Between December 12th and 18th, 2018, the first activities for children took place as part of the cultural mediation program, developed by Cluj Cultural Centre. The activities were organized in conjunction with the exhibition Memory as Vision, part of the series of events announcing ECCA – European Centre for Contemporary Art.
Over 200 children aged 5 to 14 participated, together with their professors or parents, at interactive activities through which they discovered contemporary art, explored the exhibited artworks and acquired new information.
The activities started with the guided tour of the exhibition – conceived as an investigative game, followed by discussions and playful activities where children imagined what characters in a painting might think and invented new titles for artworks.
They also learned about the Endless Column, Rubik\’s Cube inventor, Mona Lisa and Vlad the Impaler, or the Sputnik satellite and Laika. What they all had in common was their starting point – the artworks in Memory as Vision exhibition, during which we conducted the pilot program. Considering its success, we intend to replicate the cultural mediation program in the future to other cultural exhibitions and events.
The program was attended by children and teachers from the partner schools of Cluj Cultural Centre:
- Eugen Pora High School
- Onisifor Ghibu High School
- Traian Dârjan High School
- Special School for Hearing Impaired Kozmutza Flora
In the weekend, the program was adapted for families with children.
The format of the program, the activities design and their facilitation were realized in collaboration with: Iolanda Anastasiei, Emese Apai, Miruna Batin, Georgiana Buţ, Mihai Iepure-Gorski, Florina Florian, Ana-Maria Huluban, Marius Mornea, Lucian Rad, Cristina Rogoz, Dana Stefanoiu.The program is coordinated by Corina Bucea, project manager at Cluj Cultural Centre.
The cultural mediation program is the component of the Academy of Change that promotes the practice of mediation in the cultural sector, develops pilot working methods, skills and resources in the field.
Details of the cultural mediation program here.
Details about the exhibition Memory as Vision here.