Arts and Theatre Institute (ATI) and Asia-Europe Foundation through its arts and culture website, culture360.ASEF.org together with the Czech Centers were delighted about a new partnership in organising the second edition of ASEF LinkUp | Asia-Europe Cultural Diplomacy Lab.

Taking place from 10 to 13 June 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic, ASEF LinkUp served as a meeting point for 20 selected participants from the cultural and government sectors to synergise knowledge and methodologies from Asia and Europe, fostering fresh perspectives on cross-regional relations.

The 2024 edition of ASEF LinkUp marked the launch of a Fellowship programme, where opportunities for professional development and networking were created for individuals and organisations in the arts sector, alongside public sector representatives engaged in international cultural cooperation.

All participants for this programme were co-selected by both organisers and were by invitation only.

What is ASEF LinkUp?

The genesis of ASEF LinkUp stems from the 2022 consultation process titled Recalibrating the Compass: What Future for Asia-Europe cultural relations? highlighting the need to create a platform to bring the arts and culture sector closer to the government representatives working in international cultural cooperation. The pilot edition of ASEF LinkUp was hence born, taking place from 24 to 27 October 2023 in Singapore, laying the groundwork for collaborative dialogues and exchanges. Through group work, visits, and provocations from experts in the sector, the first cohort of ASEF LinkUp “fellows” crafted key recommendations on approaching Asia-Europe cultural cooperation.  

Click here for more information about the programme.

Asia-Europe Cultural Diplomacy Lab 2024 itinerary:

Monday 10 June

10:00 Nekázanka – opening remarks, icebreaker activities
14:00 Ministry of Foreign Affairs – presentation of ASEF Lab to Czech Centers (group I)
14:00 DAMU (Theatre Academy) – Networking visit (group II)

Tuesday 11 June

09:30 Club Letk – working on the statement
14:30 AVU (Academy of Fine Arts) – networking visit
17:00 tbc – social meeting point

Wednesday 12 June

09:30 Ministry of Culture – tbc
11:00 Ministry of Culture – Case Clinics
14:30 Ministry of Culture – working on the statement
17:00 NONA – social meeting point

Thursday 13 June

10:30 Ministry of Culture – group discussion with guests
12:00 Ministry of Culture-  networking
13:00 Ministry of Culture – final presentation and discussion
16:00 Pilsen City Hall – visiting exhibition
17:30 Moving Station – meeting with the director and guests of Skupa’s Pilsen festival
18:45 Moving Station – A Fairy Tale For the Brave (theatre performance)

Day 1 – “What principles should orientate international cultural cooperation?”

Participants were welcomed by ASEF’s Culture department Director Valentina Riccardi, along with Martina Pecková Černá, Head of Perform Czech/ International Cooperation at the Arts and Theatre Institute (ATI).

The first session revolved around principles that the participants shared when talking about international cultural cooperation. In pairs and groups, the participants took turns sharing their perspectives and experiences to find a common ground. A few of the common values that came up were:

Equity of opportunity and access – looking at (re)balancing the exchanges between the Global North and South and giving equal weightage to every voice
Mutual understanding and learning – developing an openness and willingness to learn from one another

Taking time to build relations and trust with one another

A part of the Lab also focuses on giving participants an opportunity to experience the cultural landscape of the city we are in. There were cultural visits to the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU), a modern, university-level art school and Municipal House, where the Prague Symphony Orchestra frequently performs.

Day 2 – “Could you help me…”

On day 2, through a Case Clinic format, the participants worked through some real-world challenges they faced in working internationally and engaged the collective wisdom of the group to find suggestions, solutions for next steps in moving the work forward.

One pertinent challenge that resonated with majority of the group was the need to optimise resources and the needs of funders to create the most impact and value from a project. Does a large-scale event necessarily mean a big impact? How can this impact be measured? As aptly pointed out by one of the participants, “numbers are not a good indicator of impact”.

Other challenges that were highlighted include addressing the imbalance of capacity building, mobility privileges between Asia and Europe and finding the time for artistic research and development amidst programming.

In summary, it seems that the overarching challenge faced by the arts sector is finding the right balance and measures to ensure that efforts and resources lead to meaningful and equitable impact.

Indeed, “art work is hard work” as quoted by one of our participants.

To round off the day, ASEFLinkUp participants were treated to a visit at the Academy of Fine Arts (AVU). As one of the oldest arts colleges in Prague, the institution plays a vital role in establishing a modern Czech culture of fine art.

Day 3 – “What do I want the future of international cultural cooperation to look like?”

For the penultimate day of the Lab, Head of European Studies Department from Charles University in Prague, Dr Eliška Tomalová led the participants through a workshop on exploring the complexities of cultural diplomacy in research, teaching and practice.

The participants then spent their day pondering about what they would like to see for future international cultural cooperation, what needs to change and how can we get there? Recommendations relating to the domains of policy-making, evaluation and impact measurement, capacity building were brought up by the group.

Amongst the suggestions, what’s clear is that we must move beyond the instrumentalisation of arts and culture for political aims and bring the humanistic aspects of culture to the forefront, to offer enduring impacts towards attaining the futures that we want to see.

This includes recognising the intrinsic value of the arts and culture, listening and amplifying the voices of diverse practitioners, respecting their unique working methods and approaches and much more. It may also require thinking outside of the box and prioritising the working process of cultural projects – allowing policymakers and other stakeholders witness the challenges, feelings, experiences and stories that grassroots practitioners encounter.

Day 4 – It’s a wrap!

On the last day, the group was hosted by the Ministry of Culture for one final discussion and took the stage to presenting their recommendations for a future soft power and cultural cooperation between Asia and Europe.

A visit to Pilsen was made to mark the end of the Lab, with a rare display of Indonesian puppets and hearing first hand from the organisers of the Skupova Plzen festival and their collaborations with Asia.

The last 4 days marked the start of new connections, conversations and collaborations and pointed at early steps towards some call for change for the future narrative of international cultural cooperation.

Did the second edition of the Lab succeed in advocating for alternative understandings of and new forms of cultural relations? Only time will tell. Meanwhile however, the Lab proved to be a fertile ground to hear a whole gathering of practitioners who are passionate about the betterment of the sector acknowledge the gaps and imbalances in cultural diplomacy.

Read the final statement from our 18 professionals on advocating for further international cultural cooperation here

Want to hear more insights from Prague? Watch the interviews with our ASEF LinkUp participants here