On March 6, at Arta Cinema, Cluj Cultural Centre organized the General Assembly of the association’s members – cultural organizations and institutions, universities, business clubs and clusters, civil society associations, local and regional administrations.
On this occasion, the 2019 activity report and the 2020 planning were approved, as well as the membership of ten new organizations joining Cluj Cultural Centre, the total number of its members reaching 104. The newest members of Cluj Cultural Centre are Young Actions and Abstractions (Aici Acolo Pop Up Gallery), Cercul Întreg, Fascinația Meșteșugului, Magic Puppet, Perennis (Transylvania Opera Academy), Silver Screen (MATCA artspace), the Association of Students at the University of Art and Design (ASUAD), Support Your Local Artist, Transylvania Furniture Cluster, and Romanian Health Observatory. The complete list of the Centre’s members, the 2019 activity report, and the 2020 planning can be found at www.cccluj.ro/documente.
“Consolidation is the key word of 2020 for us. After six years of debating, research and planning, in July 2018 we moved to the actual implementation, and in two years we succeeded in expanding our team to 22 persons and the annual budget to approximately 2 million Euros, most of the funding being through European funds and private financing, fully covering the administrative and wage-related costs of the organization. Now we enter a new era, the era of consolidation, of settling down, when the Centre can prioritize the cultural programme, the mechanisms for engaging its members and the community, as well as the increase in visibility for our themes and projects”, says Ștefan Teișanu, Director of Cluj Cultural Centre.
The General Assembly approved the calendar of activities for the current year, which can be accessed in the planning document validated during the meeting and published on the Centre’s website. Also, the draft budget for 2020 was approved, with a value of approximately 2 million Euros, out of which 58% from European funds, approximately 7% equally from private funds, national funds and membership fees, and 25% from the expected contributions at local level.
At programme level, priority will be given to the activities focusing on developing the cultural sector, and on the research and development of policies in the cultural area. Rarița Zbranca, the Centre’s Programme Director, highlighted that one of the priority themes of the year will be the relation between art and well-being, a theme also included in the new European Agenda for Culture.
From the point of view of the cultural infrastructure development, the Centre’s priorities are the inauguration of the Culturepreneurs Hub at the Regional Center of Excellence for Creative Industries (CREIC) and the start of formal preparations for transforming the former military garrison on 21 Decembrie Avenue into a center of resources for the cultural sector. Both projects are implemented in partnership with Cluj-Napoca City Hall.
Among the Centre’s members and partners, several organizations also presented their activity and objectives for the current year. These are the French Institute, Create.Act.Enjoy, Puck Theater, Arta Cinema and Botnar Foundation.
Cluj Cultural Centre is a non-governmental organization of culture and urban development reuniting over 100 organizations and institutions in the cultural, academic, business, civil society and public administration areas.
The strategic objectives of the Centre are:
• Developing the city of Cluj as a strategic European city in the field of art and culture;
• Facilitating the cohesion and vitality of the local community;
• Contribution through culture to local and regional development;
• Strengthening the Centre’s strategic role;
• Developing an up-to-date and sustainable organizational model.
