What roles do creators and artists play in our cities’ urban development?
What roles do creators and artists play in our cities’ urban development?
This text follows NODE’s “Creating Cities,” an international conference that took place on Friday, October 22, 2021 and that addressed the role of art, culture, and creative industries in urban spaces. This was a hybrid event with live broadcasting by NODE and the Québec government..
“How do artists and urban spaces interact?”
“How do creative people shape our cities and what stimuli can they provide for urban development?”
These are the questions tackled head on by the speakers invited to the “Creating Cities” conference organized by the NODE Forum for Digital Arts and the Québec government on the occasion of Canada’s presence as guest of honour at the 2020-21 Frankfurt Book Fair, on October 22, 2021.
To provide an overview of these complex issues, the organizers opted for three different angles of approach from two geographical locations. In this way, they provided a platform for planners working in government agencies, creators of art installations for public spaces, and representatives of organizations that link planners with creators.
For each of the three parts of the conference, speakers from Québec and the state of Hesse in Germany were called to the microphone.
Planners – visionaries of the image and perception of the cities
Speakers:
Catherine Lareau : Commissioner for economic development, creative and cultural sector, Ville de Montréal (City of Montréal)
Caroline Romahn : Head of the department of culture at the Hessian ministry of higher education, research and the arts
Matthias Pees : Artistic director and manager of the Künstlerhaus Mousonturm
Rolf Krämer : Head of start-ups, cultural and creative industries at the Hessian ministry of economic affairs
I believe that cities all over the world are facing the same problem regarding their development. […] In this digital age, city centres are set to change fundamentally, moving away from their traditional role as commercial spaces.
This is how Rolf Krämer, Head of start-ups, cultural and creative industries at the Hessian ministry of economic affairs, laid the groundwork for the discussion.
Speaking via videoconference, the second speaker, Catherine Lareau of the City of Montréal, expressed her agreement. She even insisted that digital changes were precipitated by the public health crisis. Since “every crisis raises new opportunities,” the last few months have been “a good time to learn, improve, and create.”
After identifying three major impacts the crisis had at the cultural and creative level, namely, the vulnerability into which it plunged creators, the closing of cultural venues, and the shutting down of borders, the team at the City of Montréal implemented a recovery plan.
This strategy relied on new forms of expression and socialization enabled by digital works:
- First, existing works were deployed again, but in new, more outlying areas that were not used to being exposed to such creations
- Second, a call for projects was launched to encourage collaboration between digital creative studios and the traditional artistic community
- Playful projects that did not fit into the previous two categories were also supported and developed to make the city’s public spaces more fun
“In all, more than one hundred projects were submitted,” stated Catherine Lareau. From this lot, she chose to mention an installation titled “Duo” by Mirari, adding that this work won an award at the prestigious PRIX NUMIX gala.
In closing, Catherine Lareau explained that the selected artists had benefited because they retained intellectual property rights for their subsidized works and gained credibility and visibility by working with the City of Montréal.
In the discussion that concluded this part of the conference, Mathias Pees revealed that following his visit to Québec on the fringes of Festival TransAmériques, he was struck by the extent of Montreal’s “extraordinary display of creativity in public spaces.”
To which Catherine Lareau added: “We try to be as creative in our work as creators are in theirs.”
Curators and cultural mediators: project instigators who turn cities into webs
Speakers:
Guillaume Aniorté : Executive advisor on international and strategic development, Quartier des spectacles (Entertainment District) Partnership
Ellen Blumenstein : Curator, HafenCity
Félix Hevelke : Cultural anthropologist, art historian, cultural manager
Aileen Treusch : Curator, Founder of faktory, producer, researcher
The emphasis in the second part of the conference was on the role of institutions that act as “glue between planners and artists.”
It was in this capacity that Guillaume Aniorté, representing Montréal’s Quartier des Spectacles (Entertainment District), took the microphone in Frankfurt.
He mentioned that interactive installations in public spaces “make people happy by playing with culture.” As an illustration of this point, he described “The Loop,” which was premiered at Quartier des spectacles and is now being presented in Frankfurt in conjunction with the latest edition of the International Book Fair.
“Why not export our installations?” he asked. He went even further by sharing his wish list: “to co-invest, co-create, develop ties, and share experiences” with representatives from other major world cities.
In fact, one such representative was also present at the event, namely, Ellen Blumenstein, from Imagine the City, an organization based in Hamburg. In answer to the question “What does it take to create a city’s image?” she said that a city’s media image, which is disseminated on social media, is as important as its physical image, which can be appreciated onsite.
In the conversation among the curators and cultural mediators, Guillaume Aniorté returned to this point to say that what makes a city’s signage successful is its attachment to its own nature. He pointed out that Montréal’s Entertainment District uses a red dot to identify key locations on its territory, and that this red dot is directly inspired by the district’s past as a “red-light district.”
On the role of artists in their community, Aileen Treusch stressed that “artists are not just there to decorate cities. We need their creative approach to think outside the box.”
Ellen Blumenstein said that public art “generated much more interest and achieved greater outreach” than works presented in museums. According to her, only 1.7% of the population visit museums while 20 to 30% interact with works located in public spaces.
The creators: the art of imaginig and building memorable moments
Speakers:
Olivier Girouard : Visual artist, Ekumen
Thomas Payette: Co-founder and creative director, Mirari
Berndt Jasper et Móka Farkas : Baltic Raw Org (BRO)
Stefan Weil : Chief Creative Officer, Atelier Markgraph
C’était ensuite au tour des artistes de prendre la parole. Olivier Then came the artists’ turn to speak. Olivier Girouard, from Montréal studio Ekumen, was the first to take the stage.
He began by demystifying public space installations by reminding us that the same tools were used to works for large indoor venues and outdoor public spaces.
À titre de l’un deAs one of the creators of The Loop, he said he was pleased that his work would be shown on the fringe of the Frankfurt Book Fair.
He went on to explain how exports were part of his artistic process. So much so that his most recent creation, “Spacetime,” incorporates the notion of export by linking live connected benches between two public squares in two different cities.
Olivier Girouard passed the microphone on to Thomas Payette of the Mirari studio, who stated that the works he designs for public spaces are built for travel. Indeed, he stated that the equipment can be dismantled and reassembled and that it can withstand the vagaries of the weather.
Regarding “Duo,” he is particularly proud to have “brought contemporary dance into the public space. This brings discoverability to this often neglected discipline.”
To present the German point of view, Berndt Jasper and Móka Farkas of the Baltic Raw Org collective presented their success stories such as the Wowtecture event where iconic buildings from around the world were reproduced in plywood. Berndt Jasper took the opportunity to explain that “modern cities need icons.”
À son tour, Stefan Weil chanta les louanges de la créativité canadienne, For his part, Stefan Weil also sang the praises of Canadian creativity, underlining that he was greatly impressed by what he saw during his visit to Mutek. He also noted that the interactive installations are “like a playground for adults, and maybe for children too. In fact, for everyone!”
In the conversation concluding this section, Olivier Girouard defined his role as “getting people out, making them feel good, and generating curiosity.” He added:
I think we all live – alone – in front of our screens. To go out and interact with tangible works in physical spaces creates a spark. It inspires people to reconnect with their environment.
Thomas Payette stressed that “works in public spaces need a lot of resources. We need the right funding.” But because of the way funding is distributed, however, “we can’t take the bold step of putting projects forward. We can only respond to calls for projects.”
A member of the audience then raised the issue of measuring the success of interactive facilities. Thomas Payette answered with a single word: “Instagram.” Indeed, the popular impact of a work can be gauged by the interactions it generates on social media.
However, he reminds us that every creative project involves risk. “It may not work.” Olivier Girouard added that “The first iteration is always a prototype. And I like to think of my city as a prototype as well.”
About NODE
NODE Verein zur Förderung Digitaler Kultur e.V. is a non-profit, volunteer-based organization based in Frankfurt that was founded in 2010. Since its foundation, its board of directors has been led by David Brüll and Sebastian Oschatz. The board and the organization’s many honorary team members and workshop facilitators believe in the spirit of sharing knowledge and sharing ideas.
Its mission: celebrate culture, arts, and technology. It is a place of open exchange and critical discourse for all.