ART OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

ART OF
FUNDAMENTAL
RIGHTS

Over time, art has created democratic formation within people of all ages, because it is a form of communication that helps spread and reinforce the general knowledge about current trends in our society. The purpose is that the artwork will inspire a broad public to interact in the debate on our common fundamental rights. With the Art of Fundamental Rights, we want to raise awareness about our fundamental human rights through art, because they continue to be under attack in several countries. We are seeing these developments all over the world, including in Europe, where authoritarian regimes exercise power over minorities and vulnerable groups.

2023 exhibitions

warsaw

The event took place on 26 September 2023, in the centre of Warsaw, at the Dreamers & Craftmen conference centre, House of Social Innovation. This venue was specifically chosen as the location of the event, as it hosts many events like trainings, conferences, workshops, exhibitions and more, organized by local NGOs.

Since 2015, public authorities' compliance with the norms and provisions of the constitution and the rule of law has been deteriorating significantly. At the Institute of Public Affairs, we have undertaken numerous activities during this period to halt and reverse these negative trends, cooperating with other civic organisations at home and abroad. In order to strengthen and better coordinate our activities in this regard, we reactivated the Centre for Constitutionalism and Legal Culture. The task of the CKiKP is to undertake activities in the field of knowledge exchange, joint creation of solutions and preparation of civil society to work on the reconstruction of the rule of law in Poland.

During the meeting, we showed the exhibition of works by artists from various European countries, who we have asked to creatively depict the provisions of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. The exhibition, as well as the project 'ChARTer - Explore the Charter of Fundamental Rights through Art', is another example of IPA’s commitment to civic education in the area of democracy and the rule of law. The Ukrainian artist of the Justice artwork, Nadia Mir, also attended the event. We discussed the challenges for effective civic education in times of a crisis of social trust, progressive degradation of public institutions and growing social polarisation with representatives of Polish and foreign non-governmental organisations who are looking for ways to reach an ever-wider audience on a daily basis.

We discussed the challenges for effective civic education in times of a crisis of social trust, progressive degradation of public institutions and growing social polarisation with representatives of Polish and foreign non-governmental organisations who are looking for ways to reach an ever-wider audience on a daily basis.

athens

The Art of Fundamental Rights exhibition was hosted next to Organization Earth premises, at the "Antonis Tritsis" Metropolitan Park of Environmental and Educational Activities and Social Economy Development in western Metropolitan Athens. It is the largest Metropolitan Park of Athens and a popular destination for the residents of Athens, with an average of 15,000-16,000 visitors on weekends and even more on holidays or major events.

We had an open discussion in the exhibition with two of the participant artists: Sara Jansen who participated with the artwork “Citizens’ Rights” and Lester Gradiz who participated with the artwork “Solidarity”. Both artists discussed with visitors about the concepts of their paintings, the inspiration and the ideas behind their artworks. Lester Gradiz presented the concept of solidarity in a very moving way by describing his personal story of moving to Europe-Greece from Nicaragua due to the political situation in his home country. In this way, he gave a first-hand approach of the importance of fundamental human rights.

denmark

The events in Denmark took place in three Folk High Schools, Vrå (Region of Northern Denmark), Ollerup (Region of Southern Denmark), and Krogerup (Region Zealand). The events consisted of a talk on the Charter of Fundamental Rights mixed with workshops and quizzes to involve the target group, which was mainly young European students and locals, who were not already engaged in the field.

Therefore, the talk and the workshops sought to engage the participants in a way that highlights how the Charter of Fundamental Rights relate to the participants and their own lives. By using the Art of Fundamental Rights project and the posters as a medium to enter the conversation, we were able to reach and engage an audience who are ordinarily not engaged in the rights agenda.

The talk on the Charter of Fundamental Rights highlighted how important rights are to create healthy societies and meaningful lives, but also how different fundamental rights are interpreted throughout Europe today and historically. In addition, we talked about the importance of continuously fighting for your rights and making your voice heard on these matters, because rights are not something that is won once and for all, but something that we need to keep fighting for.

cologne

The chARTer event in Cologne took place at the Europe Dome during the Pride Street Festival and the official Christopher Street-Day demonstration with the aim to bring citizens attention to discussing and interacting with the artwork and consequently the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The event included the exhibition of the artwork, engaging with citizens over the respective chapters, one workshop on LGBTQI+ and human rights in Tunisia and the consequences for Europe, one workshop on human rights and the current situation in the Ukraine, participating and presenting the artwork during the demonstration and overall communication, co- and networking of the partners from Denmark, Greece, Belgium, Spain, and Germany. The workshops were led by experts and activists from the respective regions in collaboration with team members of Democracy International.

previous exhibitions

barcelona

A lo largo del tiempo, el arte ha creado educación democrática en personas de todas las edades. El arte es una forma de comunicación que ayuda a difundir y reforzar el conocimiento general sobre las tendencias actuales de nuestra sociedad. El propósito es que las obras inspiren a un público amplio a interactuar en el debate sobre nuestros derechos fundamentales.

Con el Arte de los Derechos Fundamentales queremos concenciar sobre nuestros derechos humanos fundamentales a través del arte, porque continúan siendo atacados en varios países. En todo el mundo, incluso en Europa, estamos viendo como regímenes autoritarios ejercen poder sobre grupos minoritarios y grupos vulnerables.

El Arte de los Derechos Fundamentales incluye siete obras de arte realizadas por artistas profesionales de toda Europa, cada una de las cuales interpreta la Carta de los Derechos Fundamentales de la Unión Europea a través de diferentes formas artísticas. Las obras de arte son de alta calidad profesional y están realizadas por artistas consolidados y emergentes, cada una utilizando diferentes materiales y formas de expresión.

La exposición ofrece muchas formas de arte diferentes y abarca una amplia gama de conocimientos dentro de las artes visuales. Cada una de las obras individuales es una interpretación artística personal de un derecho fundamental que puede inspirar al espectador a relacionarse e interpretar más a fondo el derecho fundamental particular. Por lo tanto, todas las obras se pueden ver independiente y son en sí mismas una experiencia tanto artística como intelectual. Todas las obras de arte tienen en común que son de alta calidad artística y que refuerzan los mensajes y valores importantes sobre los que se construye la carta de los Derechos Fundamentales de la Unión Europea.

folkemødet 2022

bornholm

Formålet er, at kunstværkerne i Art of Fundamental Rights vil inspirere en bred offentlighed til at interagere i debatten om vores fælles fundamentale rettigheder, som fortsat er under angreb i flere lande. Udviklingen ser vi over hele verden, også i Europa, hvor autoritære regimer udøver magt overfor minoriteter og sårbare grupper.

Projektet består af syv kunstværker fra professionelle kunstnere fra hele Europa, der hver især fortolker EU's charter for grundlæggende rettigheder gennem forskellige kunstarter. Kunstværkerne er af høj professionel kvalitet og bliver udført af både etablerede og spirende kunstnere, der hver benytter forskellige materialer, kunst- og udtryksformer.

Kunst har gennem tiden skabt demokratisk dannelse hos mennesker af alle aldre, fordi det er en formidlingsform, der bidrager til at udbrede og forstærke den almene viden om aktuelle tendenser i vores samfund.

lisboa

Ao longo do tempo, a arte contribuiu para a formação democrática de pessoas de todas as idades, pois é uma forma de comunicação que permite difundir e reforçar o conhecimento geral sobre as tendências da sociedade. Pretende-se que o trabalho artístico leve um público alargado a participar no debate sobre os nossos direitos fundamentais comuns.

Com a exposição Art of Fundamental Rights, pretendemos chamar a atenção, através da arte, para os nossos direitos humanos fundamentais, que estão sob uma ameaça contínua em diversos países. Assistimos a estes desenvolvimentos em todo o mundo, e inclusive na Europa, onde regimes autoritários exercem o seu poder sobre minorias e grupos vulneráveis.

A exposição Art of Fundamental Rights é composta por sete obras de artistas profissionais de toda a Europa, cada uma delas interpretando a Carta dos Direitos Fundamentais da UE através de diferentes formas de expressão artística.

copenhagen

florence

Nel corso del tempo, l'arte ha fornito un'educazione
democratica alle persone di tutte le età, perché è una forma di comunicazione che aiuta a diffondere e rafforzare la conoscenza generale sulle tendenze attuali della nostra società. L'obiettivo è che l'opera d'arte ispiri un vasto pubblico ad interagire nel dibattito sui nostri diritti fondamentali.

Con l'Arte dei Diritti Fondamentali, vogliamo sensibilizzare l'opinione pubblica sui nostri diritti umani fondamentali attraverso l'arte, perché continuano ad essere attaccati in diversi Paesi. Assistiamo a questi sviluppi in tutto il mondo, anche in Europa, dove i regimi autoritari esercitano il loro potere sulle minoranze e sui gruppi vulnerabili.

L'Arte dei diritti fondamentali consiste in sette opere d'arte realizzate da artisti professionisti di tutta Europa, ognuno dei quali interpreta la Carta dei diritti fondamentali dell'UE attraverso diverse forme d'arte.

brussels

The exhibition is taking place in the big windows of the Philanthropy House in Rue de Royal in Brussels. The artwork is installed in the large windows towards the street, so everyone who walks by can see the exhibition. This makes the installment very inclusive for everyone to participate, stop and reflect.

All the pieces have been modified into large posters so it fits with the magnitude of the windows. During the opening vernissage we had speeches from the chair of Nyt Europa Lone Loklindt, the Directorate-General for Communication at the European Commission, Pia Arhenkilde Hansen and a youth activist from Hungary Maria Stark to talk about the charter of fundamental rights and the current situation in Europe.

REPORT FROM THE ART OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS EXHIBITIONS