiritual contacts, arriving in Vastseliina roots action and facilitating international artistic, educational at 8 September, the Pilgrimage Day. In association with and entrepreneurial involvement in local practices, traditions Vastseliina Pilgrim House and Pirita Convent. and aspirations. Special buses, electric car rental and online sharing platforms will be provided for access to the area. All Small Scale Event; time: September 2023 events will also be digitally streamed for wider audiences. NATURAL BEAUTY: European Nature Photography Summit in Rõuge, curated by National Geographic Selected events on the four main themes Magazine Estonia. Some of the featured artists: Remo (Local Initiatives, New Ways, Simple Life, Savisaar (EE), Sven Zacek (EE), Karl Ander Adami (EE), Ville Natural Beauty): Heikkinen (FI), Markus Varesvuo (FI), Vincent Munier (FR). LOCAL INITIATIVES: Aigu om! (There is enough time!) Medium Scale Event; time: November 2024 Festival in Urvaste curated by folk singer Mari Kalkun – a marathon of sound, crafts, talks and cuisine in unique nat- Duration: 4 small/medium-scale events in the 2nd half of 2022; ural locations. The Establishment of the Kingdom of Time first large-scale event in May 2023, 6 small/medium-scale events with Southern Estonian “slow life” and “slow food” practices, throughout the year; 3 large-scale events in April, June and October with Seto Leelo and smoke sauna (listed in the UNESCO 2024 and 10 small- and medium-scale events throughout the year intangible cultural heritage). Local community and interna- tional professionals cooperate in various arts; a new inter- Partners: National Geographic Magazine Estonia (EE), local com- disciplinary work is created together and then premiered munities, tourism and business sector and cultural departments in at the festival. 19 Southern Estonian municipalities, Yellow Windows networks in Finland and Northern Ireland Large Scale Event; time: June 2024; guest performers: Andrei Monguš (Tuva, RU), Sam Lee (UK) SURREALISM 100 NEW WAYS: CosmoFest at the Tartu Observatory Space Exhibition of Eastern European and Research Centre in Tõravere and Festival of Lights on the Estonian Surrealist Art shore of Nõo Mill Lake. 20 km from Tartu, the small obser- vatory is world famous for the work of Jaan Einasto, one of 2024 will mark 100 years from the first Surrealist manifes- the discoverers of the large-scale structure of the Universe tos. Emerging in Western European visual arts and literature, (he even has his own asteroid, 11577 Einasto). Festival of Surrealism has had a lasting impact across the world, including Lights is part of the World Space Week, strengthening Estonia and Eastern Europe. Surrealism has enabled a mod- the link between space and society. The festival acknowl- ern European to go much further in “knowing oneself”, yet also edges the direct and distant impact of light on humans concede that there is always more, ever beyond reasoning. and the environment and aims to improve the sociocul- The striking, affective, visceral experience of art continues to tural environment for scientists, artists and entrepreneurs. matter enormously in “being human”. Now that Surrealist tech- Held in association with the Tartu 2024 Artistic Research niques are found everywhere from more traditional vernacu- Programme (see below). lar art (thus largely brought “back to its roots”) to advertising, 24 Cultural and artistic content media and online memes, almost everyone is a Surrealist to Literary programme: sound and sound poetry in exhi- a degree. Maybe now it’s so ubiquitous as to have become bition environments, revisiting the works of past poets almost unnoticeable? A memory refresh is in order to make like Ilmar Laaban and Andres Ehin and more recent sense (inasmuch as that’s the right phrase) of Surrealism’s past, Surrealists like Jaan Malin, Kiwa and the eksp group, present and future in European/human identity. with further partnerships through ECoCs, twin cities and UNESCO Cities of Literature. Our Surrealism 100 is really a chain of exhibitions across the city, in all major gallery spaces of Tartu Public and educational programme: talks and lec- and in its urban space, with a versatile educational tures, visual and audio guide app, extensive catalogue, and public programme. Sure, there’ll be a “greatest hits” Surrealist Tartu story and colouring book in collaboration selection of Western Surrealism for providing context and with Kristel Sibul and Anti Saar. enhancing the appeal,yet our main focus is on Eastern European and Estonian Surrealism that is still largely Duration: January–April 2024 (build up 2020–2023) unknown to the broader art public in Europe. We cooper- ate with the National Gallery Prague as Czech culture has Partners: Estonian National Museum (EE), Noorus (EE), Kogo Gallery a rich heritage of Surrealists (artists Jindřich Štyrský, Toyen (EE), Tartmus (EE), Tartu Art House (EE), Elektriteater (EE), Estonian and Josef Šíma, poet Vítězslav Nezval). Tartu is also highly Writers Union (EE), National Gallery Prague (CZ), UNESCO Cities of significant for Estonian Surrealism, as Eduard Wiiralt, Ülo Literature Network Sooster, the PARA ‘89 group (by Ilmar Malin and Jüri Palm) and Kursi School artists’ group (e.g. Peeter Allik, Albert Gulk, Priit Pangsepp) from various eras have all strong con- HIDDEN WORLDS EXPANDING nections to the city. Exhibition of Eastern European and Estonian Outsider Art The Art Gallery of the Estonian National Museum is the venue of an international exhibition with highlights Hidden Worlds Expanding is a major exhibition of outsider of Surrealism from both Western and Eastern Europe. art to be held simultaneously in three cities of Estonia – Tartu, Presenting an overview of the beginnings of Surrealism Viljandi and Pärnu. It is also a research project aiming to cat- with works from luminaries like Salvador Dalí and Max alogue the works, tell the stories and show the value of the Ernst, we also provide an extensive selection from Central artists – leading up to a pioneering conference on Eastern and Eastern Europe, dwelling on the peculiarities of the European outsider art in Tartu. Additionally,it’s an inclusion local Surrealisms – e.g. Vane Bor (RS), Jindřich Štyrský programme, as people with special needs are extensively (CZ), Kazimierz Mikulski (PL), etc. involved in the preparation and setup of the exhibition. Two floors of the Tartu Art Museum would host an over- Arts of Survival has a very special meaning in outsider art. While view of Estonian Surrealism from the 1920s to the present there’s a long-standing tradition of art brut in Western Europe, day (e.g. Eduard Wiiralt, Ülo Sooster, Jüri Arrak and the the East still largely needs to overcome shame and denial to artists of PARA ‘89). On one floor would be a personal recognise, support and promote the multitude of talents with exhibition of a contemporary Surrealist author. grave mental issues, many of whom spend their life in care insti- tutions. Art for them is not just a matter of therapy – it’s often an The exhibition in the Tartu Art House would focus on unique and astonishing way of creating a manageable reality local contemporary Surrealist art (Kursi School, Zoia where there is a shortage or a dizzying surplus of it in the first Lebedeva, Enn Tegova, etc.). place. Thus, it’s the only way of leading a fulfilling human life. In a very important sense, outsider art most drastically captures the Personal exhibitions of contemporary Surrealist artists essence of art in humanity. In many cases, the artists deserve not would take place in Kogo and Noorus galleries. just sympathy but kudos and equal opportunities in the art world. Contemporary installations and art works will be dis- The Kondas Centre of Naïve and Outsider Art in Viljandi played in public urban spaces in the old town, banks is expanding its groundbreaking 2018 exhibition of Estonian of Emajõgi, Toomemägi, Kassitoome, the former slums outsider art for 2024 by involving several Eastern European of Supilinn and Karlova, the Estonian National Museum partners for a more extensive discovery and public coverage area (including the ruins and park of the Raadi manor), of the artists here, including the ongoing search and research Annelinn panel house district, etc. of what may be a remnant from the Soviet era where people with mental and physical handicaps were rendered invisible The side programmes: to the society with their artistic self-expression considered worthless. There are similar patterns all across Eastern Europe Film programme: Selection of masterpieces by Luis and the reassessment of outsider art is still largely confined to Buñuel, Jean Cocteau, Man Ray, René Clair, Salvador enthusiasts. We’ve seen a major exhibition in Estonia starting Dalí) as well as Eastern European and Estonian to alter the attitudes of artists’ relatives, the care institutions Surrealist animation, with a retrospective of Priit Pärn’s and even the social system at large; we want to achieve this fantastic oeuvre. and more all across Eastern Europe. Cultural and artistic content 25 As a further extension of the project, The Kettuki Art Centre Soviet forced labour camps. The books were largely written in Finland will issue an award for an outstanding Estonian near Tartu and inspired by Arnold Susi, a fellow inmate and a outsider artist with a chance to gain international attention by former Estonian Minister of Education. Milo Rau is expected displaying their works in art galleries in the Nordic Countries. to be the director for an international cast. We also cooperate with Viljandi Tulevik FC for their artistic side programme. Stalking Europe: Ranging from the existentialism of Solaris and Stalker to the eerie decadence of Dead Mountaineer’s Duration: May–September 2024 Hotel (and with a bit of both in films like Pilot Pirx’s Inquest), screenings of the Eastern bloc sci-fi novels and stories by Partners: Noorus (EE), AS Hoolekandeteenused (EE), OÜ Solve et the likes of Stanisław Lem and the Strugatsky brothers took Coagula (EE), Support Centre Juks (EE), Viljandi Tulevik FC (EE), a lot of poetic liberty. Even as allegories of their contempo- The Museum of New Art Pärnu (EE), Małgorzata Szaefer (intended rary society or as naive fantasies of the glamour, eroticism curator, Galeria Tak Poznań, PL), European Outsider Art Association and hi-tech of the West, they’ve survived surprisingly well. (DK), ANO Outsiderville (RU), Brno Open Art Studio (CZ), Kettuki Art Building on Tallinn 2011’s Stalker Festival, the film and liter- Centre (FI), Aarhus 2017 (Randers Museum of Art, DK), Banja Luka ary discussion programme sums up and reassesses this weird 2024 (Day Care, BA) heritage for the Western European audiences. 1984/2024 LITERARY FESTIVAL 1984/2024 is a literary festival of utopias and dystopias. We’ve inherited the reality of our ancestors’ imagination. Many visionary utopias have become true dystopias. In the former Eastern bloc, we survived a totalitarian nightmare spawned by a dream of equality. In the whole world, we’re inhabiting a dystopia of the climate crisis resulting from industrialist and colonialist utopias. Is our virtual reality a lived utopia of free information or a dystopia of surveillance capitalism? Aren’t we already living in the reality of our children’s imagination rush- ing out of control, losing touch with the lessons of the past? Having been exposed to those and other real and imagined utopias and dystopias in different degrees, Europe today speaks of them in a Babel of different languages, with vary- ing fears, hopes and beliefs. In cooperation between Prima Vista International Literary Festival and UNESCO Cities of Literature network, 1984/2024 brings those languages together from Europe and beyond – to find some human common ground in them and to search for new utopian futures in past and present dystopian realities. We-100: commemorating the 100th anniversary of Yevgeny Main events: Zamyatin’s dystopian novel We and assessing its significance for the 21st century world of algorithms and technocracy. 1984 East vs West: in 2024 it’s 40 years from the year that continues to be one of the strongest ever literary images. Yet, Bring Your Own Utopia: in every city, there are public Orwell’s novel means different things for the West and the landmarks or secret spaces perceived as utopian or just East. For the Western world, it is primarily a fictional dystopia; inspiringly alien. Writers and artists from UNESCO Cities of in the Eastern bloc, it used to be perceived as a grimly realis- Literature will collaborate in bringing installations based on tic account of the daily reality where you could lose your job their local utopias into the urban space of Tartu, with text/ merely for mentioning the novel and get prosecuted for dis- multimedia performances. The programme coincides with tributing its samizdat translation. Hence the divergent interpre- the annual meeting of UNESCO Cities of Literature in Tartu. tations of what 1984 stands for today and in the near future. We invite 20 renowned writers of different ages, genders and gen- Ecotopia Now! Mankind’s contemporary ecological pre- res, ten from the former Eastern bloc and ten from the West, dicament – anthropogenic global warming – has effectively to contribute writings on what 1984 has meant or means for turned our own present into an urgent global dystopia. From them, present their texts live and discuss them in talk panels. this perspective, the mere idea that humans as a species is still there a hundred years from now can itself be considered The Gulag Archipelago: Vanemuine Theatre presents a deeply utopian. Climate crisis is also a crisis inherent in capi- multi-genre stage production of Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s tril- talism and its resolution is a matter of unprecedented collec- ogy on the severe ordeal for the survival of humanity in the tive collaboration. In 20th century literature, which focused 26 Cultural and artistic content increasingly on the individual, the perspective of collectivity themselves. Presenting a range of immersive synaesthetic is precisely what has gone missing. Thus, resolving global experiences of sound, space, light and visual projection, SOS climate crisis also entails tackling the problem of artistic rep- aims to attract performers and audiences fascinated with resentation that shapes the collective global imaginary. We sound and open themselves to self-discovery – but without intend to hold an international academic conference where alienating those for whom churches are sites of holiness. At literary scholars, semioticians, philosophers, writers and art- a time when people and communities in Europe get all too ists discuss the arts of ecological survival. divisive over religion, SOS creates spiritual and artistic envi- ronments to enhance not just individual integrity but social Duration: 2 weeks in May 2024 (build up 2020–2024) cohesion. Welcoming listeners regardless of age, status or nationality, SOS also seeks to expand the appeal of experi- Partners: Prima Vista International Literary Festival (EE), Estonian mental composition. Writers Union (EE), Estonian Literary Society (EE), University of Tartu Department of Literature and Theatre Studies (EE), Ulmefestival (avant- For the main events, new compositions written for the acous- garde sci-fi event, EE), Topofon sound explorations series (EE), Estonian tics and organs of particular churches (including a brand Film Archive (EE), Pawel Frelik (co-curator, PL), Planet Lem literature new organ at St John’s church) are commissioned from two centre (PL), UNESCO Cities of Literature network, Science Fiction Estonian and two international composers. We foster collab- Research Association, Tallinn 2011 (Andres Lõo, co-curator, Stalker, EE) oration (for artistic works) between Estonian and international performers; the programme also includes lectures, discus- sion panels and meetings with performers. SOUND OUR SOULS Duration: Two weekends of main events in October/November For the faithful and agnostic alike, churches are spaces almost 2024 (around All Souls Day), satellite events throughout the year. outside time, giving a break from the daily rat race. They are spaces for insight and solace, even quiet ecstasy. Churches Partners: TAHE (Tartu Helilooming) Contemporary Music Community are also meeting places – some of the oldest cultural hubs, (EE), Estonian Electronic Music Society (EE), Helikoosolek Sound many of which survived the Soviet rupture in this country. Meeting (EE), Kulgruum Concert Series (EE), Tartu St. John’s church They are also unique sonic environments where music can (EE), Tartu St. Paul’s church (EE), TAVA Tartu Light Festival (EE), All Souls help us overcome our mental and emotional troubles. Night festival (EE), Berlin Atonal Festival (DE), 24-Hour Drone Festival (US), Olafur Arnalds (IS), Lustmord (UK), Jean Michel Jarre (FR), Keith Sound Our Souls is a festival of contemporary, ambient Fullerton Whitman (US), Bang On A Can (US), Sonica Festival (SI), and electroacoustic music in the churches and shrines of Elevate Festival (AT), Dornbirn 2024 (Opus Magnum Europaeum, AT), Tartu and Southern Estonia approved by the congregations St. Pölten 2024 (Orgel Plus Festival, AT) Cultural and artistic content 27 BEETROOT WASHING MACHINE region. Sharing tech repair, nature and photography skills, they also raise awareness of men’s loneliness and health haz- Beet-root-what? Lifting a line from an Estonian novelty hit ards, provide supporting activities at community events and about a jack-of-all-trades, this three-museum exhibition incite local Men’s Sheds. invites you to the wild world of post-WW2 vernacular inven- tion, grassroots recycling and creative repurposing in Estonia. Duration: May–October 2024 (build up 2020–2024) Tartu City Museum in town, Estonian Agricultural Museum in the countryside and Estonian Road Museum close in the Partners: Estonian National Museum (EE), SPARK MakerLab (EE), county team up for a trail of DIY ingenuity, stories of maverick Tartu Vocational Education Centre (EE), Tartu neighbourhood engineers and life hacks that can still work in the 21st century. societies (EE), CoMeStrong Tartu MenShed (EE), Levatek Southern Estonia Antique Technology Club (EE), Tartu social care institutions Tartu City Museum targets invention and recycling in the for adults (Tartu Linna Pensionäride Organisatsioon “Kodukotus”) myriad forms of urban daily life: DIY fashion, home appli- (EE), Kivilinna School (EE), Emajõgi Barge Society NGO (EE), Anne, ances, media and communication, band equipment, ingenu- Lille and Ilmatsalu Youth Centers (EE), Kaunas City Museum (LT), ity in food and drink, work and play. Latvian Agricultural Museum (LV), St. Petersburg Museum of Bread (RU), Museum of English Rural Life Museum of Reading University Estonian Agricultural Museum presents self-made or (UK), Museum of Agriculture and Food Industry in Szreniawa (PL), improved tools, devices, machines and vehicles from rural Mobilia (FI), Latvian Road Museum (LV), Diane Boyd (Sustainable homesteads whose needs were unmet by official Soviet pro- Skills Cafés Project, UK) duction lines that were geared for the major-scale agricultural industry. Also featured are exhibits of household, gardening and food preservation crafts. Estonian Road Museum focuses on inventive hardware for road maintenance, self-constructed cars, bikes and caravans and garage culture. Sharing Generations is a transgenerational workshop and skills training programme where the authentic inventors, con- structors, lifehackers, craftsmen and -women from the past century pass on their tricks of the trade to the youth and get some new skills in return. WEDDING: ESTONIAN-LATVIAN SONG FESTIVAL For Estonians and Latvians alike, song festivals are among the most unifying and uplifting experiences. Singing together has been an ultimate Art of Survival: music, often combined with the most powerful poetry of the time, contributed to the national awakening and resistance movements by carrying messages hidden between the lines. Today, the festivals con- tinue to heal community rifts, fear and uncertainty by feeding positive cultural identity, forging new ties and restoring the courage to befriend the world. UNESCO has inscribed the Baltic song and dance celebrations into the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In many ways, song festivals are like wedding parties – joy- ful celebrations of love, persistence and future. Yet Estonians and Latvians have been living next to each other for ages, rarely bringing their festive traditions together. Many of our European friends have witnessed the exuberance of song festivals as audiences, but without joining the singers under the Song Arc, the experience is incomplete. The summer of 2024 (when Estonian song festival tradi- tion celebrates its 155th anniversary), is the time for the Tartu Men’s Shed (Meeste Garaaž) is an initiative joining great symbolic wedding (pulmad / kāzas) of Estonian and resocialising middle-aged and elderly men. In 2024 and and Latvian choir traditions on an unprecedented scale. the ramp-up years, they renovate an old bus to become a European professional choirs conducted by some of the mobile task and training force in Tartu and in the surrounding most renowned European conductors such as Daniel Reuss, 28 Cultural and artistic content Robert Prizeman, Marc Korovitch are invited to the celebra- Humour can save even in the darkest of times. Talking about tion as dear guests. The four-day programme peaks in Tartu these ordeals in an open manner creates understanding, on the Song and Dance Festival Ground with 10,000 singers refutes prejudice and gives a voice to the everyday warriors from professional and amateur backgrounds with the artis- amongst us. tic programme being built around Estonian-Latvian wedding traditions. Moreover, the choirs also move across the city to The programme will start in December 2019 with events, sing in public spaces with everyone welcome to tune in. podcasts and book clubs for the ramp-up years. In 2022, Canadian comedian and counselor David Granier will incite Confirmed choirs, conductors and performers: in-depth preparatory work with a 6-12-week training pro- gramme for a group of “mental health warriors”, peaking with Estonia: E Studio Choir (Külli Lokko), Estonian Philharmonic a Granier-led show. The first major pre-event will be TEDx Chamber Choir (Kaspars Putninš), Tartu Boys Choir (Sander Tartu in 2023. The team will gather mental health special- Tamm), Estonian National Male Choir (Mikk Üleoja) ists to speak on mental disorders, stigmas, the physiological changes caused by mental health issues, but also talk about Latvia: Mixed Choir Sola (Kaspars Adamsons), State Choir self-support. Experience sharing sessions will also be held Latvija (Maris Sirmais) Maska (Janis Ozols), guest performers in the format of a “living library”. Another main pre-event is Kaspars Putninš, Maris Sirmais, Aira Birzina the Mental Health Film Festival in collaboration with Tartu Elektriteater Cinema. Europe: RIAS Kammerchor (Germany, Daniel Reuss), Libera Boys Choir (UK, conductor Robert Prizeman), Swedish Radio In 2024, Ruutu10 involves groups of Estonians and foreign- Choir (Sweden, conductor Marc Korovitch) ers living in Estonia in an 8-month long improvisational train- ing programme. Together with Sander Õigus and Comedy Duration: 10–13 July – city concerts and dress rehearsals, 13 July Estonia, we run an experiment on people’s reactions to – festival socially painful or taboo subjects, looking for the best bal- ance between humour’s liberating effect and respecting Partners: Tartu Song Festival Grounds (EE), H.Eller Tartu Music vulnerability. They will also train people with experiences of School (EE), Estonian Traditional Music Center (EE), Estonian Music mental health issues to perfect their comic delivery. All this Information Centre (EE), Estonian Folklore Council (EE), Estonian leads up to the Stand Up For Your Mind final show. A major Song Festival Celebration Foundation (EE), Latvian Ministry of Culture goal for the project is also to invite international stand-up (LV), Latvian National Centre of Culture (LV) comedians like Jamali Maddix who, respectively, have dealt with depression and xenophobia/racism. The project will also offer a youth exchange for the partner organisations from the Netherlands, Iceland, Sweden and Norway. Comedy Estonia and Ruutu 10 carry out workshops on making life better through laughter and jokes. Duration: 2019–24, with the final show in October 2024 Partners: Tartu Elektriteater Cinema (EE), Tedx Tartu (EE), Mental Helse Ungdom (NO), Hugarafl Mental Health Organisation (IS), The Swedish National Association for Social and Mental Health (SE), True Stories Live (UK), Banja Luka 2024 (Janus, BA) CREATIVE CONNECTIONS. ART MUSEUMS PREVENTING BULLYING Violence in adult society and culture is rooted in childhood STAND UP FOR YOUR MIND – it starts there, it can be stopped there. School bullying con- tinues to be a major issue in Tartu, Estonia and in European Run by Improtheatre Ruutu 10 and Estonian Youth cities, with proven long-lasting harm to the ones being bul- Movement for Mental Health, Stand Up For Your Mind lied, bystanders but also the bullies themselves. Arts and aims to dissolve the negative beliefs about mental health art museums have the means and responsibility to be active through humour and performance. Mental health problems change-makers not bystanders. are largely invisible to the naked eye as people hide their true scope and severity. In Europe, nearly a third of the population Creative Connections is an international contemporary art has experienced at least one mental health disorder in the exhibition emerging from the extensive anti-bullying collabo- past year. Even though these issues are so common, all too ration between schools, families (especially underprivileged often the sufferers feel alone, in fear of being stigmatised. ones), art museums and other cultural institutions by utilising Cultural and artistic content 29 academic research and cultural events. The project also aims great sporting conditions helped to build the career of the to provide the general public with information about bully- European top-class player Ragnar Klavan. But, the club is also ing. Piloting in Tartu and Southern Estonia, it mediates means a “speaker for the weaker”, with free trainings for education- and methods for similar joint initiatives across Europe. ally challenged children and an annual football tournament for the people with special needs. Tartmus, in collaboration with Bullying-free School foun- dation, will initiate research among teachers, parents and In 2024, the club aims to hold the tournament for 10–18-year students from elementary and primary schools in Tartu old children and youngsters with special mental health and/ and Southern Estonia. Based on the findings, anti-bullying or educational needs on an international scale to: education programmes for schools will be developed and tested. In 2024, this leads to events that will peak with an create, maintain and tighten sporting, cultural and international contemporary art exhibition and an accompa- cooperative relationships between the socially detached nying conference. segments of international communities and to strengthen societies as a whole encourage and enhance the involvement and integration of people with special needs into the society through sports, arts and active lifestyles build a bridge between sports and culture with a positive attitude to life that regards disabilities as a challenge, not a punishment. We invite teams to participate from our twin towns in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Netherlands, Georgia and Ukraine. The tournament also fea- tures the artistic workshops programme of painting, sculpt- ing, photography and other forms of self-expression for the participants of the tournament. The participants will have free entrance to a variety of cultural events. The results of the workshops are exhibited and presented in Viljandi, Tartu and Pärnu in cooperation with the Hidden Worlds Expanding project of the Kondas Centre with the intent to communi- cate the message of free, vivid and unlimited self-expression, The exhibition will include interactive artworks and spaces which is an inseparable part of human nature. that in different ways enable and encourage communication and collaboration. All works will be accessible to and age Duration: 4–5 days in August 2024 appropriate for children from the age of six but may require some mediation and supervision by adults. The museum’s Partners: Estonian Football Association (EFA, EE), Estonian Special young people’s/youth? group (aged 15–19) will participate Olympics (ESO, EE), Estonian Traditional Music Centre (EE), The Kondas in organising a segment of the conference and workshops Centre (EE), Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), Viljandi aimed at children aged 6–14. Art School (EE), Viljandi Music School (EE), Pärnu Vaprus FC (EE) Duration: research and development – 2021–2023, exhibition September 2024 – January 2025, conference October 2024 THROUGH THE CITY Partners: Bully-free School (EE), Tartu University Institute of All the world’s a stage – and so is the city! Or rather, a cluster Cultural Research Department of Ethnology (EE), Miina Härma of interlinked stages – the districts. The dramatic inspiration Gymnasium (EE), the Tartu Mart Reinik School (EE), the Tartu Waldorf is all around us: on the streets, in the backyards, in people School (EE), the Tartu Private School (EE), Forsythe Productions rep- themselves and in their stories. Through the City is a mul- resenting William Forsythe (DE), Simon and Tom Bloor (artists, UK), ti-layered community theatre project inviting people to share Lundahl and Seitl (artists, SE), Manchester Metropolitan University and transform their understanding of Tartu neighbourhoods. Arts for Health (UK) Hearing the voice of those who usually stay off the stage and artistic circles, we aim to enrich the narrative of the areas surrounding the homes of the locals themselves. For visitors OUTSIDER FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT and newcomers to Tartu, Through the City can be a perfect greeting card, with the possibility to experience the neigh- Viljandi JK Tulevik is a tiny but well-settled and communi- bourhoods in a more immersive way, to learn about native ty-based football club in Viljandi, Tartu 2024’s regional part- identities, reflect on the past, the present and the potential of ner city. Its strong core and support, steady leadership and their own home districts. 30 Cultural and artistic content The creative team is formed around Must Kast (Black Box Open windows filled with musicians. Local kitchens on the theatre troupe) and Labyrinth Theatre Group G9. The team streets. A whole class of first year schoolchildren painting graf- begins by gathering interviews, written non-fictional stories fiti under tutelage. Meeting places for complete strangers. At and biographies from archives, books and letters; holding another point in the very evening, people start to gather to one open talks during social gatherings in local venues; collecting place. A park or a riverside, a bridge or a square will fill with drawings, pictures, videos, recipes, handmade items, riddles, participants – to sing a song amidst the lighting show. Or they songs and music. This source material will be a database for walk around the district with a marching band, carrying all the themed performances and an open resource for the primary flags. Or they plant 1,000 trees during a concert – a unique uni- collaboration partners during the festival phase. fying experience to conclude the rediscovery of a home hood. If a person walks through the streets of Tartu in June, they will Duration: Collecting sources since 2020, pre-events 2021-23, main have an opportunity to witness unexpected happenings in pub- programme June 2024 lic spaces. An everyday path to get the groceries may guide the visitor through installations, a neighboring yard may turn into Partners: University of Tartu Viljandi Cultural Academy (EE), Urban a dancing battleground, a stroll through the park might make festival UIT (EE), Stencibility Street Art Festival (EE), Tartu Artist in a passer-by read a collection of memories written on the side- Residence (EE), Tartu neighbourhood societies (EE), Anneli Saro (EE), walks. At some point, a group of 30 people will walk hand in Hedi-Liis Toome (EE), NORTEAS Nordic and Baltic Performing Arts hand and blindfolded through the streets and enter an aban- Network (IS), Performa Borealis (Tartu International Festival of the doned house. It is the audience of one of the district perfor- Performing Arts, EE), Walk the Plank (UK), Finnish National Theatre mances travelling through a play based on the people of Tartu. (FI), New Theater Institute of Latvia (LV), Riga 2014 (Road Map, LV) Cultural and artistic content 31 32 Q Q 33 TARTU WITH EUROPE: GREATER SMALLER CITIES rewriting city narrative through its subcultures and mavericks, reimagining urban spaces, regional and global contacts FLAGSHIP PROJECT IN TARTU: kiss depicted on film – denounced as shocking and KISSING TARTU obscene in 1896 – to the occasions when public kissing challenged racial or ethnic stigmas, Kisses of Change will A kiss can make casual friendships stronger and strong ties be an interactive art, photo, music and video experience. intimate. It can signal affection or respect, yet also convey broader transformative social, political and spiritual mes- Kiss and Tell is a programme to excite the more curi- sages. For arts and for survival, a kiss is in many ways a major ous adults with a trans-European selection of films and key! Caught in our Kissing Students sculpture on the Town lectures on love and erotica. Accompanying discussions Hall Square, it’s the symbol of Tartu as the city of life-chang- with researchers of media and sociology of affection ing encounters and youthful love. As the peak of Student and sexuality also investigate the evolution of publishing Spring Days held by Tartuvian universities, Kissing Tartu is one’s intimate expressions on social media and its impli- a record-breaking event with several side programmes to cations for our behaviour. explore the manifold nature of everyone’s favourite gesture. Duration: First Kiss September 2023 – June 2024; Kisses of Change The defining moment of Kissing Tartu will be the biggest 8 February – 4 August 2024; Kiss and Tell and Student Spring Days ever simultaneous kissing to happen in a European 29 April – 5 May 2024; Kissing Tartu main event 4 May 2024 Capital of Culture. More than 20,000 kissers from all over Europe and the world are expected to fill the Town Hall square Partners: Tartu Student Days (EE), Estonian Sexual Health Union stretching from River Emajõgi to the slopes of Toomemägi, to (EE), University of Tartu (EE), University of Life Sciences (EE), Estonian spread the message of love, connection and togetherness all Art University (EE), Pallas University of Applied Sciences (EE), Tartu across the town, Europe and global social media. The most Elektriteater Cinema (EE), PÖFF film festival (EE), tARTuFF film festival (EE), affectionate moments of the ECoC year are carried on into International Planned Parenthood Federation (UK), Dornbirn 2024 (AT) the night of love songs and dancing on city stages. Kissing Tartu also features three side programmes: FLAGSHIP PROJECT IN THE REGION: TARTU WORLD UNIVERSITY First Kiss is a sexual and mental health programme promoting self-awareness, informed decision-making, At a time when so many small town and village communities healthy practices and mutual respect among teenagers. feel redundant with their perennial local problems and being Visiting schools as well as providing internationally acces- unable to affect global matters, Tartu World University sible online content, influencers and opinion leaders comes to the rescue! 12 regions in Southern Estonia as well share reflective and relatable stories about their “first as the cities of Viljandi and Pärnu get to host temporary uni- times” in intimate relationships to ease the expectation versities as think tanks for solving “glocal” issues. The Tartu pressures upon young people. World University process will help these communities to understand their unique qualities and strengths, raise their Kisses of Change exhibition visualises the moments when self-esteem and transform from those in need to those who a kiss marked a change in the course of history or became can help others across Europe. iconic in pop culture. From the kiss of Judas to the first In 2021, Tartu World University steering groups will be formed in 14 locations for organising strategic brainstorm- ing sessions with community and Estonian consultants (PwC, DD Stratlab, county development centers, UT Centre of Educational Innovation, Vunki Mano, Garage 48). They will specify the most pressing problems in each area and scout for potential consultants or guest speakers ( from international partner cities and institutions as well). In 2022– 23, TWU sessions become broader and linked to related European issues. In 2024, the scope of Tartu World University has grown from local to truly glocal. Each TWU site will host a top-level 34 Cultural and artistic content European/international visionary leader or a public intel- The new biennale festival Performa Borealis centres on lectual who gives civic lectures to wider audiences (also the stage productions from the Baltic and Nordic regions, streamed for international viewers and broadcast in the while also including Russian theatre and guest perfor- national media). They will mentor the development of sus- mances from some of the most exciting contemporary tainable solutions that are most beneficial locally but also theatre-makers in Europe. The programme of the festival will exemplary on a global scale. The mentoring process is span the whole spectrum of performing arts from contempo- intended to be two-way learning: the guest speakers get to rary visual performance art (live art, physical and circus theatre, know the communities, their customs and practices, help to movement and object theatre) to contemporary dance and organise artistic events with pupils from local schools. This social/political/documentary theatre. While the selection pro- way, we hope to make lasting friends and proud ambassa- cess is based on artistic liberty and diversity, the festival is keen dors of our small cities and rural areas. to raise environmental awareness and increase commitment to the environmental sustainability of the performing arts. A In early 2025, Tartu World University Summit is held as two-day international conference, Sustainability and Culture a major legacy event and diplomas are given to those who presents case studies and best practices from European public have attended all TWU major public lectures in 2024. cultural organisations who have “gone green”. Duration: preparatory process 2021–2023, main sessions 2024, leg- The festival also features the Nordic-Baltic Performing Arts acy event 2025 Meeting held on 2024, which will be an event where both Baltic and international emerging artists and performing arts Partners: The Centre for Ethics of the University of Tartu (EE), The companies can present their work to interested parties dur- Centre for Educational Innovation of the University of Tartu (EE), ing 20-minute sessions reserved for each company. It will be sTARTUp Day (EE), DD Stratlab (EE), Estonian National Museum possible to incorporate either video footage or short live per- (EE), Vunki Mano Hackathon (EE), GTL (Glocally Transformative formances from shows into the presentations they would like Learning) Labor (EE), Kodukant Community Network (EE), TEDx Tartu to promote. Since the Tartu Centre for Creative Industries (EE), Community Development Network Coursera, Veszprém 2023 is the main organiser, the festival runs the Shooting Stars in (Republic of Freedom, Balaton Talks, HU) Performing Arts training programme for young performing artists, theatre producers and start-up companies, present- ing European top-level mentoring sessions, new services PERFORMA BOREALIS and products of creative industries related to their fields. Tartu International Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts Duration: Ramp-up festivals in September 2021 and 2023, ECoC festival 19–29 September 2024 Tartu is the birthplace of Estonian professional theatre in the late 19th century and the site for major innovations in the late Partners: Estonian Theatre Festival (EE), Vanemuine Theatre (EE), 1960s. Our theatre productions still draw large audiences Tartu Uus Teater (EE), Must Kast (EE), University of Tartu Department and win awards – but the city has all but vanished from inter- of Literature and Theatre Studies (EE), The Estonian Academy of Music national thespian maps. Our Draama Festival dwindling into and Theatre (EE), Lithuanian National Drama Theatre (International locality, top European troupes rarely seen – yet Tartu is ideally Festival of the Performing Arts SIRENOS, Lithuanian Theatre Showcase, placed as a stage for bringing together the best of the per- LT), New Theatre Institute of Latvia (International festival Homo Novus, forming arts from Estonia’s neighbouring regions. Performa LV), Tampere Theatre Festival (FI), BIT Teatergarasjen (METEOR and Borealis is a bold revamp of Tartu as the city of theatre. Oktoberdans, NO), LÓKAL Performing Arts Reykjavik (IS) Cultural and artistic content 35  current practices in arts and civic action. The research and education programme is carried out throughout the year by/via/through networking for school performances, public events, online databases and media broadcasts with part- ners in the Baltic states and Eastern Europe and with other international partners. Psühhoteek also serves as a platform for Tartu Centre for Creative Industries capacity building programme for band managers, the need for which was stressed in the 1st stage of Tartu Night Strategy. Duration: research and education programme 2020–2024 and beyond, festival/fair/conference in April 2024 PSÜHHOTEEK Partners: Tartu Centre for Creative Industries (EE), Aparaaditehas Psühhoteek (Psychotheque) is a festival, fair, research and (EE), Tartu Literature House (EE), Tartu Blues Club (EE), Tartu Art education programme emerging around the outreaching School (EE); Raatuse Gymnasium, Tartu (EE), Degritter (EE), VinylPlant activities of the eponymous vinyl shop at the Tartu Centre (EE), Funked Up East (EE), Obscure Little Beasties (LT), Spasibo for Creative Industries. Pop culture is a lingua franca in Records (RU), Overfitting Disco (FI), Cesis Mala Art Space (LV), Europe as well as worldwide. Beneath and beyond industrial Vinilbārs (LV), Erica Synth (LV), Jersica Records (LV), Croatia Records mass production, it’s a treasury for transforming identities, (HR), Unearthing the Music (EU), Sound Exchange (DE/EU), The Wire breaking barriers, imagining new worlds and creating codes Magazine (UK)/Off The Page Festival (UK/NO), The Networks (HU), of resistance. This is definitely so in Estonia, the Baltic States SBZ Records (RU), Svart Records (FI), Hangvetö (HU) and Eastern Europe where music but also sci-fi, animated movies, design and comedy were largely experimental and reaching beyond the Iron Curtain. TOOMEMÄGI REVISITED But there’s been too little interaction and mutual learning Ascending from behind the University of Tartu main building for decades now. Also, still too much effort is needed for to the ruins of the old cathedral where the university museum bringing this heritage and potential to the attention of the is, Toomemägi (Toome Hill) is the centre of Tartu in space Western Europe and the still-too-Angloamerican global pop as well as time – a vast landmark of Tartu’s connection with consciousness. The Psühhoteek programme revisits, revives Europe through Christian culture and the academic herit- and revamps vaults of the Eastern European alternative pop age. Yet, this significance has long been underrepresented. for the 21st century European and global musicians, artists Toomemägi Revisited aims to wake the area from its slum- and audiences. ber by turning it into a multifunctional and multilayered envi- ronment with the European scope it deserves. Festival: the live programme takes place in unconventional pop-up venues to bring out hidden potential in indoor and Toomemägi park will be redesigned in the course of the outdoor urban spaces and create transformative sonic/envi- Curated Biodiversity project and the whole territory ronmental experiences. Transgenerational and transnational turned into a more inviting public space with themed jamming spaces are also provided for festival guests. In the playgrounds and open-air galleries, in addition to pro- ramp-up years and in 2024, residing international acts will viding better accessible grounds for a range of events record, release and perform Tartu-themed albums. and festivals (e.g. the flagship event Kissing Tartu). The programme of initiatives that are specifically planned for Fair: While presenting Estonian/Baltic/Eastern European 2024 include: vinyl and other pop cultural heritage to European guests and partners, it’s no mere nostalgia fair – Psühhoteek seeks to International art competition for a major permanent forge new cooperative ties between musicians and per- installation based on the Struve Geodetic Arc. Running formers of various ages and ethnic backgrounds, broker through ten countries, the arc symbolically connects re-releases and distribution record deals for vintage music Tartu to the world and is the only landmark in the city that “from behind the Iron Curtain”. The fair also showcases the belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage list. The installa- Analogue Livonia (Estonia + Latvia) creative cluster of ana- tion will be opened early in 2024 as one of the opening logue sound technology and music production companies, events of Tartu 2024. vinyl record labels and collectors, art schools, book and record shops, club spaces and NGOs. UHHUU Pseudo-Science exhibition of the history of frauds, debunks and constant improvement of science Conference sums up the work done in the Psühhoteek itself through critical thought, questioning of dogmas, Academy research and education programme on Estonian, constant learning and experimenting as Arts of Survival Baltic, Eastern European and subcultural histories and (Spring 2024). 36 Cultural and artistic content  Arts of Innovation exhibition of scientific achievements 2024 European Students’ Opinion Festival coincides with hosted by all of the university museums and an outdoor the Tartu Student Days in autumn, sharing its cultural display of Lifesavers – Tartu-related scientific discoveries programme (the night song and dance festival and a night that have saved and changed people’s lives with exhibits opinion festival, flying machine contest, etc.) and bringing in like the “blood fountain”, a gigantic brain you can walk artistic projects from the participating European universities. into, etc (Autumn 2024). There is a fourfold focus for the festival panels: The light installations for the cathedral towers from the Environment – students as forerunners of promoting and international cast of artists, premiered at the TAVA light cultivating sustainable and environmentally friendly living festival as “the ECoC lighthouse for the future”. in the city Duration: 2019–2024 and beyond, with special events through- Culture – supporting student activity in arts; festivals; out 2024 community initiatives; founding new cultural institutions; improving cross-sectoral and international cooperation; Partners: Georg August Universität Göttingen (DE), Ghent tackling mental health issues through arts University Museum (BE), Uppsala University Museum (SE), Helsinki University Museum (FI), Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Science/Education – increasing students’ involvement in Ciência (MUHNAC) Universidade de Lisboa (PT), Oslo University public promotion of sciences and learning (NO), UNIVERSEUM, European Academic Heritage Network, Struve Geodetic Arc Coordinating Committee (EU), Latvian Geospatial Start-ups – introducing more students to entrepreneur- Information Agency (LT), Tina Wikström, Johan Moritz (SE) ship and support their first steps (business incubators, sponsorships, co-working rooms) Duration: a week in late September/early October 2024 Partners: Tartu University IdeaLab (EE), Genialists’ Club (EE), KVARK science theatre (EE), Tartu Elektriteater Cinema (EE), Tartu Environmental Education Centre (EE), Opinion Festival (EE), Ott Karulin (former Head Organizer and Programme Manager of Opinion Festival, EE), DDStartLab (EE), Ermo Tikk (sTARTUp Community Development manager, EE), University of Tartu Institute of Psychology (EE), Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies (EE); University of Tartu Student Council and Vice Rector for Academic Affairs – Aune Valk (EE), Jubel – European Democracy Festival (BE), Aaltoes (Europe’s EUROPEAN STUDENTS’ OPINION FESTIVAL largest and most active entrepreneurship community, FI), University of Vilnius (LT), Aalto University (FI). Many small university towns in Europe share common ques- tions. How to create an environment where students feel the town is also theirs to improve, stay in or return to? How to EMAJÕGI – THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF TARTU boost transversal synergy and make great things happen in a small town? How can the universities be agents of change Tartu was born of the Mother River – Emajõgi. For centuries, the beyond the walls of academy? city has breathed to the rhythms of the river. Yet, many times the river has also brought on its dark and destructive side – Tartu is likewise swept by the tides of new students – some flooding the streets, becoming a wet grave to the careless or put in their best for the city, others don’t quite know how to. the desperate. Thus, she’s been feared and hated as well as Many stay, many go. What has improved in Tartu is largely loved and respected. One way or another, Emajõgi has left a due to universities; what hasn’t… well. mark on everybody who has stood on its banks. To make sense of this impact is to understand the flow of life in the city itself. In Estonia, the Opinion Festival in Paide has exceeded expec- tations of success with large audiences gathering for several Tartu City Museum’s exhibition opens in spring 2024 as a days to listen to topical debates of opinion leaders on doz- stream of audiovisual interpretations of stories and images ens of stages and popup venues. Led by ÜKSA (University tracing the river. An outdoor architectural installation along Student Foundation), European Students’ Opinion Festival the north bank will harbour topics such as the founding and is Tartu 2024’s major initiative to bring together similar development of Tartu, Emajõgi as a historic transportation experiences and best practices from other small, Tartu-like route, Emajõgi and the “two Tartus”, Emajõgi and relaxation, European university towns. With top-level mentoring, stu- Emajõgi and romance, Emajõgi and the arts, Emajõgi as a site dents themselves will mutually ponder their impact on and of accidents and suicides. potential for the university towns, further avenues of intercul- tural exchange and ways of boosting cross-border activism to The exhibition will rely on archival sources, interviews, mem- freshen up various fields of city life. oirs, paintings and photos – but also on contemporary tales Cultural and artistic content 37 and impressions. Locals, guests, foreign students as well as developing a map of Russophone heritage as an app as international communities are welcome to share their river well as in print experience, submitting stories to a special platform and for a multilingual published compilation. cultural events programme dealing with the different aspects of Russophone heritage in Tartu and Estonia. The accompanying public programme includes tours and hikes on the banks of the river as well as boat excursions, The map brings out several layers of Russophone heritage workshops and discussions on the impact of the river on the in the city: traces and landmarks of the Russian Empire, human psyche and urban space in cooperation with AOS Soviet Union and the current ethnic diversity of the Urban Nature Festival and Reclaiming The River Emajõgi Russian-speaking community. The flexible app allows And The Great Lakes. The peak of the programme will be a for creating several routes based on the interests of pri- River Cities Conference in autumn 2024. Bringing together vate explorers or guided tours. We also plan to involve the representatives from river cities across Europe, it is a forum international students of Russian Studies in the University for smart and nature-friendly ideas and proposals for future of Tartu to conduct tours in their own mother tongue for developments of the riverside. greater European appeal. The events include seminars and round tables based on those layers, concerts, site-specific installations and pop-up events at the sites of significance on the map and the Festival of Actual Russophone Estonia. The latter is a series of events throughout the year, including current festivals such as the International Bard Festival Music of Falling Leaves, Zhukovsky International Festival of Poetry, Russian Ball and Baltic Ring International Festival of Poetry, as well as new initiatives (Contemporary Folk Music Festival, Russophone Rock and Pop Festival, Festival of Russian Theatres in Estonia, Exhibition of Russophone artists of Estonia in Tartu Art House). The Prima Vista International Literary Festival and UNESCO City of Literature Tartu are also associates in bridg- ing the gaps between Russophone and European cultures in the project. Duration: exhibition March-September 2024, conference September 2024 Duration: 2019–2024 and beyond Partners: Estonian National Archive (EE), Tartu City Library (EE), Partners: Ivo Kruusamägi (Wikipedia EE), Lyudmila Yamurzina (head RLOALUARNAD (architects Laura Linsi and Roland Reemaa, EE), Iseseisev of working group of minorities of Estonian Folklore Council, EE), Elu NGO Supporting Agency (EE), International House Tartu (EE), Burgos Vestnik Tartu newspaper (EE), Peeter Talvistu (Tartu Art House, EE), & Garrido Arquitectos (Madrid Rio, ES), Ljubljana River Exhibition (SI), Valentina Lai and Kids Studio MIX (EE), V Tartu Portal (EE), University Galway 2020 (Wires Crossed: A Balancing Act for Europe, IE) of Tartu Department of Slavic Studies (EE), TSKA Cultural Centre (EE), International Landscape Poetry Festival (EE), International Bard Festival Music of Falling Leaves (EE), Zhukovsky International Festival MAPPING RUSSOPHONE TARTU of Poetry (EE), Russian Ball (EE), Baltic Ring International Festival of Poetry (EE), Prima Vista International Literary Festival (EE), Tartu Public What does it mean to be a Russian or to be from a Russian- Library (EE), University of Tartu Museum (EE), Estonian National speaking culture in Estonia as part of Europe? These iden- Archive (EE), Zoya Lebedeva (artist, EE/RU), Anna Andrzhiyevskaya tities are complex even in Tartu, which is perceived as the (installation artist, RU) one city where most of the Russophone inhabitants have successfully integrated into the local society. However, the reality acknowledged by many of the 15% is that this ethnic WALKS OF SURVIVAL minority consists of many rather disparate groups, some of whom still struggle with their sense of belonging. Hence, the “I would walk 500 miles…” Can you manage even five today? rich Russophone heritage, its historic connections to Europe Our ancestors covered long distances on foot to get food for and its current artistic activities have been underrepresented survival; now we can order our meal to our doorstep online. in the city and its international cultural profile. Gaining in comfort, losing in physical stamina. Not just that – in our habits of spending days indoors and choosing to Mapping Russophone Tartu is an initiative to unite and drive instead of walking, we become blind, deaf and numb empower those disparate groups by raising awareness of to the multitude of stories, spaces and secret possibilities of the cultural value of their identity and its relevance for Tartu, the city we live in or visit. Taking long walks doesn’t just make Estonia and Europe. The project consists of two main us fitter for survival, it opens up our habitat for a much richer lines of activity: range of futures. 38 Cultural and artistic content  2022 Environment 2023 Humanity 2024 Community Duration: 2020–2024 and beyond Partners: University of Tartu Physical Activity Lab (Liikumislabor, EE), NGO Seiklushunt (EE), Ilves Orienteering Club (EE), Secret City Trails (NL) ARTS OF SURVIVAL DOCUMENTARIES To truly know a place and its people means to learn a secret code of shared memories – not so much the official history Walks Of Survival offer many ways to get walking again. and major landmarks, but the unsung heroes, the mavericks, Locals and guests of Tartu and South Estonia, flaneurs and the “great little people”, alongside the quaint small bars, pubs fishers, mums and the mayor will share their walking routes and shops, which all amount to that elusive “local colour”, through their significant sites, inviting you into an imagined even when they’re long gone. So much of it gets overlooked, conversation with them and the city – or, occasionally, a real lost and forgotten in the era of global brands and global conversation as they come to walk with you and tell the tales influencers. What fitter art of survival can there be for the of living in the place. The city will be criss-crossed by per- memory of them than a documentary film – at best humbling sonalised paths – common tourist sightseeing spots suddenly and enlightening for its makers, revelatory for the audiences, get a touch of intimacy, apparent non-places reveal their bringing due reappraisal to their subjects. Tartu Spirit and deep poetic value. Maps and apps will show the way if you Public House are Tartu 2024 documentary projects to trace, walk alone or with mates new to the city; benches with writ- learn and share that secret language of local colour in the ers’ quotes give you some rest. And do take your business city, the region and Europe. meetings outdoors for some peripatetic pleasure! Tartu Spirit (“Tartu vaim”) is a catch-all phrase for the quirky On completing a route, you will be awarded with a True genius loci defined by our mavericks – bards, boffins and Walker token. Collecting a specific amount of tokens grants bohemians, street stalwarts, those mystery men and women you a free entrance to one of the ticketed ECoC events as everyone seem to know about but no-one quite knows who well as discounts in cafés and museums. And once a year, they really are. Tartuvians take them almost for granted; others on the European Day, we call all Tartuvians, Estonians and can barely figure them out. Fresh eyes are needed to crack the Europeans up for a grand cause walk – raising funds for code for the broader public – we invite professional European initiatives of improving Europe. Specific topics for Arts of documentary makers into an environment of artistic growth, Survival walking events are settled one year in advance, with exploration of new ideas and the discovery of the authentic the broad themes linked to our programme lines: milieu to shoot their visions of the representatives of Tartu Cultural and artistic content 39 Spirit. A supporting DocDJ programme 2024 EVENTS TIMELINE CHART for youth lets them create fantasies from facts, remix the existing documentaries into new hybrids and learn plenty about JANUARY OPENING EVENT film editing. SURREALISM 100 KISSING TARTU - First Kiss Public House is a documentary tribute to a vanishing world of small local stores, FEBRUARY KISSING TARTU - Kisses of Change thrift shops, bars and pubs in Tartu and Southern Estonia. As community strong- MARCH ARTS OF SURVIVAL DOCUMENTARIES holds or temples of personal passion, EMAJÕGI - THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF TARTU exhibition they are like small boats caught in the storm of global and increasingly online APRIL WILD BITS commerce. How can they survive, even if YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME just in living memory? How can we share PSÜHHOTEEK the sensual experience of being there TOOMEMÄGI REVISITED - UHHUU Pseudo-Science exhibition with those for whom they’re unlikely to ever be in the Top Ten destinations? Public House is an experimental pro- MAY WILD BITS KISSING TARTU ject for using new media (VR, AR, etc.) HIDDEN WORLDS EXPANDING and new models of storytelling to make 1984/2024 LITERARY FESTIVAL documentary films aimed at European BEETROOT WASHING MACHINE film school students. By participating in the summer school in Southern Estonia, they’ll be equipped with the skills and JUNE AOS URBAN NATURE FESTIVAL local knowledge to recreate the reality REVOGUE WILD BITS of those special spots in their works. YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME - Aigu om! Lost locations brought to virtual life are also brought to retirement and care homes for the people who relate to JULY RECLAIMING THE RIVER EMAJÕGI AND THE GREAT LAKES these places and who can be inspired to ESTONIAN-LATVIAN WEDDING SONG & DANCE FESTIVAL share the stories. AUGUST LAKE PEIPUS ARTS ROUTE These two documentary series will be POSTMARKET STREET FESTIVAL shown throughout 2024 in nonstop OUTSIDER FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT film pavilions across the city, libraries and shopping malls; there will be the- SEPTEMBER LAKE PEIPUS ARTS ROUTE matic programmes at Maailmafilm GROWING WITH YOUR FOOD HARVEST PARTY festival and a travelling festival across ENTER WOODLAND SPIRITS DIGITAL ART FESTIVAL Southern Estonian villages, cities and EUROPEAN STUDENTS’ OPINION FESTIVAL community venues, with capacity build- EMAJÕGI - THE BIRTH AND DEATH OF TARTU conference ing activities for local cultural operators. PERFORMA BOREALIS The project also contributes to Walks TOOMEMÄGI REVISITED - Arts of Innovation exhibition Of Survival with themed trails. YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME - Vastseliina European Pilgrimage CREATIVE CONNECTIONS EXHIBITION Duration: Preparatory activities and filmmak- ing 2020–23, programmes at Maailmafilm March 2024, travelling film festival around OCTOBER YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME - CosmoFest Southern Estonia September–December 2024 STAND UP FOR YOUR MIND SOUND OUR SOULS Partners: Tartu Film Fund (EE), Pärnu Film CREATIVE CONNECTIONS CONFERENCE Festival (EE), Tartu Elektriteater Cinema (EE), Estonian National Museum (EE), Tartu World NOVEMBER SOUND OUR SOULS Film Festival (EE), Estonian Film Institute (EE), YELLOW WINDOWS ARTS PROGRAMME - The Estonian Documentary Guild (EE), Baltic European Nature Photography Summit Media Film School (EE), Enactive Virtuality Lab (EE), MaruVR (EE), MoKs (EE), Futuruum DECEMBER CLOSING EVENT (EE), Plankfilm (EE), European Documentary TOOMEMÄGI REVISITED - Network (NL/DK), A Wall is a Screen (DE), The light installations for the cathedral towers Bodø 2024 (Bodø Filmfest, NO) 40 Cultural and artistic content DIVERSITY LAND LINE Ristikivi. The residency has global reach in and beyond the Culture Bus Creative Cities Network and encourages mingling with local artists and cultural operators, performing and co-curating at Diversity Land Line is a „mobile cultural hub” tour counter- literary festivals and revealing residents’ talents in other arts. ing immigration-related fears and prejudices, aggravated social tensions and the forces feeding on them. We prove Tartu Artist in Residence (TAiR) offers a range of short- and that personal friendships and cultural understanding are still long-term residencies through yearly open calls in coopera- best brought on by people meeting people to enjoy and cre- tion of Estonian Print and Paper Museum, Pallas University ate shared spaces and joyful occasions. We show how val- of Applied Sciences, Tartu Art Museum, Aparaaditehas, ues and aspirations cut across ethnic distinctions, with joint Tartu Art House and many other partner organisations who practices and events helping to relish rather than reduce the contribute different skills and resources, thereby making it appeal of various heritages. Our special focus is on introduc- possible to cater to different genres. Main areas of compe- ing the Non-European ethnicities who have come to live in tence are printmaking and visual arts but the programme is Estonia since they support European values. open to artists from all creative disciplines. Each month, Diversity Land Line engages a minority eth- Artist-run residencies include MAAJAAM (run by Timo nic group with Tartu and Southern Estonia, promoting its Toots, see Wild Bits 2024 Exhibition above), MoKS (run by music, food, crafts and traditions by building long-term Evelyn and John Grzinich), both in rural areas of the region relationships with the local communities. We also introduce and also Valgka run by Tanel Rander in Valga/Valka, aiming cultural activities to vulnerable groups with limited access to expand into a permanent residency from pilot projects of (foster homes, elderly care centers, soup kitchens, etc.) In 2017–2018. the region, three towns/villages are going to be selected in each of the four counties. There are 12 events planned in Artistic Research Residencies one county during the year – one event in each municipality every three months in the following order: The programme aims to connect artists working in differ- ent mediums and the most distinguished research centres 1. Cultural festival and bonding with the community in Tartu – Estonian Genome Centre, Estonian National Museum and Tartu Observatory. The role of the centres 2. Joint workshops, establishing local core groups is to provide a research base for artists (access to data and cooperation with other research teams). As a result, we hope 3. Voluntary work in the local community to inspire artists to make new artworks by interpreting the output of research centres in a unique manner and to present 4. Presentation of the results of core group work (exhibition, the outcome in their venues. performance, etc) for broader international audiences and a gift to the local community on behalf of the cultural Estonian National Museum is the centre for ethnological minority group research which records, studies and interprets vernacular cul- ture through the ages (including recent past) and is the larg- Duration: throughout 2024 (build up 2020–2023) est cultural and tourist attraction in Tartu. Controversial queer artist Jaanus Samma is the first research resident in 2020. Partners: Neighbourhood Unions (Karlova community, Supilinna community, Annelinna community, EE), Tartu City Library (EE), New Tartu Observatory conducts research and experimental Generation NGO (PS), Orient and Dance Theatre (PS), Nidal Al-Abbadi Co development of natural sciences to promote science in the NGO (JO), Armenian Open Society NGO (AM), “Common Sense” Youth fields of astronomy, remote sensing and space technology. Organisation, (AZ), Asociación Cultural Social y Educativa Segundas Tech/installation artist Katja Novitskova is the first research Oportunidades [A.C.S.E.S.O] (ES), Youth Association DRONI (GE), Center resident in 2021. for Dialogue and Reconciliation “Iskra” (UA), Världskulturmuseet (SE) Estonian Genome Centre at the University of Tartu runs the Estonian Biobank, which 200,000 Estonians have joined as RESIDENCIES gene donors, making it the world’s most comprehensive data- base of its kind. Getting information from other health related Contributing to the cultural programme of Tartu 2024, artistic databases and state registers, the Genome Center database residencies include several already existing platforms but also upgrades constantly. The first research residents are Iza feature a string of transversal Artistic Research Residencies Tarasewicz (PL) in 2022 and Ryoji Ikeda (JP) in 2024 (exhi- initiatives plus a range of other new platforms specifically cre- bition at the Estonian National Museum in summer 2024). ated with the European Capital of Culture in mind. Other new residencies Current residencies Kodavere Heritage Centre will run culinary residencies UNESCO City of Literature residency is offered twice for top European chefs invited through our ECoC partners a year for two months in the former abode of writer Karl in the Lake Peipus area, introducing the meeting point of Cultural and artistic content 41 three distinct culinary cultures in a unique natural environ- The overall strategy of developing further residencies ment: Baltic German manor cuisine, Old Believers’ cuisine will follow the priorities of KU30: and Estonian peasant cuisine. The residents utilise the local infrastructure and community of the Onion Route (Sibulatee) to create better contacts with the growers and producers/ KU30 priority Residency development focus gatherers of various produce, but also with the best home cooks who sustain the local culinary culture. Environment Rural locations in the region Tartu Centre for Creative Industries will run performing Generations Support services for artists with families arts residencies to precede the Performa Borealis festi- val (see above) in August–September 2024. Three mixed Community Suitable conditions for artists with disabilities groups of international and local performing artists will carry out the research in institutions such as Tartu prison, women’s shelter, international technology start-ups, etc., Residencies in rural locations provide an inspiring change to create a performance or work-in-progress to be pre- of milieu for artists tired of the metropolitan sameness sented in the framework of the festival. The aim of the and they enrich “peripheries” with a fresh perspective. residencies is to establish a strong relationship with the Residencies for families support long-term stay or even diverse local communities, discover hidden stories and becoming a permanent citizen (in Tartu we have interna- give them an artistic voice. TCCC also runs Psühhoteek tional schools and kindergartens, as well as health care residency (see Psühhoteek above) to host bands and systems that are also serving in Russian and English). musicians for the creating, recording and releasing of a Residencies for artists with disabilities boost inclusion on Tartu-themed vinyl album. an European scale. 42 Cultural and artistic content CAPACITY BUILDING: Kultuurikompass The goal of the capacity building programme Kultuurikompass Planned legacy activities include publishing presenta- (Culture Compass) is to strengthen the cultural sector of Tartu tions as subtitled videos and a handbook of good prac- and Southern Estonia while also supporting the implementa- tices based on shared experiences. The forums and their tion of the Tartu 2024 ECoC programme. published content will also become the first capacity build- ing reference points for additional Tartu 2024 ECoC pro- The format of this study and experience sharing programme grammes, arising from community hackathons and open is a result of the open calls and discussions we’ve had with calls for new projects (Q7). local artists, managers and community leaders while devel- oping the bid. In Summer 2018 we designed and launched Planned International Culture Compass forums elevate a thorough survey which saw Tartu cultural managers assess- cultural management topics to a transnational level and ing their biggest shortcomings as involving volunteers, car- help connect Tartu and Southern Estonian artists and cultural rying out ecologically sustainable cultural management and managers, their challenges and solutions with the knowl- finding international partners. These results set the first focus edge and experiences of their Tartu twin town/European areas for the Kultuurikompass. Capital of Culture counterparts. To carry out International Culture Compass events in four countries. The City of Tartu Being a part of our monitoring and evaluation plan as well, has already applied for Europe for Citizens funding together the next mapping of knowledge, skills and needs will take with Kaunas (LT), Turku (FI) and Veszprém (HU). The first place in 2020 and this time cultural managers all across of the biannual forums is planned to take place in Tartu in Southern Estonia will also be surveyed. This leads the capac- November 2019. ity building expansion to all the counties included in our bid to prepare the regional events such as the Yellow Windows Mentorship for Major Events relates to the Tartu 2024 Arts Programme. goal of helping our cultural scenes reach European audi- ences. The programme, custom-fitted to match the profiles Kultuurikompass aims to leave a legacy by empowering of the applicants, provides the framework and funding to cultural managers and bridging the gap between cultural improve strategic management skills and international management and other fields by cross-sectorial and inter- contacts available to the executives of the top festivals national knowledge sharing and networking, which in turn and events in the region by linking them up with experi- leads to new cooperative projects. On the other hand, this enced European practitioners and networks. This strand programme builds a path between formal management edu- of Kultuurikompass takes off in 2021 and is carried out in cation given in the universities of our region and the „learn- cooperation with Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, ing as you go“ attitudes and experiences recorded across all business incubators and international mentors. In 2024, fields of arts and culture. Mentorship for Major Events experiences will be covered in a conference hosted by Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Kultuurikompass: main strands one of the most established, international and innovative festivals of the region. Kultuurikompass’ main strand of action is organising expe- rience sharing and networking forums for artists, cultural Kultuurikompass special strands managers, specialists of cultural institutions such as muse- ums, community activists, social and business innovators with Tartu 2024 Street Team (Q15/16) empowers young peo- presentations on best practices and discussions. ple to learn, practice and share the arts of cultural man- agement. Street Team sessions and missions connect the Every Kultuurikompass forum has a focal theme, inspired by the youth with the aspirations of our European Capital of results of the biennial self-evaluation survey carried out among Culture and build links between our cultural programme Tartu cultural managers mapping their strengths and weak- and the schools. nesses. The forums, taking place quarterly and having kicked off in January 2019, have today already included a few hundred Active Agers, the programme for involving elderly peo- participants from all around Southern Estonia discussing new ple as activators and advisors for audience development is crowdfunding possibilities for culture, social media marketing described further in Q15/16. The programme empowers in culture and sustainable event management. Future experi- cultural participation of senior citizens and increases relevant ence sharing will include events on audience development and capacities of cultural institutions and project teams. engagement, volunteering partnerships and much more. Cultural and artistic content 43 Capacity building for volunteers, hospitality and funding A special Tartu 2024 staff member, the Funding Manager will work with organisations implementing our proposed While the Tartu 2024 Street Team programme provides cultural programme. Their task is to maximise the bid- the nucleus of able and informed volunteers for the ramp ding for EU funds by counselling the public, private or up years, a major open call (Q15) for cultural programme third sector involved in our cultural programme and, if volunteers with concomitant training is planned for 2023. needed, developing transnational networks for joint bids. The cultural institutions’ ability to engage volunteers will be further increased by Kultuurikompass forums’ expe- Cooperation with other capacity building programmes rience sharing and involvement in European Solidarity Corps’ volunteer projects (Q20). Where possible, we will cooperate and connect local art- ists and managers to already existing creative and cultural We also have ongoing discussions with organisations rep- capacity building programmes, incubators, accelerators, resenting people with disabilities on how to meaningfully workshops, seminars, etc. which are presented by Fast Track involve them as volunteers. In order to raise the capacity Tartu, a new platform run by business and governance stake- of cultural institutions for involving people with disabil- holders linking up existing capacity building initiatives. ities, the best practices will be presented and further discussions will be held at future Kultuurikompass forums. The current Kultuurikompass framework has been devel- oped in cooperation between Tartu 2024 Candidacy Team Külas, the grass-roots tours and “local colour” experi- (providing the cultural programme guidance) and City of ences programme described in Q40, will be a premier Tartu Department of Culture (guaranteeing its continuity and driver for inspiring the development of the region’s inclusion in public policies). If Tartu is awarded the title of the hospitality sector while the special Welcome to Tartu and European Capital of Culture, the programme will be man- Southern Estonia training will be carried out after assess- aged and developed by a special staff member of the Artistic ing the capacity of the region’s hospitality sector in 2023. Department in the Tartu 2024 implementation organisation. Main strands of the Tartu 2024 capacity building programme Kultuurikompass 44 Cultural and artistic content Budget for cultural programme and capacity building expenditure Programme cost (in €) TARTU WITH EARTH: TARTU WITH HUMANITY: TARTU WITH EUROPE: ECOLOGY BEFORE FORWARD TO THE GREATER SMALLER ECONOMY ROOTS CITIES Flagship events (city and region) 1,450,000 1,700,000 1,700,000 Programme line projects 1,250,000 2,300,000 1,600,000 Tartu 2024 opening and closing 500,000 ceremonies Capacity building programme 1,500,000 Kultuurkompass and residency programme Funding for additional new pro- 3,500,000 grammes (open calls, hackathons) TOTAL 15,465,000 Breakdown of the programme expenditure. Partners: University of Tartu and its Viljandi Culture Academy, Tartu Changemakers Academy, Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Intsikurmu Business Advisory Services, Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, DD Festival, sTARTUp Day, Enterprise Estonia, Kaunas 2022 Tempo Academy, TEDxTartu, Network of Estonian Nonprofit Organizations, Academy of Culture and Fluxus Labas and other ECoCs. Cultural and artistic content 45 Q7 Choosing further events for Tartu 2024 In developing a solid operating core to Windows. Likewise, the flagship Tartu the programme, as we give them the the Tartu 2024 cultural programme, we World University issues an open call for voice and the skills to be major part- also encourage further additions and Southern Estonian communities to pro- ners in creating the European Capital improvements to it. We are aware that pose locations for temporary universities. of Culture they believe in and want to new hot topics, initiatives and opera- inhabit for decades to come. tors emerge in arts and the related sec- On the other hand, if we are designated tors all the time. We’re eager to keep as the European Capital of Culture we Neighbourhood societies: some of the Arts of Survival programme artis- will reassess the final bid cultural pro- the true riches of Tartu, with their reach tically and socially relevant, up-to-date gramme for defining underrepre- across social and age groups, are not and forward-looking. However, the new sented themes, genres and potential yet well enough represented in our projects need to correspond to our partners to be addressed with spe- bid. We provide means and support for strategic aim of presenting the ECoC cific open calls and hackathons. We their all year round activities. programme that is transversal, trans- have learned and will learn a lot from national and transgenerational. LF2018’s iepen mienskip philosophy Region: our cooperative ties with the to also include a series of small-scale stakeholders in Southern Estonia have Our programme lines Tartu With everyman’s events. No-one should greatly intensified this year – we see Earth, Tartu With Humanity and Tartu feel left out of the European Capital of further need to support the upheaval With Europe are open to further ini- Culture, even if they’re not blockbust- of novel, exciting and widely appealing tiatives, including partnership offers er-producing professionals. 3,500,000€ projects from the region. from upcoming ECoCs in Germany or around ¼ of our planned Tartu 2024 (2025), Slovenia (2025), Finland (2026), Artistic Programme budget is left open Youth Slovakia (2026) and Latvia (2027). to accommodate new initiatives. The ECoC Street Team members will be Among already existing umbrella pro- Target groups under advisors for every major event and will jects, the flagship Yellow Windows special attention design/create the youth programme for Arts Programme is going to run a these events, e.g., Postmarket Street regional open call for site-specific events Youth in the schools of Tartu is one of Festival, AoS Urban Nature Festival near the National Geographic Yellow the greatest resources for expanding and many others. Every year the Street 46 Cultural and artistic content Team will create one event just by After 48 hours of guided/mentored operators and artists should have, and themselves from scratch. More ideas work, the teams should have a working further validate, competence and expe- will be collected through targeted prototype of an event. The guides/men- rience for running large-scale projects. hackathons and through the Shared tors give advice on how to integrate the Submitted project proposals should Path educational programme. idea with the ECoC concept and prin- connect to these criteria: ciples, design the budget, audience Open all: hackathons in development and engagement plans, have a clear European focus city districts, regional etc. The teams will present their project while bearing in mind our Arts of towns and villages plans or prototypes in an open event Survival concept for all citizens, panelists and mentors, We make use of the startup know-how who will decide the best ones that will adhere to the principles of being and Garage48 expertise to initiate more get the funding to execute their idea. transversal, transnational and trans- grassroots level projects and secure Further capacity building will take place generational; include European broad transversal, transgenerational in our Kultuurikompass programme. partners, audience development and, where at all possible, also trans- and engagement strategies national engagement. We hold hack- Partners: Partners: Tartu County Tourism athons in every Tartu city district but Foundation, Garage 48, Vunki Mano have a budget plan with additional also in Southern Estonian towns and vil- Hackathon, local municipalities and NGOs, funding opportunities. lages. These “community hacks” need Tartu neighbourhood societies (Tähtvere, to bring on fresh community-based Annelinn, Supilinn, Karlova, Tammelinn, If an open call applicant is accepted initiatives from teams uniting people Ihaste), Southern Estonian LEADER groups to the cultural programme, the pro- of various professions and age groups ject team continues to implement and helping the foreign workers/inhab- Open calls the project together with Tartu 2024 itants in the area to blend in. Some Foundation’s programme line manag- hackathons could be more specifically After defining underrepresented ers. Further support can be acquired themed; the topic will be decided by themes, genres and potential partners from the Kultuurikompass capacity the Tartu 2024 Artistic Director and/or on a professional scale, Tartu 2024 will building programme. programme line managers based on organise international and/or local already existing projects and what the open calls under special terms. The tar- programme is still missing. geted professional cultural institutions, Cultural and artistic content 47 Q8 How we combine local cultural heritage and traditional art forms with innovation and experiment Inventive convergences of the Estonian cultural heritage and 21st century artis- tic approaches have already attracted interest across Europe, whether in the music of Trad.Attack! from Southern Estonia or in the street art of Edward von Lõngus from Tartu. Yet in the first round, we didn’t have enough pro- jects of this kind. A welcome new entry in our updated programme is the Enter Woodland Spirits festival in with a twist of innovation for 21st cen- electroacoustic music to the churches of which tales and songs on nature spir- tury living. Focusing on both traditional the city, including one of our oldest archi- its, selected from Estonian Folklore and futuristic arts of reuse, recycling tectural landmarks, the St John’s Church Archives, become a source of inspi- and eco-friendly fabric production from the 14th century. The church ration for European digital artists for also makes up the ReVogue slow fash- expects a new baroque organ to be installations with distinctly contempo- ion programme, newly brought to our completed by 2024 and we bring some rary environmental implications. programme by the Tartu Centre for of the top contemporary musicians from Creative Industries. Europe to get a feel of it. Toomemägi A true success story for some years Revisited will expose the old Dome already, Voronja Gallery makes Viljandi Folk Music Festival is among Church ruins at the light festival and cel- European and international curators our strongest regional partners for its ebrate the UNESCO world heritage sta- and artists welcome in the Lake Peipus experience and know-how in linking tra- tus of the Struve Arc with a major work area of Russian-speaking Old Believers. dition and innovation. Now close to 30 of land art; also, scientific discoveries The gallery is also the driving force years in action, it made folk cool among and lifesaving inventions linked to the behind one of our regional flagships, young people and helped to propel University of Tartu will be displayed at an the Lake Peipus Arts Route, which, in the likes of Trad.Attack! and Mari outdoors interactive exhibition. its Gulyanye programme, aims to col- Kalkun from Southern Estonia to great lect more heritage from this and other success abroad. It now attracts tens of For the recent generations the 20th rural communities to be reinterpreted thousands of local and international century countercultural legacy is by artists and writers, exposed by large- audiences to a diverse programme of still the most intimately experienced scale artworks on the landscape and world music and is a pioneer in sus- heritage. The Psühhoteek research mapped digitally. Likewise, a regional tainable, zero-waste festival manage- and event project gathers strands of hub of some renown, MAAJAAM will ment. Along with Intsikurmu Festival underground knowledge and alt-pop present a grand environmental tech in Põlva, another major regional event practices from Eastern Europe and art Wild Bits exhibition in 2024 largely combining family-friendliness with hip- creates an East-West interface for 21st inspired by the clashes between digital ster appeal and environmental con- century exchange and multimedia reality and traditional farm life. sciousness, Viljandi Folk Music Festival cooperation, tapping those still largely also contributes to our AoS Urban unknown treasuries. Little-known treas- Tartu’s own creative hub Aparaaditehas Nature Festival. One of the main ures of Eastern European alternative is expanding its daily activities and events in the regional flagship Yellow scenes are also featured in novel con- street festivals along the same sustain- Windows Arts Programme, the Aigu texts in Surrealism 100, 1984/2024 able values, prepping up for the huge om! festival, curated by internationally Literary Festival and Hidden Worlds Postmarket in 2024 to feature a wide acclaimed folk singer Mari Kalkun, fea- Expanding. An extensive mem- range of traditional recycling crafts on tures Seto Leelo singing tradition and ory refresh for the layers of Russian- the spot. The recent history of those smoke sauna from UNESCO intangible speaking culture as the building blocks crafts and vernacular inventions will be heritage for tech-weary digital nomads. for future Russophone identities in displayed by the three-museum exhi- Estonia and Europe is undertaken by bition Beetroot Washing Machine. Tartu also has many rich layers of urban Mapping Russophone Tartu and the Neither is just a nostalgic tinkering heritage, which we open up for experi- local vernacular knowledge is revived event – both rediscover human-scale menting in 2024 and the ramp-up years. and updated by dramatic urban inter- solutions to be brought back into use Sound Our Souls brings ambient and ventions in Through The City. 48 Cultural and artistic content Q9/Q10 Local artists and cultural organisations as the prime force behind Tartu 2024 From the start, the programme for Tartu 2024 has emerged Theatre will be staging Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s The from a broad base of Tartuvian and regional artists and cul- Gulag Archipelago with a European guest director, involv- tural organisations. Two thirds of our project ideas in the ing all its three strands of drama, ballet and opera. preselection round were the result of public and professional open calls. This year we took the ideas into action, urging Another major event we are planning for 2024, the partners to flesh them out and get them ready to happen. Surrealism 100 exhibition, is now developed by Tartmus The bidding team has provided meeting space, boosted (Tartu Art Museum) at the helm as a joint project involving brainstorming and created project development tools, the Estonian National Museum and Tartu Art House along but it’s the programme emerging from the best of creative with some smaller exhibition spaces. We’re also encourag- Tartuvians and Southern Estonians, eager to reach beyond ing the inclusion of open-air installations in urban spaces the local scope and into the European experience. Our for the pleasure of flaneurs and avant garde urbanists. For improvements in working with them are, in the spirit of the the Beetroot Washing Machine exhibition of vernacular programme, becoming more transversal, transnational and inventions, Tartu City Museum has joined forces with two transgenerational. major institutions in Southern Estonia – the Estonian Road Museum and Estonian Agricultural Museum to cover a broader range of themes and audiences. University of Tartu arts spinoffs are now executive produc- ers of several events. The Natural History Museum along with the University of Life Sciences (Chair of Biodiversity and Nature Tourism) and DD Stratlab elaborates our envi- ronmental culture flagship Arts of Survival Urban Nature Festival (now also featuring nature-inspired live concerts, including Musical Rafts with Leigo Lake Music festival). One of its key events, the Science Me! European champi- onship of science theatres, is going to be co-managed by AHHAA Science Centre. The University of Tartu History Museum runs Toomemägi Revisited, which also includes another joint event with the Natural History Museum: the UHHUU exhibition exposing pseudosciences (a project proposed by the university vice rector Erik Puura). Transnational: we have ensured that all projects feature European and international partnerships in order to coun- Transversal: we’ve engaged more partners to bring fur- ter “splendid isolation” as one of the greatest challenges ther diversity and cross-sector cooperation to the projects, of the current Tartu. However, we are also in the process of to fill the gaps in preselection programme and tap their mapping and engaging local/regional Russian-speaking underused potential. The fresh initiative of Enter Woodland artistic and managerial talent in the preparations for a Spirits, bringing together digital art and folklore from regional flagship project Lake Peipus Arts Route, where Estonian Literary Museum archives, will feature the inter- folk arts, stories and hospitality are a huge source of inspira- nationally acclaimed photographer and multimedia artist tion. Storytelling is to be involved in its Gulyanye heritage Peeter Laurits as its co-curator. The alliance of the literary, project as well as in Story Stations for professional authors theatre and academic institutions (Estonian Writers Union, curated by the Tartu City Writer 2019 and area inhabitant Estonian Literary Society, Prima Vista International Vahur Afanasjev. In the city, Mapping Russophone Tartu is Literary Festival, University of Tartu Department of in the process of inviting poets, musicians, artists and schol- Literature and Theatre Studies), which brought Tartu the ars to provide the many-layered city map of Russophone cul- UNESCO City of Literature status in 2015, has now contrib- ture with a strong artistic programme. For this and Diversity uted with the blueprint for the 1984/2024 Literary Festival Land Line (run by International House Tartu) in the region, to Tartu 2024 programme, aiming to tackle utopias and dys- we also intend to involve the artistic, managerial and sto- topias, data capitalism, post-truth media and freedom of ry-telling talents of international students staying in Tartu speech issues. As one of its central events, the Vanemuine for the next few years. Cultural and artistic content 49 Transgenerational: besides already established local artists, tips from the students. As a result of those and a few other we’ve set our eyes on discovering, engaging and promoting activities in our Shared Path programme (see Q15/16), we fresh talent both now and in the years to come. Creative further hope to have our local artists list significantly expand Connections, curated by Tartmus, involves initiatives for the with more recent discoveries. youngest artists while also tackling poignant social issues of school violence. Growing With Your Food is devising a We have also taken great care to expand our organisational creative training programme for expressing the experience network to the Southern Estonian region. As a result of of urban gardening artistically. The Psühhoteek research five summits with local artists, thinkers and entrepreneurs in and events programme on alternative pop culture also Räpina, Haanja, Alatskivi, Valga and Viljandi, we have received aims to boost school bands and DJs by setting up a series very promising input for developing regional flagships of skills-training school visits by pop scholars, musicians and such as Lake Peipus Arts Route, Yellow Windows Arts nightlife entrepreneurs. However, fresh talent doesn’t have Programme, Tartu World University as well as Diversity to be young of age – in the Sharing Generations workshop Land Line, Hidden Worlds Expanding and other projects programme of Beetroot Washing Machine, partners such involving the region. as Tartu Men’s Shed help to engage middle-aged and sen- ior craftsmen, DIY engineers and photographers in communi- cating their skills to the young while also learning some new Here are some further examples of artists and organisations involved in the projects: Programme line/Project Local artists Cultural Organisations TARTU WITH EARTH: ECOLOGY BEFORE ECONOMY AOS Urban Nature Timo Maran – nature poet and semiotician, curator University of Tartu Museum of Natural Science – Festival of the talks programme executive producers of the festival Viljandi Folk Music Festival, Intsikurmu Festival, Leigo Lake Music – contribute to music events and know-how in sustainable event management University of Tartu (Department of Semiotics), University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy – contribute to talks programme Lake Peipus Arts Route Raul Oreškin (Tartu New Theatre director, gallerist Voronja Gallery, Tartu County Development at Voronja Gallery, award-winning prose writer) – Association/Visitpeipsi/Onion Route – executive main curator producers Vahur Afanasjev (award-winning poet and prose UNESCO City of Literature Tartu – associate writer, Tartu City Writer 2019) – curator of the Story producers of literary events Stations literary programme Kristiina Ehin (award-winning poet, prose writer and singer, Tartu City Writer 2017), Jüri Kolk (award-winning poet and prose writer) – co-authors in the Story Stations literary programme Kiwa, Sandra Jõgeva (artists, writers and curators) – co-curators of the arts programme Enter Woodland Spirits Peeter Laurits (photographer/multimedia artist) – Estonian Folklore Archives (Estonian Literary (Digital Art Festival) artistic curator Museum) – source materials, associate producers Martin Rästa (multimedia artist) (co-curator Taive Särg) Maajaam/Wild Bits Timo Toots, Taavi Suisalu (internationally appreci- Maajaam project space – executive producer ated tech artists) – curators of the exhibition UIT Urban Festival – associate producers ReVogue Fashion Reet Aus (fashion, theatre and film designer, global Tartu Centre for Creative Industries – executive Festival and Fair upcycling fashion pioneer) producer Pallas University of Applied Science, University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy – associate producers 50 Cultural and artistic content  TARTU WITH HUMANITY: FORWARD TO THE ROOTS Postmarket Street Ruum (Maarja Nuut and Hendrik Kaljujärv), Trad. Aparaaditehas – executive producer Festival Attack! (internationally appreciated crossover eth- nic music performers) – headline acts in the music programme Yellow Windows Arts Mari Kalkun (internationally appreciated crossover National Geographic Estonia – associate ethnic music performer) – artistic curator of the producer Aigu om! programme Remo Savisaar, Sven Zacek, Karl Ander Adami (nature photographers) – featured at the European Nature Photography Summit Surrealism 100 Kiwa (artist, writer and curator) – original concept Tartmus – executive producer developer Estonian National Museum, Tartu Art House – Jaan Malin/Luulur (sound poet, curator) – associate exhibition spaces developer in the Estonian surrealism programme Kursi School, Enn Tegova – featured artists 1984/2024 Literary Andres Lõo (musician, curator of Stalker Festival Prima Vista International Literary Festival, Festival Tallinn2011) – co-curator of Stalking Europe Estonian Writers Union, Estonian Literary Society, University of Tartu Department of Literature and Theatre Studies (main curator Jaak Tomberg) – co-producers Sound Our Souls Raul Keller, Ekke Västrik, Argo Vals, Ruum, TaHe new music community – executive producer Kaido Kirikmäe (ambient/electroacoustic artists) - performers Stand Up For Your Sander Õigus (stand-up comedy artist) – co-cura- Improtheatre Ruutu 10 – executive producer Mind tor of the programme Comedy Estonia – associate producer Through The City Jaanika Tammaru (actor and director) – main local Must Kast theatre troupe – executive producer curator TARTU WITH EUROPE: GREATER SMALLER CITIES Performa Borealis: Tartu Centre for Creative Industries – executive Tartu International producer Festival of Estonian Theatre Festival, Vanemuine Theatre, Contemporary Tartu Uus Teater, Must Kast, University of Tartu Performing Arts Department of Literature and Theatre Studies – associate producers Psühhoteek Terje Toomistu (co-curator of the exhibition and Psühhoteek record shop – executive producer director of the film Soviet Hippies) – co-curator of Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, research programme Aparaaditehas, Tartu Literature House – associate Misha Panfilov (funk musician) – co-curator of music producers programme Kaisa Ling (vaudeville blues singer) – co-curator of educational programme Emajõgi – The Birth RLOALUARNAD (Laura Linsi and Roland Reemaa, Tartu City Museum – executive producers and Death of Tartu curators of the Estonian Pavilion at the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale) – designers of the outdoors exhibition Cultural and artistic content 51 European dimension Q11 Arts of Survival and current European issues. Promoting European diversity in Tartu/ Southern Estonia and city/regional diversity in Europe with European/ international partners Tartu has the spark, the ideas, the means and the inter- and communities some crucial self-assurance: “We, too, national contacts for the process of truly developing a are Europe – we, too, matter and contribute to European European identity in the city and region. There’s still a long diversity and topics.” way to go though. When starting the bid for the ECoC in Tartu, we were self-critical about the splendid isolation and Only through this interaction and co-creation can we develop smug insularity of our artistic scenes with too much in our Arts of Survival for the whole of Europe – to spread more cultural life happening primarily by and for ourselves. The eco-friendly lifestyles in European cities, to bring gener- year of striving to change our artists’ and institutions’ mind- ations and diverse walks of life together for exchanging set has already yielded encouraging results – our creative skills and knowledge, to redefine the cultural identities links, themes and audiences are indeed becoming more of small cities and rural areas for a greater impact in international. Yet it’s got to go further than having some Europe. Thus, the development of the European dimension assertive “token foreigners” on board – they are great mates, in our projects has been twofold: featuring a broad spectrum but maybe oftentimes so much like us that we only get the of European cultures and themes (especially with specific illusion of having transgressed our comfort zone. We may initiatives in our flagship projects) and presenting a broad as well be in for just another ring of that splendid isolation spectrum of our regional cultural diversity with a greater (with a little more English thrown into the talks) unless those involvement of European/international curators and artists to links are lasting, expanding and bold enough to reach new mediate it (again, with special attention to our flagships). audiences, take up tough issues and aim for game-changing artistic interventions across the full scale of the 21st century living in Europe. We’ve noticed that many people in Estonia have quite a schizoid notion of Europe. On one hand, it’s bureaucracy, regulations, demands to have flags on the table in return for funding and all that. On the other hand, there are all those positive immediate experiences that people have while trav- elling, and “nagu Euroopas” (est “it’s just like in Europe”) is definitely a compliment. There’s hardly any need to explain European cultural diversity to most Tartuvians – we seem to get our share of it. But just a few kilometres away, the people from the Southern Estonian heartlands might not be taking it for granted. They’re not nec- essarily averse to this diversity – there’s just not enough first- Across all three programme lines, encouraging and broker- hand experience, so mentioning Europe can all too easily ing European partnerships, featuring European artists, conjure up images of suits, ties and tough restrictions. curators and public intellectuals as well as connecting to European themes and issues has been and continues to be As we said in the pre-selection phase: it’s the “little Europe” vital in developing all of our projects. that keeps fraying. The divisive and protectionist grudge emerges from the fear of disempowerment in smaller cit- Overcoming the East/West divide is a persistent ies and rural communities. We see it as a responsibility European issue even decades from the tumbling of the of Tartu to share more of the European diversity with our Berlin wall. Tartu 2024 aims to prove that Eastern Europe Southern Estonian region. For Tartu 2024, it is the people is not a bunch of poor relatives struggling to catch up, of Europe with their creativity and inventiveness, their but we have cultural riches from some of the greatest beliefs, convictions and values who embody the European artistic traditions, still largely undiscovered as a potent dimension. And on the other hand, we see it as a must source of inspiration and international cooperation. to share more of our regional cultural diversity with our The Surrealism 100 exhibition highlights the Eastern neighbours, residents and visitors in and from Europe and European contributions to Surrealism as one of the most further afield. Plenty of our local and regional initiatives ubiquitous and influential cultural phenomena of Europe deserve proper Europe-wide exposure to give the people in the 20th century. Hidden Worlds Expanding is going to 52 European dimension  be a trailblazer in Eastern Europe where outsider artists in artistic freedom and the possibilities of partaking in find- asylums and care institutions are still largely overlooked. ing solutions for European as well as global challenges. Giving these artists some credit and exposure helps arts Our literary festivals are especially known for maintaining aficionados to make a spate of surprising discoveries and developing this link. 1984/2024 Literary Festival’s from various Eastern European cultures; however, we involvement with the UNESCO Cities of Literature facil- expect it to have an even more transformative impact on itates partnerships within but also beyond Europe – in the social systems of these countries. The Psühhoteek Russia, the US and the global South. There might even be research and events programme of Eastern European ideas for future projects behind bringing global and local countercultures and alternative pop is involving partners South together in the European Capital of Culture! from Latvia and Lithuania but also Hungary (Veszprém) and former Yugoslavian countries to mediate this treas- Expanding our range of artistic residencies is a vital ure trove to curious musicians, collectors and audiences measure for making Tartu truly transnational as a cultural of Europe at large. Sharing the experience of fictional city. Residencies (described at length in the cultural pro- and real utopias and dystopias behind the Iron Curtain gramme) facilitate long-term cooperation of European/ is also one of the main themes of the 1984/2024 Literary international artists with local cultural operators, insti- Festival, especially in staging Solzhenitsyn’s The Gulag tutions and communities with distinct results for the Archipelago and devising the Stalking Europe events audiences to experience before, in and beyond 2024. programme around Eastern European science fiction with Polish partners. Activities in international networks also contribute to the European and international reach and give further input The Baltic connection should not just exist on the map, for Tartu 2024. We aim to build on the UNESCO City of paper or file. We are perceived as having a common Literature network cooperation in forging links with the recent history, but we still make too little use of it for our other sectors of the UCCN – negotiations have started with European presence. While Psühhoteek is representing ECoC candidate cities for 2025 in Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Analogue Livonia as the nexus of Estonian and Latvian Hannover (Germany). Other potentially prolific networks alternative pop culture, then Wedding: Estonian-Latvian include the network of Hanseatic League, SmartEnCity Song Festival engages European choirs in the singing Network of Smart Zero Carbon Cities together will Vitoria- experience that fed the resistant spirit of thousands Gasteiz from Spain and Sonderborg in Denmark, and The against the totalitarian regime in the two countries and is Guild of European Research Intensive Universities. In our now still a major vehicle for positive and open self-iden- Twin Cities partnerships, we’ve developed especially deep tification. Tartu also recognises and realises its much-un- connections with near-future ECoC’s Kaunas and Veszprém derused potential as a mediator between the Baltic and (see more below in Q13). Nordic cultures in the performing arts (Performa Borealis) or bringing the academe more to the forefront of the cultural revamp of smaller and mid-sized cities (European Students’ Opinion Festival). Nordic as well as Baltic part- ners are also prominent in our projects, such as Curated Biodiversity, Growing With Your Food and Reclaiming The River Emajõgi And The Great Lakes, all of which are exploring the possibilities of environmentally conscious repurposing of urban spaces, which is definitely a trend- ing practice in Europe. Brexit or no Brexit, British artists, managers and insti- tutions remain welcome in the Tartu 2024 programme. Whatever the politics, many of them want to keep connected to Europe and its cultural initiatives. From the eco-conscious fashion in ReVogue to the rediscovery of mental balance through telling one’s stories (Stand Up For Your Mind) and reducing school violence through art (Creative Connections), UK partners contribute signifi- cantly to our idea of a better Europe. Russian alliances are a definite asset both artistically and socially, but most extensively through Mapping Russophone Tartu in the city and Lake Peipus Arts Route in the region. Tartu has a long history of creative, academic and dissident mediation between European-minded Russians and Russophile Estonians/Europeans. We’ve received warm gratitude for our support of democracy, European dimension 53 Some further examples of European/international artists and organisations involved in the projects: Programme line/Project European/international artists and co-curators Cultural organisations TARTU WITH EARTH: ECOLOGY BEFORE ECONOMY AOS Urban Nature Festival David Rothenberg (US) Science Me! Science Show Competition (EU) Jaakko Pernu (FI) Degrowth (DE) Welcome to the Village Festival (NL) Lake Peipus Arts Route Peter Belyi (RU) Luda Gallery, St Petersburg (RU) Valts Mikelsons (LV) Mūkusala Art Salon, Riga (LV) Pauliina Turakka Purhonen (FI) Serge van Duijnhoven (BE) Enter Woodland Spirits Margherita Paoletti (IT) Rodrigo Lebrun (UK) Wild Bits 2024 Exhibition RIXC Center for New Media Culture (LV) PLACCC Festival (HU) Curated Biodiversity Joop Mulder (NL) Sense of Place (NL) WILK Open Cluster of Design (PL) ReVogue Fashion Week Ukrainian Fashion Week (UA) Manchester School of Design (UK) Lund University (SE) Reclaiming The River Emajõgi And VIA University College (DK) The Great Lakes TARTU WITH HUMANITY: FORWARD TO THE ROOTS Postmarket Street Festival Trans Europe Halles Network (EU) Yellow Windows Arts Programme Andrei Monguš (Tuva, RU) Sam Lee (UK) Ville Heikkinen (FI) Markus Varesvuo (FI) Vincent Munier (FR) Hidden Worlds Expanding Małgorzata Szaefer (PL) Galeria Tak Poznań (PL) ANO Outsiderville (RU) Kettuki Art Centre (FI) Brno Open Art Studio (CZ) Surrealism 100 National Gallery Prague (CZ) 1984/2024 Literary Festival Pawel Frelik (PL) Uniwersytet Warszawski (PL) Planet Lem literature centre (PL) Sound Our Souls Olafur Arnalds (IS) Berlin Atonal Festival (DE) Jean Michel Jarre (FR) Sonica Festival (SI) Keith Fullerton Whitman (US), Bang On A Can 24-Hour Drone Festival (US) (US) Lustmord (UK) 54 European dimension Beetroot Washing Machine Kaunas City Museum (LT) Latvian Agricultural Museum (LV) Slovene Ethnographic Museum (SL) Mobilia (FI) Wedding: Estonian-Latvian Song Kaspars Putninš (LV) Mixed Choir Sola (LV) Festival Kaspars Adamsons (LV) State Choir Latvija (LV) Maris Sirmais (LV) RIAS Kammerchor (DE) Daniel Reuss (NL) Libera Boys Choir (UK) Robert Prizeman (UK) Swedish Radio Choir (SE) Marc Korovitch (FR) Stand Up For Your Mind David Granier (CA) Hugarafl Mental Health Organisation (IS) Mental Helse Ungdom (NO) Creative Connections. Art Simon and Tom Bloor (UK) Museums Preventing Bullying Lundahl and Seitl (SE) Through the City Finnish National Theatre (FI) Walk the Plank (UK) TARTU WITH EUROPE: GREATER SMALLER CITIES Performa Borealis Lithuanian National Drama Theatre (LT) New Theatre Institute of Latvia (LV) Tampere Theatre Festival (FI) Psühhoteek Sound Exchange (DE/EU) Off The Page Festival (UK/NO) Spasibo Records (RU) Hangvetö (HU) Toomemägi Revisited Tina Wikström (SE) UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Johan Moritz (SE) Network (EU) Struve Geodetic Arc Coordinating Committee (EU) Universidade de Lisboa (PT) European Students’ Opinion Jubel – European Democracy Festival (BE) Festival Emajõgi – The Birth And Death Of Burgos & Garrido Arquitectos (Madrid Rio, ES) Tartu Ljubljana River Exhibition (SI) Mapping Russophone Tartu Anna Andrzhiyevskaya (RU) Walks Of Survival Secret City Trails (NL) AoS Documentaries European Documentary Network (NL/DK) A Wall is a Screen (DE) Artistic Research Residencies Iza Tarasewicz (PL) Ryoji Ikeda (JP) European dimension 55 56 European dimension Q12 Our strategy to attract the interest of a broad European and international public At first sight, Tartu strikes visitors as the unexpected juxtapositions. Tolstoy This also means taking special care that very European. Even conventionally so, meeting Gandhi on a stencil at the they are well informed of the harbours and that’s what many tourists expect – Karlova wooden district. Urban biodi- (events and logistical details) as well a wide range of places to stay, eat and versity test patches next to the vast and as the flow. Easily accessible and con- drink in, advanced traffic and commer- utopian Estonian National Museum stantly updated online platforms pro- cial infrastructure, 24-hour safety and building at the former Soviet airfield. vide sorting options by genres, dates medical help, good quality services, Most of all – the people, fellow flan- and time periods; but once you’re here, lots of fluent English speakers and of eurs, cultural explorers from all over the straying away from your original picks is course free Wi-Fi. But stick around and world, intrigued by the mystery of Tartu, also most welcome. the veil of normalcy glides off to reveal its hidden contrasts and even its “splen- a cornucopia of surprises, oddities did isolation”. Still, the programme is largely con- and mavericks. They say in Tallinn that jured to attract flaneurs at heart. While Tartu exists in a different realm of time But when the flow of people trick- there are also huge gatherings like – more relaxed, free-wheeling and even les out, so does the flow of wonders. Kissing Tartu and the Wedding song dreamlike. Once you get into the flow, We realised it’s not enough just to festival, our flagships (also AoS Urban fabulous things start to happen. hang around like a damsel in distress Nature Festival and Postmarket for someone to turn up. The Arts of Street Festival) and several other pro- Celebrating Surrealism 100 in Tartu Survival cultural programme is com- jects (Through The City, Psühhoteek, 2024 is a self-conscious choice – mak- piled for attracting crowds from Europe Walks Of Survival) provide the room ing sense of the “Tartu spirit” is all and beyond that are likely much more to roam, changing environments and a about being a flaneur, being open to diverse than what we’ve met so far. multitude of possibilities within them. European dimension 57 Rather than highlighting rigid and route and the Yellow Windows areas treasure trove of incredibly great art, monolithic mega-events with pricey is no chocolate box though. Besides literature, music and film to all those tickets and a fairly passive role for audi- tourist farms, village fetes and starry who are jaded from the Western same- ences, we present free admission to sauna nights, also the plight and des- old same-old. It’s not just for collectors’ most of our programme, encouraging olation of the villages and small towns delight – come and meet the authors mobility in space and time with plenty can be witnessed. Not for mere shock- while they’re still around and you may of “entry points”. You can tune in to a value exotica, though, but for hopping prove vital for their long-awaited sec- song by a Wedding festival choir in on a Diversity Land Line bus to lend a ond coming. And if those might seem a Curated Biodiversity park, learn a helping hand where it’s most needed or like some of the most artificial worlds craft at the Men’s Shed mobile hub, joining some brainstorm sessions with people have ever created, there’s find a rare record at the Psühhoteek top-level international public intellec- always a turn back to nature even within fair or a friend you never dreamed of at tuals at Tartu World University to find city limits for urban environmentalists all a Toomemägi Revisited open air exhi- long-term solutions. When the harsh across Europe in Curated Biodiversity bition. Arts of Survival is a programme autumn weather arrives, you’re wel- and Growing With Your Food. Plus where everyone becomes a co-creator come to get back to Tartu for a heart- novel ways to mix the most natural and rather than a consumer. When a star felt response to mental health projects traditional with the most trendy state- is invited and confirmed to perform, like Stand Up For Your Mind and of-the-art creation in ReVogue and we make sure they do something spe- Creative Connections. Tartu 2024 is Enter Woodland Spirits. cial and unique that’s not to be expe- definitely a European Capital of Culture rienced anywhere else – whether it’s for Europeans and cosmopolitans alike We believe that a European Capital of Jean Michel Jarre composing for the with social conscience and readiness to Culture is meant for making real-time new organ at St. John’s church or Ryoji bring on communal change. Showing but far-reaching changes on the spot, Ikeda creating a new piece inspired by the way to saving the rural areas of rather than promising major turns the Estonian gene bank. Europe by making them more acces- in global politics. We believe that a sible to visitors as well as locals; trans- European Capital of Culture is about Tartu is also the portal into Southern forming the social system for people befriending European and world cul- Estonia where rambling for revelations with mental health issues through arts – tures by befriending curious people may be even more wildly prolific (and with your involvement, these may prove through the arts – Arts of Survival. we aim to provide special bike, rental to be some of Tartu 2024’s greatest And if you want a primer of what Tartu car and bus services to make the region legacies. 2024 might be like, come to a Barlova more easily accessible). Our project street party. Within breathing distance descriptions can barely convey the sheer As may be the reassessment of Eastern of biodiverse gardens, this rather tiny magic realism of Voronja Gallery and Europe on a truly broad artistic scale. bar in the wooden house district has the Onion Route – no wonder that they Outlined in detail above, projects like shown our team the way how to attract have inspired some of the Lake Peipus Surrealism 100, 1984/2024 Literary a global melting pot of fabulous people Arts Route project leaders to write Festival, Hidden Worlds Expanding and make smaller cities much greater. award-winning fiction. The same could and Psühhoteek aim to prove that happen to you. The rural life along the there is still a largely undiscovered 58 European dimension Q13 How Tartu 2024 links up with other European Capitals of Culture and candidate cities The good connections that we already established in the Tallinn 2011 first round with the colleagues from other designated (Leeuwarden 2018, Kaunas 2022, Veszprem 2023) Our first reference point for consultation was naturally Tallinn or previous ECoC cities (Tallinn 2011, Turku 2011, Riga 2011 as the first Estonian ECoC and our team also includes 2014, Aarhus 2017) have strengthened further in the a person with the experience from its Creative Council. In final round. addition, some projects from the Tallinn 2011 legacy will be revived through the Tartu 2024 cultural programme – e.g. the We have remarkably enhanced the links with all of our des- public space installation project LIFT11 (in our programme ignated fellow candidates in Austria (Salzkammergut, St. LIFT24) or Stalker Festival (in Stalking Europe subsection Pölten, Dornbirn) and with the candidates from EFTA/EEA of 1984/2024 Literary Festival). countries, candidate countries or potential candidate for EU membership countries. Especially with Bodø 2024, whose Twin Cities: Turku 2011, Riga 2014, representatives had a chance to visit Tartu in 2018, but also Kaunas 2022, Veszprém 2023, Tampere 2026 with Mostar 2024 and Banja Luka 2024, we have mapped the cooperation possibilities for the cultural programmes. Tartu is happy to have several twin cities among former, upcoming or bidding ECoCs. Altogether, we have established links or enhanced contacts with 17 other past/future ECoC cities (Randers Art Museum With Turku (ECoC 2011), Kaunas (ECoC 2022) and as the partner of Aarhus 2017 will contribute to our exhibi- Veszprém (ECoC 2023), Tartu has initiated a cooperation tion programme). Every initiative mentioned here or in our between the twin cities connected with the European Capital cultural programme is pre-discussed and confirmed with the of Culture process. The aim is to support the Tempo Academy respective cities. capacity building programme of Kaunas 2022, Verancsics European dimension 59 Faustus capacity building programme of Veszprém, Leeuwarden-Friesland 2018 Kultuurikompass capacity building programme of Tartu and to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Turku as an ECoC. The Finding many similarities between the two communities on main outcomes of the project that has also applied for sup- both city and regional level, Tartu has had an intensive rela- port from Europe for the Citizens Programme are: tionship and exchange of knowledge with Leeuwarden and Friesland 2018. It started during the Kaunas European a network of cultural administrators and managers Capital of Culture Forum 2018. In the summer of 2018, the delegation of Tartu 2024 on the Tartu City Government four international events in four involved cities level visited Leeuwarden. As a consequence, various mem- bers (i.e. Immie Jonkman) of the LF2018 team have helped a mapping and survey on the needs of cultural managers us build our audience development strategy through their in these four countries iepen mienskip community experience and regional cooper- ation (our Külas initiative will largely rely on the practices of standards for environment-friendly cultural festivals LF2018 Lend a Frisian project). We plan to use their knowl- edge in developing environmental projects (Joop Mulder new cooperation projects between the cities and his Sense of Place will participate in the Curated Biodiversity activities) in addition to developing the capacity an exchange of experiences and raised awareness of of our large-scale sustainable festivals (Intsikurmu in Põlva European values, priorities and future and AoS Urban Nature Festival through the Welcome to the Village know-how). The project will start already in the autumn of 2019 in Tartu and will be completed in 2021 in Turku, Finland. Future ECoCs: Galway 2020, Novi Sad 2021, Esch-sur-Alzette 2022, One of the main stakeholders in Riga 2014, New Theatre Institute of Latvia will share its experience of community the- The Tartu 2024 team has visited Esch-sur-Alzette and atre (Through The City) with us and help us build up a brand Galway. The aim of these visits was to understand the new Nordic-Baltic Performing Arts festival Performa Borealis. development of an ECoC (we carefully observed Galway’s concept of marketing and communication), but it also Kaunas, with whom we share similar pasts and have been inspired some of the ideas for a future cooperation (Enter official twin cities since 1993, was already a strong supporter Woodland Spirits Digital Festival + Esch-sur-Alzette’s dig- of Tartu’s ambition in the preselection stage. The cooperation ital art programme; Emajõgi - The Birth And Death Of has been developed even further in the final round. The visits Tartu exhibition + Galway’s Wires Crossed: A Balancing of the Tartu 2024 team to Kaunas and vice versa in May 2017 Act for Europe). and May 2018 (European Capital of Culture Forum) have been invaluable in establishing contacts with the local team. Novi Sad will contribute to the topic which is really the old- We have built up cooperation/teamwork in various fields: est art of survival – food. Novi Sad will run a literature/visual wooden architecture heritage, biodiversity, city gardening arts creative training programme We Should All Be Nature (Kaunas Landscape Festival + Curated Biodiversity), etc. in our Growing With Your Food project. Both culinary activities of Tartu 2024 (Dumpster Diner of Postmarket In a dream world, Veszprém would be the link between along with Culinary Residency) will collaborate with the Kaunas and Tartu to form the first ECoC Twin City Trio in International Gastronomic Conference – Food Dialogues the history of Europe. We have ideas for various levels, e.g. of Novi Sad 2021. We plan to use the help of our ECoC developing the Great Lakes of Europe network or sharing partners in building up the regional grass-roots initiative lecturers in the frameworks of the Balaton Talks and Tartu Culinary Residency, which will support the Lake Peipus World University on issues of history, politics, identity, envi- Arts Route flagship project (Bodø’s Arktisk Mat Festival, ronment, etc. which are sensitive but crucial to all of Europe. Salzkammergut’s The Tavern Lab). Artists from Kaunas and Veszprém will take part of the tech- Fellow Candidates in Austria: Salzkammergut nological art project Wild Bits 2024 Exhibition by residing 2024, Dornbirn 2024, St. Pölten 2024 in its Southern Estonian base MAAJAAM during two consec- utive years. Their works will also be taken to Kaunas and the Tartu and Salzkammergut 2024 have found many similar- Lake Balaton area in the title years. ities in each other’s concepts, e.g. rethinking the cityspace (Critical Mass B145 + Postmarket), paying attention to the We are strongly supporting the endeavour of our other importance of the river (H2O-OH-NO conference) as both a Finnish twin city Tampere to become the European Capital psychogeographical object and as a crucial part of the eco- of Culture in 2026. In 2018 the treaty between the City of logical system. Additionally, there are similarities in our ideas Tampere (our twin city and candidate city for 2026) and the on how to preserve the traditional phenomena in the regions, City of Tartu was renewed. An important/big part of it is ded- such as local cuisine and public houses. icated to cooperation for the ECoC candidacy. 60 European dimension Tartu and Dornbirn 2024 plan to cooperate extensively Cultural Managers in Mostar. Representatives of Mostar’s on the level of the different forms in digital arts (espe- start-up scene will take part of the biggest business festival in cially through the Reality Disruption programme pillar the Baltics already as early as the Tartu sTARTUpday in 2020 of Dornbirn 2022) such as Linked Space; an innovation in to initiate and expand further contacts. organ music Opus Magnum Europaeum (through Sound Our Souls Project); and also the “teleport of kisses” solution Fellow candidate in Norway: Bodø 2024 during one of our flagship events, Kissing Tartu. Finally, Tartu and Bodø 2024 have developed a relation- Tartu and St. Pölten 2024 have agreed upon several collab- ship that was already strongly established during the 1st orations, e.g. developing a concept of survival for mid-sized round through extensive correspondences and regular cities and of appreciating organic farming and its market- checkups. We have been following the development of ing (Growing With Your Food + Where Does Your Food Bodø’s bidding, exchanging information on topics such as Come From? of St. Pölten 2024). food, environment and youth involvement. The pupils of Tartu will participate in the Bodø 2024 project Connected Fellow candidates from Bosnia Herzegovina: Waste and its aftermath Plaster as well as in an exchange Mostar 2024, Banja Luka 2024 documentary project (Tartu Spirit Films, DocDJ + Bodø Filmfest), We also have ideas for capacity building cooper- Both Tartu and Banja Luka 2024 find the subject of mental ation and matchmaking between the Otepää Sauna Fest health relevant to the cities’ concepts as one of the most cru- and Narvik Winterfestuka winter festivals. cial arts of survival. Therefore, two candidates have agreed to expand cooperation in battling the stigmatisation of mental We have agreed with our partners that one of the Containers health issues and special needs in the framework of the pro- of Art as an artistic ambassador of Tartu 2024 will be placed jects like Stand Up For Your Mind, Janus, Hidden Worlds in former and future ECoC locations such as Leeuwarden, Expanding and Day Centre. Kaunas, the lake Balaton area (Veszprém, as a part of the Bakony Express project), Bad Ischl (Salzkammergut, as apart Mostar is interested in exchanging experiences during of the Art Nomadic exchange project) and Nordland Region the build up of each others’ capacity building programs: (Bodø, as a part of the European Cabins of Culture project). Kultuurikompass in Tartu and Mostar Summer School of European dimension 61 Outreach Q14 How local population and civil society are involved in Tartu 2024 In our preselection bid we stated that Tartu aims to be a peo- about – their health, their surroundings, their community – ple’s ECoC. The bid was the result of 350 meetings in Tartu with possibilities for everyone to create and share their most and in the Southern Estonian region, collecting the work of significant routes in the city. hundreds. For the final round, the local population has been involved even more extensively (notably in the Southern The flourishing and synergy of third sector organisations Estonian region with a series of public brainstorms for gather- should be natural in such a compact city as Tartu, but it is not ing ideas and mapping the needs of the local communities). always a rule and many registered members of the NGOs have turned out to be “sleeping partners”. The implemen- The Arts of Survival cultural programme was improved by tation of joint projects surely entails strong possibilities for the collegial commitment of ca. 100 different individuals the growth of the truly active membership of the NGOs (e.g. with a number of projects emerging in cooperation between neighbourhood societies) as well as a significant increase in the representatives of professional institutions and NGOs. their interactions. The bidding process has already helped to Beetroot Washing Machine’s transgenerational workshop improve the communication between the neighbourhood and skills training programme Sharing Generations, the societies and the City Government. After we are designated, many-layered community theatre project Through the City, they are going to be vital partners for future hackathons and the partly interview-based river exhibition Emajõgi – The open calls to complement our programme. Birth And Death Of Tartu are just a few examples of initia- tives built on the broad everyman participation of Tartuvians. By the same token, we see our ECoC bidding process as hav- In addition, our cross-border highlight event Wedding: ing a major beneficial impact on the regional cooperation. Estonian-Latvian Song Festival mainly brings together In the final round, we have hired a coordinator for Southern amateur choirs on whose shoulders the song festival tradition Estonia to join the team who directly corresponds with the has survived and thrived for a 150 years. Walks Of Survival communities of the 19 municipalities in the region that would will pay special attention to the issues that our people care eventually consolidate our regional flagship project Yellow 62 Outreach Windows Arts Programme. The umbrella institution in this also invites thousands of people from various generations to process is LAG Tartu Rural Development Association, which join our Volunteer Programme, Street Team and Active is also responsible of the Southern Estonian LEADER groups. Agers groups. Taking the academic capacities of Tartu 2024 to the grass- In each and every project, engaging international audiences root level within the region, village communities will apply and civic organisations aside from professional artists and for hosting 12 temporary universities (two more will be in institutions will enhance the Transnational quality of the our associate cities Viljandi and Pärnu) in the course of the programme. One of our tantamount aims is to foster friendly civic educational flagship project Tartu World University. connections between the people of Tartu, Southern Estonia, Communities and NGOs around Emajõgi River, Lake Peipus Europe and beyond. As they co-create the ECoC events and Võrtsjärv have joined in with the project Reclaiming The together, Arts of Survival succeeds in tackling one of the River Emajõgi and The Great Lakes. The hospitality project biggest challenges of Tartu and Southern Estonia: mental Külas (largely taking place in the Southern Estonian region) and physical isolation. that matches curious tourists with volunteer guides is entirely in the hands of the local people. Some of the NGOs and foundations contributing to the birth and development of the cultural programme of The expanding participation and cross-sector cooperation of Tartu 2024: the civic organisations in the city and the region is the proof of us achieving the Transversal strategic aims of our ECoC Sibulatee Network NGO (Onion Route), Supilinn programme. We want to inspire the people of Tartu and Neighbourhood Society NGO, Tartu Environmental Education Southern Estonia with pride over organising the most enor- Centre Foundation, Wildlife Estonia NGO, Majakas NGO mous cultural project in the history of Tartu and Southern (Transition Town Tartu), Information Centre for Sustainable Estonia by maintaining their character but also enhancing Renovation NGO (SRIK), LAG Tartu Rural Development their identity by learning from the partners in the process. Association (TAS), Estonian Literary Society, NGO Peaasjad (Head Matters), Estonian Youth Movement for Mental Health We have asked the initiators and developers of the projects NGO, NGO Meeste Garaaž (Men’s Shed), Viljandi JK Tulevik to keep the accessibility for different generations in mind Football Club, Tartu International House NGO, Iseseisev Elu to secure the Transgenerational reach and impacts of the NGO (Supporting Agency), University Student Foundation, programme. A large share of our intended audiences are not Tartu Student Culture Club NGO, Tartu Artists’ Union, Võru involved with any of the NGOs, nor do they have to be. Still, County Development Agency Foundation, Vunki Mano hack- their presence, enthusiasm and creative spark is essential for athon programme. the success of Tartu 2024 as a grass-roots ECoC. Tartu 2024 Outreach 63 Q15/Q16 Social inclusion and audience development strategy with Shared Path for schools Transversal, transgenerational and transnational – we’ve and youth centres have ca. 2,500 annual visitors. However, repeated it so much now that it already sounds quite simple. we can do better. While Tartu engages its primary school kids Much more difficult to deliver, though, when we look at the in culture outstandingly well (90%) via city and state funded results of our audience research (confirmed by various civic “hobby schools” and everyday school curriculum, pupils’ groups). Even if the quality and diversity of the cultural offer involvement peters out during the teen years. Increasing and in Tartu is generally well appreciated, we tend to run into the maintaining it in the high school period (age 15–18) is par- same kind of people across the scale of our events. ticularly vital. By 2024, today’s high schoolers are university/ college students and/or on the labour market. How to keep The ECoC bidding process was a stark wake-up call for us to youngsters active, creative and willing to keep up with the start noticing who’s not there. We detected the key groups arts as they become adults and make long-term life choices? that are notably underrepresented among audiences. In con- cord with the aspirations of the KU30 strategy, we want Arts Action: The Shared Path cluster of projects connects arts, of Survival to break down the cultural barriers that those education and various other disciplines. The projects from our groups are facing. Arts of Survival cultural programme include Growing With Your Food, Outsider Football Tournament and Creative The focus of the Tartu 2024 audience development Connections: Art Museums Preventing Bullying where strategy is on: schoolkids are the main participants, European Students’ Opinion Festival with a focus on university students, and Teenagers and students Stand Up For Your Mind comedy/mental health project that Elderly people expects a large share of youth involvement. An educational People with disabilities component is also prominent in the projects under the aegis Ethnic minorities of Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, including ReVogue workshops and campaigns of eco-friendly fashion for teen- Furthermore, it’s a special priority of the Tartu 2024 cultural agers and students, the Psühhoteek Academy tours of programme to provide better information and accessibility for school talks on alternative pop culture and transgenerational the range of potential audiences in the Southern Estonian skill-sharing between musicians, and the Performa Borealis region while securing the influx of Tartuvian, Estonian and training programme for young performing artists. Kissing international audiences for the regional events. Tartu, Surrealism 100, Beetroot Washing Machine, AoS Documentaries (with its DocDJ re-editing of films) as well Teenagers and students as the environmental projects AoS Urban Nature Festival and Curated Biodiversity all plan to run educational/ Situation: Tartu is full of young people. There are about skills training programmes for young audiences. Mapping 13,500 people in the age group of 7–19. Most of them par- Russophone Tartu aims to train international students as ticipate in recreational activities, ca. 7,500 in hobby groups thematic tour guides in their native tongues. However, there are several other initiatives that are focused Barriers Drivers more on the educational process in the schools of Tartu and the Southern Estonian region, serving as potential hot- Digi-dependency Inclusion of influencers beds for further additions to the programme. An example is Supporting social media platforms the WOW School Model, developed in cooperation with the AHHAA Science Centre to promote natural sciences, Peers’ opinion Big names hands-on learning, critical thinking and analytical skills. To Alternative ways to hang out with peers coordinate and enhance the Shared Path cluster, a working group will be formed that includes school pupils, teachers, School stress Fun students, youth workers, school principals and experts from Inspiring take on usual topics the universities. The group will be led by the highly experi- enced leader of Tartu Youth Service, Ms. Piret Talur. Mental health issues Focusing on real needs and problems Expensive tickets   Free entrance Furthermore, we invite young people into our ECoC Street Possibility of DIY events Team – part of our capacity building plan (Q6). Street Team will help to design the youth programme for two of our 64 Outreach flagships, AoS Urban Nature Festival and Postmarket homes for awaking the related memories while Psühhoteek Street Festival. We also see Street Team members as key largely relies on the vintage countercultural stalwarts. contributors to other current and future projects in develop- ing youth inclusion and accessibility. In the Tartu 2024 programme, the bulk of the events are free of charge. For ticketed events, we plan a Tartu 2024 ticket Elderly people pool where those who can afford it can donate a ticket for those who can’t. A “best before” ticket system for last min- ute offers is another option we are exploring. Barriers Drivers All elderly people will also be encouraged to join the Tartu Lack of company Peer recommendations 2024 Active Agers team, a component of Kultuurikompass capacity building programme (Q6). They will become essen- Lack of courage Personal invitations tial in helping develop accessibility and inclusion ideas for Poor health Improved access their peers across the programme. Expensive tickets Free entrance People with disabilities Situation: It is common for aspirational cities to have an Barriers Drivers accent on youth but how about those in advanced middle age and the elderly, especially those struggling with health Lack of access Improved access issues, premature unemployment, poverty and social exclu- Content suitability (visibility, Special content/interface for sion? Although elderly women are quite active in Tartu’s civic audibility, comprehension) the impaired and cultural life, we see too few senior men in theatres or museums. Not that they have a better alternative. Loneliness Stigmatisation of disabilities Personal invitations is an acknowledged major issue in all of Europe and the risk- Participation iest group in our society are the middle-aged and elderly men withdrawn from their active working life. Some start drinking, some stay in isolation. For the unemployed and Situation: Tartu has around 13,000 people with a regis- the retired, money is definitely an issue as they struggle with tered disability. That is as many as there are students in the ticket and transport costs. University of Tartu. We need to focus at least as much atten- tion on making disabled people feel valued and welcome. This is a major challenge because a number of our regular cultural venues are in historical buildings with insufficient physical and content access facilities for people with disabil- ities. This, in turn, intensifies the sense of not being expected at cultural events. Action: The Hidden Worlds Expanding exhibition in three cities (Viljandi, Tartu, Pärnu) and the Outsider Football Tournament are special projects of outsider arts and sports respectively, raising awareness of the value of creativity and the physical activity of the disabled, aiming to initiate social reforms not just in Estonia but across Europe. In both cases, people with disabilities are also engaged in the implementa- tion of the project. Action: The Men’s Shed mobile workshop programme in We want to secure the all-inclusive accessibility to all of the the Beetroot Washing Machine exhibition will empower locations as well as the content of all of our events and our middle-aged and elderly men through social activities, train- programme website. We will build on the experience of pre- ing and sharing skills. The broader Sharing Generations vious ECoCs such as Aarhus 2017 or Leeuwarden 2018, but programme under the same exhibition also involves mid- also the great examples from European inclusive events (e.g. dle-aged and elderly women for transgenerational skill shar- The Orange Warsaw Festival). A large share of our events will ing in Tartu and the region. Stand Up For Your Mind wel- take place in open-air locations. Together with organisations comes both senior and junior participants with mental health like The Estonian Chamber of Disabled People and NGO issues; Lake Peipus Arts Route collects stories of seasoned Hoolekandeteenused (Social Services) we will recruit vol- inhabitants in the Onion Route Area and Through The City unteers among people with special needs who will see all the does the same in Tartu. AoS Documentaries even takes venues and meet all the project managers to help us design its VR/AR-enhanced Public House documentaries to care events that will be accessible for all. Outreach 65 Ethnic Minority Groups inland cultural travel expensive and complicated. Limited funding hinders first-hand contacts with the top artists and performers and expanding cultural tastes. Lack of national Barriers Drivers media interest and promotion skills blocks off potential audiences even from nearby areas, not to speak of national Language barrier Translation/interpretation provided and international ones. Detachment from the Possibility to mingle and share one’s local community culture with locals Barriers Drivers A sense of Being accepted as Tartuvian in a Lack of access Improved access temporariness cosmopolitan city Lack of cultural habits Relatable topics Participation Situation: Despite some claims, Tartu is emphatically not a monocultural city. True, it has been part of the Constitution- Expensive tickets Free entrance backed Estonian national pride to expect others to “learn the language” to be accepted. But where and how can they Staying in the cultural Big names for innovative approach even start? International students, ICT sector employees, ref- comfort zone Peer recommendations ugees and long-time locals who don’t speak Estonian don’t get enough information on public events, funding and train- ing options in English, Russian or any other language. Tartu Action: In all three programme lines, Tartu 2024 has asserts itself as a European city but needs to act as one too. appointed regional flagship events for priority development. We must open up the arts, civic life and community action to All the regional flagships are largely bottom-up activities. all who choose to live here. Lake Peipus Arts Route is not just a programme of con- temporary environmental installation art, but also platform Action: All of our projects are expected to provide events for community initiatives along the Onion Route. Through and information for both international and multilingual Yellow Windows Arts Programme, Southern Estonian audiences as well as Estonian-speaking locals. Diversity small towns and villages are invited to introduce their events Land Line is a mobile project that integrates various ethnic to a larger and heavily promoted whole. Additional transport groups and their cultures into the social and artistic activities solutions will be developed for both. Tartu World University of Tartuvian and Southern Estonian Communities. Mapping is a folk university programme of education and regional Russophone Tartu aims to unite and empower diverse and development with the guidance of nationally and interna- detached Russophone groups in the city by raising aware- tionally renowned speakers. Its sessions will be synchronised ness of the cultural value of their identity and its relevance with the local festive calendars for a wider audience reach. for Tartu, Estonia and Europe. Estonian and Russian speaking Külas engages volunteers across Southern Estonia to host, youngsters will exchange the experiences of different cul- guide and befriend guests from other cultural backgrounds tures through the Tartu 2024 Street Team and develop an – thus building trust, improving the language and hospital- edgy conglomerate programme for the Festival of Actual ity skills for long-term benefits but also sparking an interest Russophone Estonia that brings together various gener- in the Tartu 2024 events. A spate of other regional projects ations of Russian-speaking audiences with other local and elaborated in the Tartu 2024 programme will ensure a much international ones. Lake Peipus Arts Route engages the broader involvement of local audiences in the European Onion Route Old Believers in gathering source material for Capital of Culture activities. the project and hosting its visitors. 1984/2024 Literary Festival builds on Prima Vista which has a long tradition of engaging Russian-speaking audiences. Our various ethnic communities will participate in a multilin- gual Cultural Hackathons Programme taking place in their habitat, neighbourhood or region. They can propose an idea, develop it with their neighbours and deliver it as part of the Tartu 2024 cultural programme. Southern Estonian communities Situation: Southern Estonia is culturally rich and diverse. However, many locals are disgruntled by the South bleed- ing dry and the feeling that “the state has left the country- side”. This feeling of redundancy is understood, considering how many crucial services have recently been withdrawn from the region. Deficiencies in transportation make even 66 Outreach Management Q17 Income to cover operating expenditure TOTAL INCOME TO FROM THE PUBLIC FROM THE PUBLIC FROM THE PRIVATE FROM THE PRIVATE COVER OPERATING SECTOR (IN €) SECTOR (%) SECTOR (IN €) SECTOR (%) EXPENDITURE (IN €) 24,500,000 23,000,000 94 1,500,000 6 The size and income structure of the operating budget has not changed compared to the preselection bid book. Income from the public sector Q18 INCOME FROM THE PUBLIC SECTOR TO IN € % COVER OPERATING EXPENDITURE National Government 10,000,000 43 City 10,000,000 43 Other municipalities of the region 1,500,000 7 EU (without Melina Mercouri Prize) 1,500,000 7 TOTAL 23,000,000 100 Management 67 Q19 City/region/state financial commitments to cover operating expenditure Approval was received from the Tartu City Council already the 19 Southern Estonian local municipalities that have in 2018 with the passing of the City of Tartu Budget Strategy joined Tartu’s bid, signed the Treaty of Support for Tartu 2019–2022, indicating the funding of a potential Tartu 2024 2024 that directs further ECoC cooperation. As a result we’ve ECoC operating expenditure for these years. On 27 June 2019 developed funding scenarios based on the per capita fund- the strategy was updated and voted on to reflect the fund- ing models used previously in a range of previous ECoCs ing for the period of 2020–2023. The strategy will be further with a significant regional component. A common proposed updated and implemented by each year’s City of Tartu budget. principle is that every local government will annually receive activities, events and media exposure worth at least the sum The Government of Estonia first confirmed its commit- of their input, possibly much more. This balance will be pre- ment on 30 August 2018 by agreeing to cover operating sented in a special end of year report. In the first half of 2020, expenditure as a matching grant in proportion with the City’s the funding scenario proposals will be introduced, negoti- input and other sources within 10,000,000 €. The Ministry of ated and voted on in the respective municipality councils. Culture and Ministry of Finance included this commitment in the Estonian State Budget Strategy 2020–2023 which was This branch of public funding will also be carried out in the issued by the Government of Estonia on 30 May 2019. framework of annual budget strategy updates and yearly budgets of municipalities as is the case with the financial For the regional share of the operating expenditure, we have commitment of the City of Tartu. The timeline for regional as carried out rounds of consultations and on 29 April 2019 well as state funding is that they should start from 2021. Fund raising strategy for Q20 operating expenditure from European Union programmes We find it realistic that between 2020 and the title year, the We also recognise that as a unifying and extensive develop- Tartu 2024 organisation and its ECoC implementation part- ment project with strong European themes, the European ners bid and win funds in the region of 1,500,000 euros. Our Capital of Culture taking place in Southern Estonia creates European Union fund raising strategy will be carried out from strong potential for receiving support from international 2020 onwards by a dedicated External Funding Manager and state level funding sources along with regional and who will work together with the staff of the Southern Estonian local institutions. municipalities included in our bid. In some cases, the newly-established Tartu 2024 Foundation Tartu 2024’s EU funding strategy takes into account that will not be able to apply for EU funding until 2022. Therefore, the specifics of the European Union’s financial period 2021– it must be done by its implementation partners. We see this as 2027 are still being decided. However, indications are that a positive feature for long term capacity building by working the total amount of funding available to Estonia would not with the Region’s municipalities and institutions in learning the decrease drastically. On the other hand, there will probably know-how of the international fund raising strategy and also be a rise in the required own contribution from the applicants. connecting with artistic and project partners from Europe. Therefore, we have assumed a greater sum for co-funding and will establish a co-funding pool for Artistic Programme A strong funding team with the capacity to coordinate and projects and partners. The exact details of this pool are yet to support both the Foundation’s but also regional and insti- be decided, but its main function is to be an instrument for tutional partners’ bidding is already required from the year allowing to bid for critical EU funding. 2020. The funding team must work in close collaboration 68 Management with the Artistic Department, as they are directly connected participants can set up small-scale partnerships, it will be a to the proposed Artistic Programme and the projects of Tartu funding option for Tartu 2024 partners with an educational, 2024, which have to prepare action plans in the build-up volunteering or youth focus. The newly founded European years of 2020–2023. Solidarity Corps provides funding and staffing for volunteer positions, so we recommend the organisations that are carry- We plan to focus on 2 areas of funding possibilities – direct ing out the Tartu 2024 Artistic Programme or taking part in the and indirect subsidies. Kultuurikompass capacity building programme to apply to Volunteering Projects format to get volunteer help and expe- For direct subsidies, we recognide that the most impor- rience working with international staff. The Tartu 2024 partner tant European Union programmes are Creative Europe, Estonian Print and Paper Museum was already granted a Erasmus+, Europe for Citizens and URBACT. Depending more advanced Volunteering Partnership until 2021, which on the programme, the proposed Tartu 2024 Foundation makes them a coordinator of ESC volunteers among cultural would qualify as a recipient of funds either on its own or in institutions in Tartu. Based on their experiences, the new a joint bid with partner organisations. Yet, in many cases the bid(s) could already be handed in the the ultimate annual organisations leading the projects in the artistic programme calls (2020) of the current framework. could apply for EU funding themselves. This presents the Foundation with the need to have capacity both for applying For indirect subsidies, the EU funds that are distributed by for funds itself, as well as for coordinating the actions of a the Estonian state and its institutions, we recognise the need wider network of applicants. to head a sustained intra-municipality cooperation for pro- moting shared interests on the state level. Southern Estonian Southern Estonian artists and cultural managers could ben- aspirations that are associated with the European Capital of efit from the Creative Europe 2021–2027 funding targets of Culture need to be present in upcoming regional and state increased cross-border cooperation for cultural operators and level development strategies, which also direct the usage of more funding for European cultural networks. These targets EU funds. A key partner to talk to is the Government Office who match with our Kultuurikompass (Culture Compass) capac- is heading the Estonia 2035 Strategy process. Partnerships ity building efforts to make local scenes more international. with Estonian ministries of Culture, Education, Environment and Finance are also essential to this branch of action, which Since the new period of Erasmus+ opens the programme support most of all the financing capital expenditures, but up for smaller and grassroots organisations so that the could also benefit covering operating expenses. Management 69 Q21 Timetable for income to cover operating expenditure 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Later TOTAL Total annual income to cover operating expenditure (in €) 100,000 820,000 1,850,000 3,210,000 5,900,000 11,100,000 1,180,000 340,000 24,500,000 Source of income: National Government (in €) 700,000 1,300,000 3,000,000 5,000,000 10,000,000 Source of income: City (in €) 100,000 800,000 860,000 1,500,000 1,500,000 4,300,000 700,000 240,000 10,000,000 Source of income: Other municipalities of the region (in €) 150,000 200,000 350,000 550,000 200,000 50,000 1,500,000 Source of income: EU (without Melina Mercouri Prize, in €) 100,000 200,000 400,000 550,000 200,000 50,000 1,500,000 Source of income: Private sector (in €) 20,000 40,000 60,000 600,000 700,000 80,000 1,500,000 70 Management Q22 Fund raising strategy for private sponsoring As a country that did not have any private companies only surrounding it. Never before has Southern Estonia had such 30 years ago, our society is still quite young when it comes an opportunity to be in the international spotlight. Our pro- to the private sector sponsoring culture. With this in mind, posed programme aims to involve many people from home Tartu 2024 is also looking to be a pathfinder when it comes and abroad. Our bid represents the whole region instead of to exploring and developing new relationships between for- one city – this makes it more appealing for possible commer- profit and non-profit organisations in the community. cial partners also. Tartu is actually showing the signs of great potential for con- To get them fully on board, the Tartu 2024 team will also have temporary fund raising. We are home to two of the biggest the capacity to come up with creative ways for CSR and spon- recent Estonian culture crowdfunding campaigns. sorship activation: a Sponsorship Manager working in coop- eration with the Marketing Manager and marketing-commu- The local football club JK Tammeka sold virtual square nication assistants. metres of their proposed new football pitch and raised 160,000€ in only 71 days to support its construction. Tartu A key aspect of our offer is developing Tartu 2024 as an attrac- Uus Teater campaigned to buy a theatre house and raised tive brand. We see our emerging brand as artistic, socially 335,000€ in a year. inclusive, future-oriented, eco-friendly and trustworthy. We aim for it to be among the five most recognized institutional We want to build on these Tartuvian success stories by initiat- culture brands in Estonia by the end of 2024. ing similar community-based sponsorship projects proposed both by the Tartu 2024 Foundation and among our region’s In order to boost our community building among sponsors, cultural operators. For the latter we have already started we plan to engage professionals and existing networks (see to use the framework of our capacity building programme below in Engaging Experts). Kultuurikompass. Engaging small to medium Private sponsorship goal enterprises and individuals We aim to raise 1,500,000€ in private sponsorship for Tartu For the budget, it is vital to have the big companies on board, 2024. We plan to raise two thirds of this support from the but for wider community engagement and the fulfilment corporate level, one third from small to medium enterprises of our ECoC goals, it is vital to also include local, small to and individuals. 75% of private sponsorship should be in medium Southern Estonian enterprises. Seeking support not cash, the rest should be received as an in-kind support of only from SMEs but also individual citizens is an important goods and services. way of sharing our ECoC vision and ideas with the business community in Tartu and Southern Estonia. Vast majority of the private sponsorship income is expected from 2023 to 2024, as that’s the peak time for public interest In the heart of our SME fund raising strategy is club and media attention. #üheskoos ’24 (#together ’24). It is modelled after Mons’ Club 2015, which raised 841,000€ from 841 small to medium Engaging corporations enterprises, each contributing 1000€. We see finding and engaging sponsors as a part of the Tartu #üheskoos ’24 is designed to raise at least 300,000€ from 150 2024 community building. Tartu and Southern Estonian SMEs each contributing 2024€. To make it more accessible for smaller companies, this con- For the partners with the biggest financial input, we aim to tribution can be made over a period of two years. In addition find associates among Estonian and foreign corporations to companies, #üheskoos ’24 also targets individuals whose with whom we share the vision and values of our bid. Potential contribution of 24€ or 240€ totals around 260,000€. partners include socially responsible or transformative enter- prises from the financial services, food industry, telecommu- Companies supporting #üheskoos ’24 will receive branded nications industry, transport industry, etc. Tartu 2024 signage tailored for their needs, business network- ing opportunities and exclusive access to certain Tartu 2024 In the heart of our presentation is the belief that Tartu 2024 events. Individual supporters receive Tartu 2024 merchandise, is a one of a kind, major project for Tartu and the counties access to premium seats or viewing areas of our main events. Management 71 CONTRIBUTOR TYPE VALUE OF CONTRIBUTION TARGETED AMOUNT OF TOTAL CONTRIBUTION (IN €) CONTRIBUTORS (IN €) SMEs 2,024 150 303,600 Individuals 240 240 100 24,000 Individuals 24 24 1,000 240,000 In addition, their names will be presented on a thank-you wall trust between local businesses and the ECoC. Direct partici- of a special work of public art created in central Tartu during pation and contribution to our brand makes local companies the Arts of Survival Urban Nature Festival in 2024. also more open to become sponsors themselves. The profit of #üheskoos ‘24 will be used to finance the parts Partnerships in Estonia and abroad of the Tartu 2024 programme targeted at youth and the inclu- sion of marginalised groups as well as for the micro-funding In order to carry out presented fund raising initiatives, craft of last moment Arts of Survival community projects. our brand and network, Tartu 2024 will cooperate with national and regional business associations, local IT and Engaging experts startup community, Rotary clubs and marketing communica- tions experts from Tartu universities. We will also look into for- Advisory board eign private funding opportunities with the help of Estonian honorary consuls and the Estonian community abroad. In order to plan presented fund raising initiatives, brand development and networking in detail, we are inviting mar- Funding in the future keting and PR executives from top Southern Estonian com- panies to volunteer in a special Forum of Business Advisors In addition to already available private funding options, we starting in 2020. keep an eye on emerging blockchain-based platforms for ticketing and crowdfunding. Are there Tartu 2024 projects Aside from giving us strategic marketing and sales advice, our that will be kickstarted by ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings) instead advisors will also get a deeper understanding of Tartu 2024’s of classic funding schemes? Most likely yes, because Arts of vision, values and opportunities. Such cooperation develops Survival is also about constant adaptation! 72 Management Q23 Breakdown of the operating expenditure Programme Programme Promotion and Promotion and Wages, overheads Wages, overheads Total of the expenditure expenditure marketing marketing and administration and administration operating (in €) (in %) (in €) (in %) (in €) (in %) expenditure 15,465,000 63 4,875,000 20 4,160,000 17 24,500,000 Timetable for spending Q24 operating expenditure Year Total Total Programme Programme Promotion Promotion Wages, over- Wages, over- (in €) (in %) expenditure expenditure and and heads and heads and (in €) (in %) marketing marketing administration administration (in €) (in %) (in €) (in %) 2019 €100,000 0.4 €25,000 0.1 €25,000 0.1 €50,000 0.2 2020 €820,000 3.3 €200,000 0.8 €180,000 0.7 €440,000 1.8 2021 €1,850,000 7.6 €900,000 3.7 €300,000 1.2 €650,000 2.7 2022 €3,210,000 13.1 €1,900,000 7.8 €600,000 2.4 €710,000 2.9 2023 €5,900,000 24.1 €2,900,000 11.8 €2,160,000 8.8 €840,000 3.4 2024 €11,100,000 45.3 €8,800,000 35.9 €1,200,000 4.9 €1,100,000 4.5 2025 €1,180,000 4.8 €600,000 2.4 €360,000 1.5 €220,000 0.9 Later €340,000 1.4 €140,000 0.6 €50,000 0.2 €150,000 0.6 TOTAL €24,500,000 100 €15,465,000 63 €4,875,000 20 €4,160,000 17 Management 73 Q25 Income from the public sector to cover capital expenditure in Tartu 2024 The capital expenditure in connection with the title year includes renovations of museums, for example the works SOURCE OF INCOME IN € % planned in Tartu City Museum (housing the project Beetroot Washing Machine). Investments also include construction EU 9,800,935 30 works for improving venues such as open-air stages, com- National Government 4,203,824 13 munity, village and youth centres, which will be used for current (Tartu World University, Yellow Windows Arts City 11,073,000 33 Programme, Diversity Land Line, etc.) and future Artistic Programmes (designed with community hackathons) and Other municipalities 7,879,796 24 also for Kultuurikompass events. Capital expenditure also of the region includes the expansion of river and lake ports (in connection to Reclaiming The River Emajõgi and The Great Lakes). TOTAL 32,957,555 100 Regarding Tartu, we’ve also included planned expansions of light road networks used in Walks of Survival, planned investments to Toome Hill (Toomemägi Revisited) and play- and Tallinn as the main transportation gate of Estonia. The grounds (Curated Biodiversity). funding is indicated in the State Budget Strategy 2020–2023 and the construction will take place in the same period. In addition to the sums presented in the table, the Government Additional investments amounting to several million euros of Estonia will invest 66,167,000€ of state and EU funds to for the same period will be made by the State to improve the improve highway and railroad connections between Tartu Southern Estonian regional road system. City/region/state financial Q26/Q27 commitments to cover capital expenditure. Fund raising strategy for EU programmes Most of the projects accounted for in the above stated income advice and connecting proposed projects to necessary ven- for capital expenditure have been included in budget strat- ues and environments or required capital expenditure. This egies for the years 2020–2023 and have been voted on by insight will be gained with the help of the publicly accessible state or municipality authorities. Some require further confir- database of funding opportunities described in the answer mations in the coming years. for funding opportunities from the EU for the programme and it will be the basis for seeking additional financial sup- Most of the future bidding for capital expenditure funding port from EU or other external sources. will be done by the twenty Southern Estonian municipal- ities themselves. Overall, Estonian municipalities have a Additionally, the Tartu 2024 Foundation must act decisively strong track record in absorbing external funding for capital in promoting European Capital of Culture related capital expenditure projects, which contributes to a maximal take-up expenditure decisions on regional and state level develop- of Union funding. ment when strategies directing the usage of EU funds are cre- ated or updated. It should be emphasized that such efforts In the coming years, Tartu 2024’s Funding Manager and can yield multi-million euro investments to the region, which Artistic Department must support these partners by offering is likely to make this branch of work particularly impactful. 74 Management  Timetable for income to Q28 cover capital expenditure 2020 (IN €) 2021 (IN €) 2022 (IN €) 2023 (IN €) 2024 (IN €) EU 5,728,894 1,656,228 1,205,813 400,000 810,000 National Government 840,765 840,765 840,765 840,765 840,765 City 5,363,000 3,300,000 1,200,000 730,000 480,000 Other municipalities of the region 2,809,703 2,282,247 1,917,279 457,200 413,367 Private sector - - - - - TOTAL 14,742,362 8,079,240 5,163,857 2,427,965 2,544,132 There are also agreements and plans for sports infrastructure, but at the time we cultural programme as presented in this private sector investments into Southern chose to include only these projects bid book. Private sector involvement is Estonian hospitality, entertainment and and objects which are connected to the very likely at a later stage. Q29 Spending for new cultural infrastructure to be used in Tartu 2024 Lodjakoda river port, named after the centre dedicated to lodi, the historical Emajõgi-Peipsi barge, will play a major part in our River Emajõgi and Lake Peipus projects. Additionally, The City of Tartu is building the Annemõisa Indoors Football Hall during 2021- 2022 for which we have not yet pro- grammed artistic content, but as a new multi-functional venue in the most populous neighbourhood of Tartu, it serves as a back-up site for local Tartu 2024 projects. OBJECT TIME PERIOD ESTIMATED COST (IN €) FUNDING SOURCES Lodjakoda river port 2019-2020 1,830,000 Tartu City Government, European Union Management 75 76 Q Q 77 Q30 Governance and delivery structure for Tartu 2024 If Tartu is awarded the title of 2024 European Capital of The Management Board is the top governing board on the Culture, an independent Tartu 2024 foundation (sihtasutus or executive level of the organisation. The General Director SA in Estonian) will be established by Tartu City Government is the sole member of this Board, which also makes him/her in autumn 2019. The legal form of the foundation is suita- the top executive decision maker. According to the law, this ble for providing the artistic independence required from Board could include a greater number of management-level a European Capital of Culture by creating a separate legal staff members, but we’ve chosen the minimal model for entity for implementation while retaining all rights for public clear and efficient communication between the Supervisory as well as private funding. Council and the rest of the organisation based on the experi- ences of Estonian cultural organisations, especially theatres. The core values of the Foundation For advisory and information purposes, Tartu 2024 The vision of the Foundation is: Tartu is an open, bold and Foundation’s charter will also establish three forums: one friendly city of culture. This is also the vision of Tartu’s KU30 for the mayors of regional municipalities, one for private Cultural strategy. sector business professionals and one for cultural experts. These forums have no formal decision-making power in the The mission is to implement the European Capital of Culture Foundation. The function of the forums is to sustain and grow proposed in this bid book, along with its artistic programme, the trust and cooperation between the candidacy team and marketing and communication and financial strategies to the public that is established in the bidding period. reach its long-term impacts described in the strategy chapter. Delivery structure The values of the Foundation are the following: A transversal, transnational and transgenerational project like the European Capital of Culture presents many tasks that TRUST COMPETENCE VISION overlap with the classic department-style organisation struc- ture. Tartu 2024’s delivery structure is therefore based around Transparent Capable Perceptive the goal of cooperation and integration between the arts, communication and business strands of our foundation while Accountable Effective Innovative delivering first class efficient and professional governance. Independent Responsive International All the managers mentioned in the organisation chart will also have an increasing number of support – from special- ists, assistants, project managers, external service providers, The values above also form a set of design principles around interns or volunteers – as the title year draws closer. which our planned delivery of Tartu 2024 can be built. Even though there are three divisions (Finance and Governance structure Administration, Communication and Marketing, Artistic Programme and Outreach) with leading managers, the According to Estonian laws, a foundation is required to have Foundation aims to be a largely team-based organisation a Supervisory Council and a Management Board with other where managers and employees work collaboratively in boards or forums being optional. cross-sectoral groups. These teams are tasked with specific projects, for example/i.e. planning and carrying out artistic The City of Tartu will be the sole founder of the Tartu 2024 programme open calls, capacity building events, action plans Foundation and will nominate two out of five Supervisory for EU funding, etc. Also, external actors such as representa- Council members, inviting key partners – regional municipal- tives from municipalities, cultural institutions or project part- ities, universities of Tartu and the national government. Based ners could be included into these teams. on previous experiences of organisations with the same legal form, we conclude that the council with the size of approx- Data management imately five members has high potential for well-informed purposeful collaboration with the management while still In order to seamlessly manage team-based collaboration including major stakeholders who took part in the prepara- and data flow in a major project like the European Capital of tion of the bid. Culture, we have already extensively used cloud software in 78 Management Tartu 2024 Foundation organisation chart with boards and managerial-level staff members. the bidding phase for team, stakeholder and data manage- has used tools by Estonian start-ups such as Scoro (project ment. Shareable and sorted digital data allows for improved and budget management), Weekdone (team goals and task continuity from the bidding to the preparation stage. In management), Fleep (team chat communication), Pipedrive addition to Google’s shared work environments, our team (CRM) and Zelos (volunteer management). Management 79 Q31 Organisation of the Tartu 2024 Foundation at management level Based on the decision making and the functions from 2024 Foundation’s structure can be divided into four char- supervising to carrying out ECoC projects and events, Tartu acteristic levels: ORGANISATION ACTIVITIES REPORTS TO KEY DECISIONS APPOINTING SKILLS, QUALITIES LEVEL The Supervisory • Overviewing the • Reports to the • Approves strat- • Council members • Experienced in Council level Foundation’s pro- organisations egies and goals, appointed by implementing cultural, gress and results that nominated the annual the City of Tartu, financial or commu- them financial plan, the regional munic- nication strategies • Advising the budget and the ipalities, univer- and international General Director staff structure sities of Tartu cooperation and Division and the Estonian leaders Government The • Leading the • The General • Decides on annual • The General • Experienced in man- Management implementation Director goals, financial Director agement and in inter- level (General on the strategic reports to the plans, the budget appointed by national cooperation Director and and tactical level Supervisory and the staff the Supervisory • Highly skilled in their Division leaders) Council structure Council; • Managing budg- specific fields ets, communica- • The rest report • Decides on hiring • Rest appointed • Mission and vision tion and market- to the General staff by the General oriented thinking ing; the artistic Director Director • The Artistic programme • Systematic Director has the final say • Team players on the Artistic Programme The Division • Leading the • Reports to the • Decides on the • Appointed by the • Experienced in project level implementation of Division leaders specifics of their General Director or event management action plans and and team Division and • Is very experienced in programme lines managers position their artistic or social • Managing pro- field gramme lines and • Fresh vision project managers • Systematic • Team players • People’s skills The Project/ • Leading the • Reports to • Decides on the • Appointed mostly • Experienced in project event level implementation of Programme specifics of their by the Artistic or event management specific projects Line Managers projects Director as part • Well-versed in their and events of the Artistic artistic field Programme; in other cases by the • Fresh vision General Director • Good at involving people • Motivated to learn, try and improve Management matrix of Tartu 2024 Foundation 80 Management Senior management level Resources Manager, joining the Foundation at a later stage, manages large scale staffing. The General Director is the top executive decision maker whose selection will be the first thing done after establish- The Marketing & Hospitality Manager with their team of ing the Tartu 2024 Foundation due to their decision-making marketing specialists and assistants leads international cam- power in selecting the next key staff members. Their role of paigns and the hosting of foreign visitors from the grass-roots mediating the Supervisory Council and the rest of the Tartu to the international level, including cooperation with Visit 2024 Foundation is described in Q30, the specifics of hiring Tartu and Visit Estonia. The Regional Coordinator manages them are detailed in Q32 and the qualities and tasks further marketing and communication activities for the region as well discussed in Q34. as the relationships with the mayors, councils and staff of the other 19 Southern Estonian municipalities that are included The Financial Manager, Communication & PR Manager in our bid. The Division of Marketing and Communication and the Artistic Director are the leaders of respective managers are also served by the Content Creation Team Divisions and make up the rest of the top management. As (Q38-Q39), tasked with recording, editing and publishing they are the key players in the European Capital of Culture ECoC-related media. organisation, they must be skilled in their respective fields, but also in international cooperation. The Artistic Director has The Artistic Programme Division includes up to four the final say in the artistic choices of Tartu 2024. Their hiring Programme Line Managers who are professionals from and tasks are described in detail further below. different fields of culture curating the development and implementation of our three proposed programme lines plus Executive specialists make up the rest of the management Kultuurikompass. They coordinate the Artistic Programme level. The Partnerships manager is responsible for planning project managers who are either staff members of the and carrying out the cooperation with the private sector. The Foundation, or, in most cases, external players (independent External funding manager formulates and coordinates the artists or representatives of partner organisations). bidding for the European Union funds. A dedicated Human Management 81 Q32 Recruiting staff with skills and experience In case of being designated as the European Capital of in this bid book and the experiences of previous ECoCs, Culture, staffing will begin step-by-step in the autumn of we have mapped out the staff size and requirements for the 2019. Based on the programme and strategies presented years 2020–2025 and present it in the table below: 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 No. of people 23 29 42 59 70 20 Full time 8 9 13 18 19 4 Part time* 15 20 29 41 51 16 * Part time also includes Artistic Programme project managers. The table does not include the members of different advisory forums or the staff of external services for finances, audit, legal matters or monitoring & evaluation. Tartu 2024 Foundation staff demand and planned work loads of 2020–2025 Key Success Factors Cooperation with other ECoCs. Tartu’s geographical proximity to and the two year title gap with Kaunas 2022 The essential components for ensuring that the organisation offers invaluable possibilities for knowledge exchange, has the staff with the appropriate skills and experience are study trips, internships, youth exchange, etc. to boost our as follows: skills and expertise. Continuity from the bidding stage to the preparation First stage: hiring key players (2019–2020) stage is crucial for planning, managing and deliver- ing a successful European Capital of Culture. As a Recruiting talent for the implementation of Tartu 2024 begins host to the Tartu 2024 candidacy team, the Tartu City after the City of Tartu establishes the Foundation with its Government Department of Culture has the awareness Supervisory Council in autumn 2019. and the means to keep and transfer the bidding expe- riences and networks until the Foundation has been The first Tartu 2024 staff members to be selected are properly set up. the General Director, the Financial Manager and the Communications & PR Manager. These positions are Resources. Building an effective ECoC organisation crucial in establishing a capable and well-funded ECoC within the tight time frame requires both the fulfilment organisation as quickly as possible. The recruitment will be of the promises made by the financial providers as well announced in late autumn 2019. as vigorous work done by the Supervisory Council and the first managerial-level employees of the Foundation in The Supervisory Council will select the General Director, order to apply these resources to build up an able organ- who, when having assumed position in January 2020, invites isation that involves top talent. their first team members, the Financial Manager and the Communications & PR Manager. One staff member, the Employer brand and fast tracks for talent recruitment. Regional Coordinator, will be transferred straight from the Our ambition is as stated – we want our ECoC to be Candidacy Team to continue their ongoing work, because among the top Estonian cultural organisation brands already by May 2020, Tartu 2024 has to win the approval for and therefore an attractive employer as well. We’ve funding from the councils of all the 20 municipalities included introduced our goals and work to MA level cultural in the bid of the European Capital of Culture in 2021. management and marketing students of the University of Tartu and to the Viljandi Academy of Culture. We see The only key management member to be appointed slightly people growing into a lot of the roles, because no one’s later is the Artistic Director for whom there will be a further born an ECoC expert! open recruitment process. Their hiring is detailed further below. 82 Management The timeline for hiring the General Director and Next stages (2020–2024) other key managers The following scheme depicts the next stages of planned • Establishing the Tartu 2024 Foundation – October 2019 Tartu 2024 Foundation appointments (hiring staff, nominat- ing forum members or including interns and volunteers) from • Open call for candidates – 1 November 2019 2020 onwards based on the urgency and interconnectedness • Group interview and panel evaluation – 2 December 2019 of different strands of ECoC implementation. • The General Director assumes their position – 1 January 2020 • Other key managers assume their positions – January 2020 • The Artistic Director assumes their position – by July 2020 Tartu 2024 Foundation appointment stages from 2020 onwards. Management 83 Q33 Cooperation between city, region and the Tartu 2024 Foundation Thorough cooperation while bidding. The bid was to the legislative and executive bodies of all the 20 initiated and funded by the Tartu City Government. The municipalities included in our bid. Even though constant bidding team writing the two bid books in 2018–2019 communication requires a great deal of resources, if involved all the departments of the City Government. done well, it keeps up the spirit of a joint effort between Local authorities were involved in developing the the Foundation and the local authorities. cultural programme projects and the future legal framework for the Tartu 2024 implementation and the Organisation structure. Our proposed organisation struc- strategies for budgets, marketing and communication. ture fosters cooperation on all levels of the management, Special meetings for information sharing and discus- from the Supervisory Council, where most of the mem- sions were held with City of Tartu top officials and bers are nominated by the municipalities, to the Forum of regional municipality and county level political leaders. Regional Municipalities, which links their executives with This has built a strong basis for the continuation of our ECoC organisation’s Management Board. In addi- cooperation after the bidding years. tion, all of the management members will be tasked with cooperating with their local authority counterpoints. Also, The budgeting processes in Estonian municipalities special staff members such as the Regional Coordinator require the annual updating of the budget strategies, or the Social Studies & Outreach Manager, whose task is which in turn become the basis for budgets. This creates to cooperate with the municipalities regarding monitor- the sustained need for communicating the Tartu 2024 ing and evaluation data, will further strengthen the ties European Capital of Culture objectives and progress with the authorities. 84 Management Q34 Appointment of the General and the Artistic Director The General Director will assume Survival themes and programme lines, bringing in professionals who were not position at the earliest possible date especially in relation to international part of the ECoC bidding process, car- with the goal being January 2020. The audiences and artists and the inclusion rying out the concept presented in this General Director will be appointed by of youth and marginalised groups. bid book will be stated as the mission Tartu 2024 Foundation’s Supervisory of the Foundation, thereby guarantee- Council after an open call. Best candidates will be hooked up for ing its continuity. discussions and talks with Tartu 2024 In order to find the best Artistic staff members to identify teamwork Also, most of the Tartu 2024 bidding Director for developing and carrying dynamics and proficiency. The Artistic team members and its artistic advi- out the programme presented in the Director must be chosen by July sors are expected to apply for posi- bid book, an open recruitment pro- 2020, earlier if possible. tions in the Tartu 2024 Foundation or cess is planned for the first quarter be included in its Forum of Cultural of 2020. In addition to a CV, candi- Even though we propose open calls for Advisors, therefore retaining the link dates for this position will be asked to selecting both the General Director and with the origins of Arts of Survival. present a plan elaborating the Arts of the Artistic Director, therefore possibly The General Director The Artistic Director Profile • Experienced in organisation or business manage- • Experienced in international artistic production or ment and international cooperation management • Management vision for Tartu 2024 ECoC • Interdisciplinary artistic vision for developing and organisation carrying out the Arts of Survival vision • Mission and vision oriented thinking • Audience engagement and development oriented thinking • Skilled in public presentation and coaching • Systematic, stress tolerant, team player • Systematic, stress tolerant, team player • Strong international network • Strong local and national network and an under- standing of cultural policy making • Estonian proficiency is not a must, but proficiency in English and in at least one more foreign lan- • Must have at least Estonian and English guage is required proficiency Fields of action Responsible for carrying out the mission and vision Responsible for carrying out the artistic vision of Tartu of Tartu 2024; top executive decision maker in the 2024; top artistic decision maker in the Foundation. organisation. Appointed by The Supervisory Council, relying on an open call The General Director, relying on an open call Assumes position In January 2020 By July 2020 Management 85 Q35/Q36 Risk assessment and mitigating measures We already carried out a detailed risk assessment exercise in risks related to the programme, organisation and marketing assessing the strengths, weaknesses and solutions of our bid on local, national and international levels and revised for the in the preselection round. The risk assessment plan addressed final round. Risks and risk mitigation for the Tartu 2024 European Capital of Culture: RISK PROBABILITY MITIGATION Insufficient cooperation Medium • The Tartu 2024 Artistic Director will be appointed as soon as possible after between cultural managers designation, but with sufficient consideration of their long-term suitability and and creatives to accomplish capacity to deliver proposed projects at the • In order to prepare the cultural managers, we improve our capacity building pro- required level gramme in line with the Tartu 2024 cultural programme and its desired impacts. • Future Tartu 2024 Foundation’s Programme Line Managers will be carefully selected and trained to liaise with cultural operators and motivate them to upscale their activities Not engaging European/ Medium • The progress assessment and share in total budget is made dependent on the international artists and international reach of the project development institutional partners for • Engaging international management partners is already one of the city funding the projects of the ECoC priorities for large-scale cultural projects in 2020 cultural programme as confirmed for the bid • Future Tartu 2024 foundation staff responsible for programme implementation must be competent in international relations, helping to forge new international links instead of inefficient or cancelled ones Failure to secure the High • We drafted and introduced our ECoC operating budget project already in required operational and Winter 2018 and started convincing key local, regional and state stakeholders capital expenditure budget as early as possible. It is an ongoing high priority process for the Tartu 2024 (e. g. due to an economic Candidacy Team. crisis affecting public and • If the hardships occur, we have to scale the programme down according to private funding on a local, what best serves achieving the goals of KU30 as well as our desired impacts of regional and/or state level) Tartu 2024 Local, regional or state Medium • We’ve made it clear that Tartu’s bid for the ECoC is a major unifying platform for political support wanes or city and regional development that can benefit the whole society if executed there is political pressure on professionally and apolitically the management • To confirm this, the Candidacy Team has regular informative sessions with the City Government members and the City Council and its Culture Committee members. Several meetings with regional authorities have been held and state authorities are informed of the positive involvement of the region • The future Tartu 2024 foundation’s organisational scheme is designed so that the possibility of having direct political influence on creative and personnel decisions is as low as possible 86 Management Lack of integration and Low • Both bidding and implementation teams sustain regular communication with synchronisation with Tartu Tartu City Government officials and departments through regular meetings City Government and updates • Throughout our communication, we emphasise that the bid is concurrent with a number of Tartu City Government plans and strategies Pressure on the bid or High • We state and explain the clear and fair criteria for project selection and assess- implementation team to ment processes include certain themes, • All new proposals and initiatives will be assessed by their coherence with the organisations or people Arts of Survival concept, KU30 goals and general strategic development goals of the city and the region • The future Tartu 2024 foundation’s organisational scheme is designed so that the possibility of having direct external influence on creative and personnel decisions is as low as possible International marketing and High • Our international communication has to be professional, coherent and relatable PR not efficient enough to for European/international audiences, yet with a Tartuvian edge. To achieve attract a broad European this, we have to aim for ambitious and internationally minded, yet locally aware and international public people when choosing marketing/ communication related Tartu 2024 staff and media/PR partners • We have secured the broad transversal, transnational and transgenerational appeal of the programme, yet also keep identifying its primary European/inter- national target markets and groups • We draft and obtain a sufficient operating budget to match our marketing and communications goals. Regional inclusion is under- Medium • For the final round, the Candidacy Team has hired a regional coordinator for performing or underfunded engaging Southern Estonian authorities and cultural operators • After designation, the Regional Coordinator continues to be responsible for steering local municipalities included in this bid towards deciding financial com- mitments on the Council level as soon as possible Bad publicity Medium • We are already working according to a marketing communications plan to foster inclusion and informed relations with our stakeholders, including local media. The plan will be scaled and updated in the implementation phase. • Mitigating the risks presented in this table is the key to keep away from avoid­ able bad publicity • Unexpected PR situations must be managed by motivated and informed team members identified by a clear organisational and responsibility scheme Unexpected management Medium • We draft and obtain a sufficient operating budget for wages to keep the changes staff motivated • We design a clear organisational and responsibility scheme that supports infor- mation sharing and delegation so that every staff position is covered by tempo- rary substitution options in case of sudden changes • Any motivational issues or apparent causes for leaving can and will first be can- didly discussed with the team or the responsible team member(s) Not enough qualified staff Low • From the very beginning of our Candidacy Team, we’ve included interns, and volunteers volunteers and student visits to build genuine ties with future professionals and present our community aims • We draft and obtain a sufficient operating wage budget to attract additional talent from Estonia and abroad • We communicate our work as being among the most creative and exciting in Tartu and the region (which it is) Management 87 Q37 The slogan of our cultural programme 88 Management Q38/Q39 Marketing and communication strategy and media partnerships The top goal of our marketing and communication strat- Strategy lines egy is to ensure the wide engagement of local, national and international audiences, partners and media by Real-life and virtual. We use the whole range of media to delivering a convincing, fascinating and inspiring narra- connect to Estonian and Russian-speaking citizens, Erasmus tive of Tartu 2024: Arts of Survival. students or cultural tourists, small town dwellers in search of familiar cosiness or start-up entrepreneurs hungry for hi-tech Our message as a European Capital of Culture is that arts kicks – to each their own, or to all very much in common. In can and must have a transversal, transnational and transgen- addition to star performances, small-scale events for lim- erational impact on the city, the region and all of Europe, ited audiences will be opened up through online streaming securing the survival of small communities, European unity already in the ramp-up years. We also record and publish our and humanity in harmony with the diverse ecosystems on grand offline encounters in the communities to spread the Earth. Tartu and Southern Estonia manifest Arts of Survival word, share the vibe and boost future participation. in a rich variety, which is both unique as well as universal. We are going to present for channels both local and interna- Individual and institutional. We strive to capture the imag- tional a city and a region that are on the wild edge of Europe, ination of an individual, because many Tartu 2024’s planned remaining in touch with their heritage while having a digitally activities and imagined successes – such as making nature advanced society and a high capacity to deliver an engaging matter more – are about the change of values, perceptions and forward-looking programme. and skills on a personal level. On the other end of the scale, we spread the word of the happenings of Tartu 2024 with the help of various government and business institutions that have a strong and diverse community reach. We also edu- cate and encourage our cultural sector partners (universities, theatres, schools, companies, associations, etc.) to engage, enhance and develop their broad audience base. Grassroots, regional, national, European, international. As with our cultural programme, our marketing and commu- nication actions are geared to address diverse aesthetics and artistic expectations, addressing subcultures as well as long- time inhabitants in the neighbourhoods of Tartu, traditionalist Southern Estonians as well as metropolitan culture vultures, environmentalists as well as kissing aficionados from Europe and beyond. Specific goals and objectives The stories we tell our visitors and the media are largely about Establishing a brand. Marketing and communication has particular genuine characters, practices and symbols, villages the continuous task of uniting Southern Estonians behind a and neighbourhoods, examples of nature-friendly living in common goal and giving everyone the spark to speak about the city and in the wilderness of Southern Estonia – but they Tartu 2024. For this, we are crafting an artistic, entertaining, are also potent images for questions, hopes and concerns eco-friendly, forward-looking, socially inclusive and trust- common to most Earthlings, humans and Europeans. worthy brand. We aim Tartu 2024 to be among the five most recognised institutional culture brands in Estonia by the end Tartu 2024 will be relevant because we are going to invite of 2024. and involve artists and audiences from across the continent and beyond to offer artistic solutions for a more hopeful, car- Getting citizens of Tartu and people of Southern Estonia ing and inspiring future life. We also challenge many a stere- involved in the programme as much as possible and show- otype that locals and visitors might have about each other, ing how the arts, culture and community action are the key for Europe and its manifold identities. Here is how we are going survival in many senses. To succeed and leave a legacy, we to communicate our stories to the local, regional, national have to make Tartu 2024 matter and meaningful both locally and international audiences: and regionally. Management 89 Unifying the marketing for Southern Estonia as a region All the projects in the cultural programme have defined tar- is both a short and a long term goal as our numerous regional get groups, which the artists and managers strive to involve in partners see Tartu 2024 as a new platform for cooperation or, the artistic and participatory processes. A number of projects indeed, as a platform for survival, following the recent major (e.g. Yellow Windows Arts Programme or Growing With municipality reform and the dissolution of previous joint pro- Your Food) commence already in the preparatory years, motion activities. There is the genuine feeling in the region thereby creating awareness and increasing the wish to get that the European Capital of Culture is the chance for us to be more involved for the title year. heard and seen on both the national and international scale. The Tartu 2024 strategy for audience development and Involving audiences from Estonia, neighbouring coun- engagement introduces transversal measures for empower- tries and all over Europe. We have to spark curiosity and ing the participation of special groups such as youth (Tartu start discussions on how arts can and must find creative solu- 2024 Street Team), senior citizens (Active Agers), minori- tions for ecological, human and local community survival ties, international communities and people with disabilities. not only in Estonia, but also in other Baltic and Scandinavian states, in Russia, in Germany and even further. Tartu has some great recent successes with crowdfunding schemes for culture. A share of our ECoC budget is to be Action plan for the grass-roots, funded the same way with the #üheskoos ‘24 crowdfund- city and regional level ing campaign being an important part of our marketing and communication efforts in the year leading up to 2024. The awareness and involvement of local and regional audi- ences is central to our bid. In addition to exposure in the Even now, The Tartu 2024 capacity building programme media and on the internet (see further below) we aim to mobi- Kultuurikompass has upscaled discussions on how to inno- lise grass-roots communities and people all around Tartu and vate and involve cultural management while positioning Tartu Southern Estonia with initiatives of mixing the artistic, social 2024 as the leading platform among the region’s cultural man- and business facets of the European Capital of Culture. agers. In the coming years, the expansion of Kultuurikompass will further contribute to the Tartu 2024 communication. Tartu 2024 marketing and communication strategy actions positioned on the strategy lines of real-life and the virtual, individual and institutional. 90 Management Tartu 2024 marketing and communication strategy actions positioned on strategy lines of grass-roots, regional, national, European. Action plan for the national and the gateways of Estonia – airports, railway stations, ports, international level highway entry points – to present Tartu 2024, its main themes and upcoming events in a pop-up form, such as fragments of To attract audiences from Estonia, from our neighbour- heritage-laden digital art from Enter Woodland Spirits, nov- ing countries as well as from diverse target groups from all elty machines from Beetroot Washing Machine or voices around Europe to come and experience Arts of Survival, we from the underground by Psühhoteek. plan to tell our stories in a number of exciting ways. By using a mix of proven methods and the unused potential of Tartuvian Halfway There: For those already travelling in the area, the and Southern Estonian networks, we’ll be able to capture the Arts of Survival themes will be presented on Tartu-bound imagination of the multitudes with affordable solutions. trains (in cooperation with the main Estonian railway com- pany Elron) or on the passengers’ personal multimedia Stencibility Goes Europe: Tartu’s vibrant street art scene screens of Lux Express coaches driving between destinations spreads across European cities and galleries. Tartu is one of in the Baltics, Belarus, Helsinki and St. Petersburg. Europe’s street art havens where artistic quality and ingenuity meet civic support and liberal city politics. The Stencibility fes- Tartu 2024 Ex-Tartuvians programme: Every year, several tival has annually hosted a string of European street artists to thousand people from Estonia and abroad graduate from liven up the city space whereas our mystery stencil man Edward the University of Tartu and our other higher education insti- von Lõngus took his (R)estart Reality tour across the walls of tutions, having survived the adventurous challenges of stu- Europe to herald the Estonian presidency of the Council of the dent life. With help from universities, we contact their alumni EU (July–December 2017). Tartu 2024 also involves Stencibility all around the world to take a trip down memory lane and as one of its international ambassadors, introducing the coun- pay a visit to the improved Tartu in 2024. A must-see ECoC terculture and civic activism of Tartu and inviting Europeans to event for anyone who has ever been young in Tartu is Kissing come around to find out more for themselves. Street art in dif- Tartu, our springtime flagship event. ferent media is created and displayed in European cities by 14 artists who also draw input from a broad base of locals, ready Tartu 2024 Ambassadors: Artists, entrepreneurs and scien- to revamp a bit of their city identity in the Tartuvian way. tists, but also online and offline community leaders of Tartu and Southern Estonia;/. hosts of our hospitality project Külas Containers of Arts distributed in partnerships with infra- as well as major festivals, events and sports teams from the structure and transportation organisations. We will involve region. We mobilise all of them to speak for Tartu 2024 and Management 91 provide them with merch along with a digital toolkit to repre- home page so that visitors could find events matching their sent us. Most of all, though, we want all of the Ambassadors interests and get all the required logistical info with ease. to be genuinely informed and inspired to share the stories Additionally, we are going to develop thematic campaign and activities of our ECoC that they find the dearest. sites with engaging content such as video, photo and essay contests on Tartu 2024 programme lines for youth, crafted Through our national tourism board Visit Estonia or local together with our Street Team. tourism board Visit Tartu, Tartu 2024 will be represented at tourism fairs in Germany, Russia, Finland, Latvia, Starting from 2022 Lithuania, at the international Hanseatic Days in Poland and in Tartu’s twin towns. The Tartu 2024 app with smart and engaging content – games, polls, tests, augmented reality – based on our ECoC Advertising campaigns, guerilla marketing and road programme will be launched in Autumn 2022. The content shows at specific target markets will be carried out in coop- of the app is designed so that engaging with it records the eration with Visit Estonia. Special business-to-business con- cultural preferences of the user. This, in turn, helps to create tact events with Russian and German travel bureaus will be more customised offerings of real-life experiences to audi- organised to promote ECoC-related group travel and tours. ences and tune the marketing messages so that various groups will be activated. Cooperation with previous and future ECoCs brings along more artistic collaboration and guarantees us further The app doubles as the main ticketing solution for Tartu 2024 media attention abroad as has already been proved by our events. Even though the programme is going to have a lot of mutually beneficial link with Kaunas 2022. Likewise, Tartu will free entrance occasions, most of the events still require reg- engage the UNESCO City of Literature network in promot- istration so that the organisers would be able to study their ing our ECoC programme’s ramp up and title year literary audiences. If required, tickets can be bought in-app. For an events such as the utopian/dystopian 1984/2024 festival. extended offer, the app will also have access to the database of kultuuriaken.tartu.ee, Tartu’s cultural calendar which is going Involving multinational companies active in Estonia, we see a to expand to include events from across Southern Estonia. high potential in developing incentive tourism partnerships that see the enterprises presenting their top employees with PARTNERSHIPS WITH MEDIA fully paid culture trips to Tartu and Southern Estonia, e.g. to see the exhibition based on Ryoji Ikeda’s artistic residency at Tartu 2024 has commenced the initial discussions and has the Estonian Genome Centre. received pledges of support from the most important media organisations in Estonia and is developing tactics for inviting SOCIAL MEDIA, WEB AND APPS journalists and influencers from all across Europe. Together with Tartu’s booming ICT scene we aim to design Estonian and Baltic media organisations cutting edge digital content and platforms for the ECoC arts and entertainment, information and ticketing, but also team We are negotiating an agreement for a long-term partner- and communications management. Tartu 2024 aspires to ship with ERR (Estonian Public Broadcasting) with the aim become an ambassador for well-crafted Estonian software of assuring both national and international visibility for the while providing the ICT sector with good marketing mes- European Capital of Culture. The partnership should encour- sages for their possible employees about Tartu as a culturally age covering and broadcasting cultural content from Tartu vibrant city and a desirable environment for living. and Southern Estonia in ERR’s various TV, radio and web channels. ERR’s involvement is crucial, because they have Starting from 2020 both a dedicated media production house/department in Tartu as well as regional correspondents in Southern Estonia. The social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, ERR also has English and Russian channels. As Estonian Public TikTok and possible emerging sites will be used extensively Broadcasting is also a member of the EBU, their contacts in from day one for building, informing and engaging the Tartu the network could be beneficial for disseminating the cultural 2024 audiences. Photos, videos and stories will be crafted by programme Europe-wide. a dedicated Tartu 2024 content creation team. In association with Visit Estonia, our international visibility will be boosted We have commenced talks with Postimees Grupp, the pub- by culture and lifestyle influencers invited from around lisher of a number of newspapers ranging from national to Europe to take part in exclusive Külas tours curated by locals regional, and county newspapers with a view to covering (see further below). Imagine vlogs and blogs about practic- Tartu 2024 programmes and events both in print and online, ing everyday Arts of Survival such as picking berries in a both in Estonian and in Russian. Postimees Grupp also has bog or jumping over a bonfire at a village party! a dedicated media production department in Tartu, which allows for better access and more diverse collaborations. Websites and campaign pages. Considering the user In addition to print media, future collaborations might also experiences of previous ECoCs, we’ll pay special attention to include Postimees Grupp’s radio and TV channels and their developing a clear and intuitive search tool for the Tartu 2024 news portals in Latvia (TVNET) and Lithuania (15min). 92 Management We also have initiated discussions and received prelimi- National Geographic Estonia is a major partner in Yellow nary pledges of support from a number of other important Windows Arts Programme. national or regional media organisations: Stemming from discussions with media organisations, we see Ekspress Meedia: publisher of the daily newspaper that Tartu 2024 needs a special media Content Creation Eesti Päevaleht, the weekly newspapers Eesti Ekspress, Team to fully utilise the channels opened with these agree- Maaleht, the topical magazines Anne & Stiil, Eesti Naine, ments and quickly provide content for foreign news and Oma Maitse, Kroonika, Tervis Pluss, Maakodu, Jana, Pere media agencies of groundbreaking events such as the record ja Kodu and the Estonian and Russian news portal Delfi breaking Kissing Tartu or Tartu World University visionary (Delfi.lv in Latvia and Delfi.lt in Lithuania). talks in the wilderness. Õhtuleht Kirjastus: publisher of the daily newspaper European coverage Õhtuleht and the weekly newspaper Linnaleht. Also pub- lishes news portals and magazines. To attract journalists from other European countries, we are going to team up with Visit Estonia and Southern Estonian Ring FM: a commercial radio station from Tartu with fre- tourism boards to organise press trips. We aim to fully use quencies across mainland Estonia, and Ruut FM, a local the potential of Visit Estonia’s international communication radio station from Valga. and media relations contacts and best practices to create a continuous information offer on Tartu 2024 to European Вестник Тарту: a Russian language Tartu newspaper journalists and media all over the world. published twice a month. In addition, we ask every project included in the Tartu 2024 SA Kultuurileht: publisher of a number of culture cultural programme to identify, contact and invite leading periodicals, such as the weekly newspaper Sirp and the European journalists and channels relevant to their field(s) monthly publications Müürileht, Akadeemia, Looming, or genre(s), so that the publicity potential of each and every Vikerkaar, etc. project is fully realised. The projects will receive extra funding for this branch of media work. MTÜ Loodusajakiri: publisher of the nature and popular science magazines Eesti Loodus, Eesti Mets, Horisont and Горизонты Эстонии. Management 93 Q40 How our citizens are the communicators of Tartu 2024 to the outside world As described above, we systematically plan to mobilise people and organi- sations on many levels, from inviting them to become ambassadors to mak- ing them co-owners of the ECoC cause via a major crowdfunding campaign. We are going to use the networks of existing student, professional and trade associations to invite their partners to experience Tartu 2024 and spread the word on social media. This is also greatly fostered by the extent of pre-title year capacity build- ing among cultural managers and the quality of the build-up events of the cultural programme, due to start in 2020. In addition, we propose two initi- atives to Southern Estonian people for contributing to our European Capital of Culture build-up in creative and meaningful ways. Külas centre, explore the bogs and woods Hello, Europe! Külas means either “visiting some- while picking berries or mushrooms, one” or “in a village” in Estonian – and learn the use of herbs from a grand- ...is a campaign for Wikipedia arti- both can happen to you if you choose mother, take part in a traditional village cles on Southern Estonia. Tartu 2024 to follow this adventurous path! It’s a party in Setomaa – a region known for its would also partner up with Wikimedia programme matching curious tourists UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Eesti, a chapter of the Wikimedia with volunteer guides on a special web list singing traditions –, visit the verdant Foundation dedicated to developing site. The project draws inspiration from bohemian gardens of the Karlova and Wikipedia in both the Estonian as well Leeuwarden–Friesland 2018’s success- Supilinn wooden neighbourhoods, the as the regional languages of Võro and ful Leen en Fries (project by Friese noisy student bars at Rüütli street or Seto, therefore also supporting the Bibliotheken) as well as from public wander around the Soviet-era panel survival of these languages in the era discussions with our villagers who are district of Annelinn in Tartu. of digital data. Wikimedia Eesti has a wondering whether they can offer any- long history in organising thematic thing to the ECoC aside from their vivid Külas goes into the heart of the article writing campaigns. In Hello, country life. Southern Estonian contradictions of Europe!, starting from 2020, we annu- self-sufficiency going hand in hand ally invite our citizens to join in and Well, why not? with self-doubt – heartfelt hospitality write an article or few in their fluent in the middle of the tough realities of foreign language(s) on their favourite How do we translate our towns and living on the edge of Europe. The pro- Tartu or Southern Estonian subject, villages, culture and customs, every- gramme does not require high invest- thereby expanding the greatness day joys to a Frenchman? A Swede? A ment, allows for volunteer involvement of our story for the potential visitors Japanese? We challenge ourselves and on a grass-roots and a regional level, of our European Capital of Culture. invite them to be a part of Külas. builds trust towards foreigners among Article by article we make ourselves locals, generates social media buzz more visible in Europe! Külas can take on applying visitors to and lets us pilot the related themes live in a Southern Estonian farmstead or and topics of Arts of Survival before a former Soviet kolkhoz (collective farm) the main title year. 94 Management Q41 How we highlight the European Capital of Culture as an action of the European Union The visibility of the European Union in our proposed ECoC to host the key events of the programme: the conference programme will be guaranteed by a number of placements Estonia in EU 20 and special events to highlight how bor- and initiatives: derless Europe has shaped the life of a whole generation. The programme would benefit from coinciding with the If we receive the Melina Mercouri Prize, we plan to use ECoC events and it will be developed in cooperation with the funds in 2024 to thoroughly videograph the ECoC the European Commission Representation in Estonia and creative processes and events. By funding high quality the Republic of Estonia Government Office, which also recording and editing, we amplify the potential social organised the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the and economic impact that our content can have on social European Union in 2017 and Estonia’s centenary celebra- media and elsewhere. A well documented and published tions in 2018–2020. ECoC cultural programme also has a better legacy that stems from it. All this content will bear the EU logo. To the Tartu 2024 opening and closing ceremonies we intend to invite leaders of previous and future ECoCs With the possible support of the Melina Mercouri Prize and our partner ECoC from Austria, as well as from either we plan to start an European Arts and Innovation Fund Norway or Bosnia and Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, for Tartu. This fund will continue supporting residencies Slovenia, Germany, Slovakia and Finland. Members of for lecturing artists from Europe after the ECoC year the European Commission and Parliament and leaders of 2024. The aim of this residency programme is to support our European partner institutions will also be invited to education and innovation at Southern Estonian universi- celebrate the biggest European event ever to take place ties while also sustaining the international aspect of the in Southern Estonia. region’s cultural vibrancy. By giving the Melina Mercouri Prize an importance for years to come, we will highlight The logo of the EU will be present on all Tartu 2024 com- this as an EU contribution for a long period of time. munication materials and platforms to signify Tartu as the ECoC in 2024, while the EU flag will be flown at all major As Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania celebrate 20 years of cultural institutions in Tartu and Southern Estonia. European Union membership in 2024, we propose Tartu Management 95 Capacity to deliver Q42 Continuous political support and commitment to Tartu 2024 The Tartu 2024 bidding team was ambassadors of the process. The City has clarified the plans of the bidding formed by the Tartu City Government Council has been regularly informed with all the municipality leaders and a Department of Culture. The city gov- about the new developments of our pro- wide range of municipalities’ cultural ernment has clearly indicated that the ceduresat the meetings of the Cultural managers. On April 29, 2019 the sum- ECoC bidding process is the number Committee, which represents all parties mit of Tartu and Southern Estonian one priority of cultural policy and the in the Council. The key projects aiming leaders of 19 municipalities signed Department of Culture is supporting to make significant temporary or per- the Treaty of Support for Tartu 2024 it through funding as well as through manent changes in the urban space on Munamägi, the highest peak of the several policy initiatives. All recent (Toomemägi Revisited, Postmarket Baltics. The treaty states the commit- fundamental decisions are driven by Street Festival, Curated Biodiversity, ments after designation, including the the endeavour of Tartu to become a Growing With Your Food) have been joint financing plan for 2020–2025. The European Capital of Culture in 2024 introduced and cleared with the depart- city of Pärnu has reassured its will to including the Kultuurikompass capac- ments of the city government. The city continue as an associated supporter of ity building programme and the new level financing plan of Tartu 2024 for the Tartu 2024 bid at the regular meet- cultural subsidies system devised to the period of 2020–2025 is regulated ings between the leaders of cultural provide more international reach, by the City of Tartu Financial Strategy, departments of both cities. more security for the long term activi- with the strategy for 2019–2022 having ties and investments for accessibility. already been confirmed. The ECoC funding decision on the state level has been confirmed We have included members of the city In the Southern Estonian region, we regardless of the change of govern- government in every major decision initiated an intense discussion with the ment, as it is included in the state of the final round. Both the Mayor and municipalities right after the desig- budget strategy for 2020–2023, the Deputy Mayor (Culture, Education, nation for the final round. The Tartu approved on 30 May 2019. Sports, Youth) have been the main 2024 Southern Estonian coordinator 96 Capacity to deliver Q43 Infrastructure projects and how they are linked to Tartu 2024 Tartu and Southern Estonia have built up a strong capacity to museums and schools, but also open-air venues, extended accommodate and deliver cultural events – including large- light traffic road networks and river/lake port networks. scale international events, as proved by the recent Metallica gig for 60,000 people in the Estonian National Museum area. The key Tartu 2024 legacy object is going to be the new Several smart renovations, expansions and extensions of multifunctional City Cultural and Community Centre in the existing infrastructure are due for 2020–2024 (see also the heart of Tartu, intended as the „living room” of the city, budget data above). open to public access and providing a platform for different events, discussions and makerlabs. According to the latest Our cultural programme is designed to make good use of time frame, pre-construction preparations for the Cultural the various new or upgraded infrastructure objects, includ- Centre take place in 2020–2024 and the construction starts ing more traditional cultural and educational venues such as in January 2025. Infrastructure Project Planned timetable Links with Tartu 2024 Completed Public bike rental Biggest city-wide bike rental 2019 Touristic and local mobility; between bid- system system in the Baltics: 750 bikes, Curated Biodiversity, Through ding phases 69 stations across the city. the City, Arts of Survival Urban Nature Festival, Postmarket Street Festival, Surrealism 100 Ongoing University of Tartu Renovation and updated 2019 Toomemägi Revisited construction Museums exhibition of the history of the University of Tartu and Toomemägi Hill in the Morgenstern Hall University of Tartu IT New university hub of informa- 2019 Enlivening the banks of Centre Delta tion technology, mathematics, Emajõgi; European Students’ and economics, which supports Opinion Festival advancing science in entrepre- neurship and innovation The Onion Route Development of museums 2019–2020 Lake Peipus Arts Route – Region of Three and tourism infrastructure in Cultures project Peipsiääre municipality Suur Munamägi, Refurbishing the observation 2019–2020 Yellow Windows Arts the highest peak of tower and its surroundings Programme Estonia Tartu St. Mary’s Rebuilding the church tower Reconstruction Sound Our Souls, Wedding: Church destroyed in WWII, reconstruct- started in 2019 and is The Estonian-Latvian Song ing the interior of the birthplace ongoing with annual Festival church of the Estonian Song public funding and Festival tradition crowdfunding Capacity to deliver 97 Reconstructed Värska port, Development of four Lake Peipus 2019–2021, Reclaiming The River Emajõgi or renovated Räpina port, ports 2019–2022, And The Great Lakes Luunja port, 2019–2022, Kasepää port 2021–2024 Tartu Vintage Car Private exhibition of around 150 Opening 2020 Beetroot Washing Machine Museum items from Soviet era in a former (Men’s Shed Mobile industrial building Workshop), Diversity Land Line Tähtvere Leisure Park Investments to improve physical 2020–2021 Arts of Survival Urban Nature movement activities City Festival, Walks Of Survival Contemporary learn- Major reconstruction of four Annelinna Psühhoteek, Walks of Survival, ing spaces schools; major reconstruction of Gymnasium and Shared Path cluster of educa- a stadium for two schools in the Variku School in tional projects panel district of Annelinn, 2020, Karlova School in 2021, stadium for Hansa School and Descartes’ School in 2023 Tartu City Museum Renovation of the main building 2022–2023 Beetroot Washing Machine, and building new permanent Emajõgi - The Birth and exhibition Death Of Tartu Tartu New Theatre Reconstructing the current 2022–2023 Performa Borealis (Tartu Uus Teater) building bought with the help of crowdfunding into a new per- forming arts centre Tartu Elektriteater Renovating a building to become 2023-2024 Arts of Survival Art House Cinema the centre for Tartu’s art house Documentaries, Kissing Tartu, cinema 1984/2024 Literary Festival, Stand Up For Your Mind New Lodjakoda New shipyard for traditional 2020 Enlivening the banks of infrastructure boats, traditional craft workshops, Emajõgi; Arts of Survival rooms for events Urban Nature Festival, Emajõgi – The Birth And Death Of Tartu, Reclaiming The River Emajõgi And The Great Lakes Expanding the net- Projects with budgets allocated 2020–2023 Touristic and local mobility, work of pedestrian amounting to 2,6 million euro. making the discovery of and light vehicle the city easier on both foot roads in Tartu and bike. Walks of Survival, Surrealism 100 Tartu wayfinding Comprehensive wayfinding sys- First signs in 2020, Touristic and local mobility, system 15 minutes tem that approaches the entire implementation of making the discovery of the Tartu city systematically, connecting the whole wayfinding city easier on both foot and remote districts with the centre system 2021–2024 bike. Walks Of Survival, Surrealism 100 Legacy City Culture and New building planned in the city Architecture compe- Helps to strengthen the ECoC Community Centre centre around 500 m from the tition 2021, building long term impacts; Tartu as a main square (including library and project 2022–2023, gateway to Southern Estonia art museum services, community construction venues) 2025–2026 98 Capacity to deliver Additional information Q44 Tartu - inspiration for transformation TRANSFORMATIONS The waning crescent moon sets; morning tiptoes in. He’s been walking too much, and something’s gone a bit The boy has been sleeping in a nest of chair cushions cattywampus in his left knee, what should be attached isn’t. between cases that display old photos and letters In the gray crepuscular light, he imagines the burgundy in the front room of the museum. Outside, a blackcap mattress enfolding him is her arms reaching him back merrily flutes its pre-dawn hymn to the coming sun. to her. “You’ve grown thin,” he thinks she’d say. “You The boy stretches – a long full stretch – and imagines should eat; you can’t live on coffee and words, darling.” there is a wolf waking beside him. The wolf is stretching, He imagines there are worse ways to go. It would be he is stretching. His muscles tingle; he feels strong grand to live on espresso with a brita kook now and then, and good. Something has shifted in his body overnight. writing poem after poem until he was skin and bones The long bones of his legs ache pleasantly and there’s and everything he’d always wanted to say was said. something stirring, something electric twitching to life He would finally have time to sleep. “I could walk into from the base of his spine through his belly and groin. the woods,” he thinks. “I’d curl up against a juniper, It’s as if he has visited the underworld in his dreams, inhale the spruce and larch. A scarred lame sinewy old swallowed a magic potion, and returned to this world wolf with no words in the silence of the forest.” And this mid-transformation. “I think I’m becoming a wolf,” is how sunrise finds them in their separate corners of he whispers to himself. “This happens in Estonia. the Karl Ristikivi Muuseum, each watchfully awake, Perhaps I should sneak out and get a tattoo before each quietly wondering what comes next. my body is covered with hair and tattoos are entirely out of the question.” The old man is covered in tattoos. He’s had most of them so long he forgets they’re there until he catches scarf-wearing old women, businessmen staring at him. He wakes in the back room of the museum, listens to the early train rattling in from Valga. He has made a bed on the futon sofa where too many have sat; he’s laid it flat but still wakes prisoned in the deep crease. Ron Whitehead (UNESCO City of Literature resident writer in Tartu, Spring 2019) with Jinn Bug 29th poem from NIGHTS AT THE MUSEUM or, the Fabulist Adventures in Tartu, Estonia of the Old Man from Kentucky Additional information 99  Final selection stage bid book, 2019 Photos by Heikki Leis (2, 26, 27, 40) Jan Henrik Pärnik (4, 19) Oliver Kuusk (5) The applicant Mana Kaasik (10, 28) Gabriela Liivamägi (11 (from Kaksismaa/Kaksoismaa Tartu City Government in partnership with by Anni Mikkelson/Meriteatteri/Must Kast), 77, 86) 19 Southern Estonian municipalities Kerttu Kruusla (12, 18, 37) Kiur Kaasik (12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 34, 36, Tartu 2024 European Capital of Culture 45, 46, 55, 57, 59, 60, 63, 79, 87, 91, 92) Candidate City team Ruudu Rahumaru (15, 44) Timo Toots (16) Kaspar Aug Kristjan Teedema (20) Erni Kask Tartu Kunstimuuseum, Peeter Allik (22) Annela Laaneots paranoia publishing (24, 51) Merje Laimets Maris Savik (25, 33 (from “Peks mõisatallis” Kalle Paas by Birgit Landberg/Must Kast), 94) Triin Pikk Mana Kaasik, Delfi (26) Berk Vaher Rasaa Etten (29, 47) Tiit Grihin (30-31) Special thanks to contributors of the Kristina Haan (32) content of this project: Kermo Vahula (35) Juhan Voolaid (37) William Nunes (43) Silver Tõnisson (50) Tõnu Runnel (64) Taavi Muide (67) Adam Illingworth (70) Ove Maidla (73) Raino Orav (74-75) Mikko Leo Selg (82) Tuuli Jõesaar (93) Published by Printed by Tartu City Government Department of Culture Chaser Print Agency Design by Martin Rästa, Baas Design Lauri Järvlepp, Bassein Photo curator Kiur Kaasik Useful links Tartu 2024 pre-selection visual identity by www.tartu2024.ee www.facebook.com/tartu2024 Jakob Päll, Homne www.instagram.com/tartu2024 100 Q 101 102 Q City of Tartu and Southern Estonia Population: 97,000 (City of Tartu); 260,000 (20 municipalities) How to get here: Helsinki (FI)-Tartu - 1 ight per day; Tallinn-Tartu - 37 coaches and 11 trains per day; Riga (LV)-Tartu - 6 coaches per day General education: 95 schools with 18 000 students Higher education: 10 universities and colleges with 17 200 students Vocational education: 10 vocational schools with 6200 students 65+ year old citizens: 33 400 or 20,5% of population Annual overnight visitors: 560,000 Share of foreign overnight visitors: 45.4% (Tartu); 28.3% (Southern Estonia) Accommodation: 350 facilities, 6500 rooms Average wage: from 1289€ (City of Tartu) to 1009€ (Southern Estonia) Museums: 56 museums with 858 000 annual visits Theatres: 263 000 annual visits Tartu is a UNESCO City of Literature. Struve Geodetic Arc belongs to UNESCO World Heritage List. Seto Leelo, Seto polyphonic singing tradition and Smoke sauna tradition in Võromaa belong to UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists. Q 103 104 Q