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Borders in culture, art, and science: The eighteenth conference series “Cultural Crossroads” will take place at the Latvian Academy of Culture

23.10.2024

Starting from november 5th to 8th, 2024, the Latvian Academy of Culture (LAC) will host the eighteenth conference series “Cultural Crossroads XVIII”, that will offer over 90 presentations, lectures, and discussions for those interested in culture and the arts. Both latvian and international scholars, artists and cultural practitioners will reassess the scale of our freedom and value hierarchies, revealing and illuminating the boundary situations, external and internal barriers that the modern individuals, communities and countries face. The event itself - “Cultural Crossroads” conference series - celebrates its coming of age this year, which will be reflected in the program’s theme, which features new and surprising research directions and bold proposals for addressing topics and issues. The 18 year history of the conference allows for discussions on the maturity, significance, and even identity of cultural and arts research in Latvia.

On November 5, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM, the Latvian National Museum of History (Pils square 3, Riga) will host a seminar “How To Protect Traditional Craft Skills In Latvia?”, organized together by the Latvian Academy of Culture, the UNESCO Chair on Intagible Cultural Heritage Policy and Law, and the Latvian National Culture Centre. In the seminar, researchers in the heritage field will present the latest studies on processes in the craft sector, assess the new European Union regulations on crafts, and discuss Latvia’s experience with protecting the names of food products. The event will conclude with a discussion titled “Are Traditional Craft Skills In Latvia Recognized and In Demand?” where craft practitioners and policy makers will gather to highlight the current issues in the field and explore potential solutions. Attendance at the seminar is free, with required prior registration here:https://ej.uz/apmekletseminaru.  

On November 6, from 10:00 AM to 5:40 PM, in the Small Hall of the Tobacco Factory (Miera street 58a, Riga) the plenary session of the conference series titled “Crossing Borders In Art and Science” will take place. Cultural sector researchers and practitioners will explore the concept of borders through populist, naively romantic, and scientifically analytical discourses, revealing its chameleon-like presence in a wide range of both cultural and artistic forms, starting from the familiar to the existentially crucial. The discussion will address the borders we define for ourselves and those set by others - the borders between life and death, generations, territories, cultures, arts, identities, understanding, memories, and even between “good” and “bad” cultural offerings, setting the stage for further discussions and conversations.

The plenary session will feature presentations by the LAC rector Dāvis Sīmanis, researchers Anda Laķe, Lolita Ozoliņa, Andris Hiršs, Gustavs Strenga, and Agnese Hermane, as well as  Inga Surgunte, Head of Culture Sector at the Latvian National Commision for UNESCO, playwright Evarts Melnalksnis, film director Andris Gauja, theater director Elmārs Seņkovs, and actress and writer Zane Daudziņa. The plenary session will also be available for online viewing via the LAC Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/LKAkademija) and Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@LKAkademija).  

On November 7 and 8, the conference sessions will continue at the Latvian Academy of Culture (Ludzas Street 24, Riga), offering researchers and industry professionals an opportunity to share their research findings, conclusions and recommendations. Over 80 researchers and cultural sector practitioners will present their work in seven thematic sections. Attendees will have the chance to participate in sections such as “ Cultural Heritage: Recent Discoveries and Rediscovered Relevancies,” “Culture, Art and Society,” “The Challenges of Space vs. Virtual Space in Contemporary Art,” "Intercultural Communication and the Use of Language in Culture," and "Art, Literature, and Visuality." We invite you to pay attention to the session times because they may vary!

The section held in English, “How to Make it Visible? Assessing Social and Economic Impact in Creative and Cultural Industries,” will feature researchers from Latvia, the Netherlands, Belgium, and North Macedonia, who will focus on evaluating the social and economic impact of the creative and cultural industries. This section is a part of the research project "The Latvian Cultural Ecosystem as a Resource for National Resilience and Sustainability / CERS," specifically the work phase “Developing Approaches for Assessing the Social and Economic Impact of Cultural and Creative Industries," aiming to create new theoretical and empirical approaches for assessing the social and economic impact of these sectors.

The section dedicated to to performing arts will take place on November 7, from 12:00 PM to 16:40 PM, in the Karamazov Hall of the LAC Theater House “Zirgu Pasts” (Dzirnavu street 46, Riga)

The events of the “Cultural Crossroads” conference series are free and open to everyone interested.