Our Voices: using art in public spaces to empower young people from social housing areas through artistic citizenship

ongoing

Our Voices is an interdisciplinary, and socio-cultural art project that investigates how to create art in public space with a social dimension and relevance to groups not normally reached. The objectives of the project are to include the voices of citizens and young people in the production of art in public spaces and to empower citizens to participate in the public art projects to provide them with a sense of artistic citizenship. Accordingly, the actions and exchange in Our Voices is approached as democratic innovations and possible pathways to give voice and presence to politically marginalized youth, and as initiatives to strengthen young people’s agency and wellbeing and support social sustainability. The objectives of the projects are to create new and innovative ways of working with art in publics spaces and participation as well as to apply a cross-sectoral approach mixing knowledge from the cultural and social sectors, in the end to create better lives and societies. The activities include art projects in Silkeborg, Denmark and Hildesheim, Germany, that may take many different forms depending on the result of participatory processes. Open calls, workshops, etc. will be the basis of the artworks initiated. Another part of the project is the empowerment of young people participating actively in the project. They will create themselves, as well as be part of a cultural exchange. Target groups include young people, especially marginalized groups, and citizens in social housing areas, as well as European artists. Short-term, the project will result in artworks transforming spaces and include residents in Silkeborg, Denmark and Hildesheim, Germany. When working together internationally to co-create new and innovative ways of creating lasting change through art, we contribute to the strengthening of the creative sector as a whole and ensure long-term effects of our collaboration.