NXT – Making a Living from the Arts is a 3-year project co-funded by the EU Creative Europe programme (formerly known as NE©XT Accelerator), that started on 1 May 2015 and ended on 30 April 2018.
The NXT Project focused on supporting the career development of emerging artists; and sharing experiences and best practices between arts education institutions and creative hubs on how to make a living from the arts.
The NXT Project developed several activities including 3 conferences, site visits, artists workshops and the three editions of the NEU NOW festival.
To Know more, you may refer to:
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The NXT Project publication "Careers in the arts: Visions for the future" is the culmination of 3-years of research and various activities co-funded by the Creative Europe programme and initiated and supervised by ELIA.On 12 April 2018, the final NXT Project Seminar - Making a Living from the Arts in 2025 will take place in Brussels, hosted and in collaboration with Culture Action Europe and BOZAR, Centre for Fine Arts Brussels (Rue Ravenstein 23, Brussels).
The NXT Seminar is a small scale event, which aims to address the changes and challenges the sector is facing, thanks to the knowledge collected during the three years EU co-funded project.
During the NXT Seminar, the NXT Project partners present and discuss a final project publication, including the recommendations for policymakers and the European Commission.
Part of the final project deliverables is the NXT Project research, which collected the feedback of about 200 stakeholder institutions and includes 9 case studies from both higher arts education institutions and creative hubs.
Please review the NXT Seminar programme here.
For questions, please contact Barbara Revelli, Head of Communications and Membership, at barbara.revelli[at]elia-artschools.org
During the two-day programme, delegates have addressed the challenges that the contemporary arts sector is facing and explored the creative solutions that are being developed. The NXT Conference has stimulated a critical debate on what is meant by cultural entrepreneurship in and outside academia.
Take a look at photo highlights below.
Stay tuned, as we will shortly publish the video from the NXT Conference.
The NXT Conference is part of the NXT Project, a 3-year project co-funded by the EU Creative Europe programme.
Questions? Please contact ELIA Conference Manager Janja Ferenc at janja.ferenc@elia-artschools.org
Make Yourself an Expert Hub: GOING INTERNATIONAL
Are you an emerging artist and you want to give a boost to your artistic career? Would you like to GO INTERNATIONAL? Would you like to learn how to collaborate internationally and develop your skills to properly manage your artistic career? This RESIDENCY might be just the thing for you.
The NXT Residency programme gives 5 European artists the opportunity to learn, experience and practice their skills to successfully GO INTERNATIONAL. During this 3-month residency, the selected artists will have the unique chance to kick-start their international careers and use the skills they acquired to establish successful careers in the art world.
Vienna, a well-known stepping-stone for internationalisation and with a vibrant scene in culture and art, is the perfect location to apply and master these skills.
ELIA is looking for artists who have developed already a consistent body of work and want to take their careers to the next level through a hands-on programme that aims to broaden their skills in networking, self-marketing, negotiation, pricing, international distribution and management of their artistic careers.
As part of the NXT Residency, the 5 selected artists will attend a 3-month training programme called MAKE YOURSELF AN EXPERT HUB together with selected local artists.
MAKE YOURSELF AN EXPERT HUB is a programme of the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and the Centre For Knowledge Transfer, a trans-disciplinary and inter-university project that aims to strengthen the entrepreneurial skills of artists.
In 2017 the theme of the MAKE YOURSELF AN EXPERT HUB will be GO INTERNATIONAL.
The GO INTERNATIONAL programme consists of 3 intensive courses (1 to 2 days each), accompanied with handover tasks between coaching blocks. Professional trainers and coaches will work in group- and individual trainings with the artists to improve their readiness for internationalisation.
Based on transferable skills and tools, the artists will be training in:
The selected artists will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in a variety of artistic and cultural fields in Vienna and experience the day-to-day challenges of working and living abroad.
Attendance of the training sessions is mandatory.
| Tere Badia | Andrea Braidt | Cecilie Broch Knudsen | Nadia Danhash | Paul Dujardin |
| Maria Hansen | Joost Heinsius | Kai Lehikoinen | Pier Luigi Sacco | Julie Ward |
Tere Badia
Culture Action Europe, Secretary General
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Tere Badia holds a degree in Art History from the Universitat de Barcelona and an MA in Information and Knowledge Society by the IN3 (Internet Interdisciplinary Institute) of the UOC. She is dedicated to cultural research and production in various formats. She has carried out several studies on cultural policies, networks and R+D+i for visual arts. Tere coordinated the platform DISONANCIAS in Catalonia for the promotion of the relations between artists and research departments of companies and organizations, as well as the network of visual arts production spaces of Catalonia xarxaprod. Until January 2018, Tere Badia was director of Hangar – centre for artistic production and research in Barcelona.
Andrea Braidt
Vice-Rector for Art and Research, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
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Mag. Dr Andrea B. Braidt MLitt is Vice-Rector for Art and Research at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna since 2011. The Vice-Rectorate for Art and Research, which was newly established with Braidt’s appointment at the Academy, is responsible for stimulating research activity especially in the field of arts-based research, for supporting the doctoral programs at the Academy, for conference and publication activity and for national and international co-operation and networks. She is on the ELIA Representative Board.
Cecilie Broch Knudsen
Chair, The Norwegian Artistic Research Programme
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After having held the position of rector/president at Oslo National Academy of the Arts for eight years from August 2007 to August 2015, Cecilie Broch Knudsen was appointed chair of The Norwegian Artistic Research Programme by the Norwegian Ministry of Education in January of 2015. She has been an elected member of the representative board of ELIA for two periods.
Nadia Danhash
Director, InnovationRCA, Royal College of Art
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Nadia is an investment manager and business developer who has spent 12 years at the Royal College of Art developing enterprise and entrepreneurship programmes and supporting graduate entrepreneurs. Prior to that she held a number of roles in the biotech sector with senior positions in business development, strategic marketing and general management. At the Royal College of Art, Nadia leads its enterprise and entrepreneurship centre, InnovationRCA and in this role, she is responsible overall for the development and commercialisation of Royal College of Art Intellectual Property as well as the InnovationRCA Incubator which incubates design-led start-ups founded by graduates of the College. To date she has led investments in 50 companies.
Paul Dujardin
CEO and Artistic Director, BOZAR
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Paul Dujardin is CEO and artistic director of the Centre for Fine Arts (BOZAR) in Brussels since 2002. Under his direction, the Centre has turned into an internationally recognised, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary arts centre.
He is also a passionate advocate of the European project. He has succeeded in developing BOZAR as an Agora, a platform to initiate a debate between citizens, the arts, decision-makers and other sectors. He is the animator of the steering committee of the ‘New Narrative for Europe’ project, an EU initiative attempting to given Europe a new and more cultural vision for the future of the continent.
Maria Hansen
ELIA Executive Director
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Maria Hansen was born and raised in Germany. She lived in Canada from 1987 to 1995 and holds an MBA from the University of Ottawa. Maria has worked in the performing arts for almost 30 years. In 2007, she became Managing Director of the Municipal Theater and Philharmonie of Haarlem. After 10 years in Haarlem, she decided to take on a new challenge. She is now Executive Director of ELIA – European League of Institutes of the Arts, the European network of Higher Arts Education networks. Maria has served many boards, including that of Oorkaan and the International Society for the Performing Arts (ISPA). For ISPA's June 2018 Congress in Leeuwarden/Friesland, Maria is chair of the program committee.
Joost Heinsius
Project Developer at Values of Culture and Creativity, Researcher
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Joost Heinsius is Journey Leader at Values of Culture and Creativity. He is a researcher, a project and program developer working on strategy, financing and crossovers, both inside and outside the cultural sector. Heinsius is a connector of insights from the social and business sector to the cultural sector and vice versa.
Kai Lehikoinen
Professor at CERADA, University of the Arts Helsinki, Vice-Director at ArtsEqual
Kai Lehikoinen has been recently appointed Professor to lead the Center for Educational Research and Academic Development in the Arts (CERADA) at the University of the Arts Helsinki in Finland. He is also Vice-Director of the ArtsEqual Research Initiative. His current research interests include the arts in society – their contribution to equality, well-being, work development, innovation processes and learning, and expanded professionalism of artists in hybrid contexts at the interface between the arts and other fields.
Pier Luigi Sacco
Professor at IULM University Milan, Visiting Professor at Harvard University, Researcher
Pier Luigi Sacco is Professor of Cultural Economics and Deputy Rector for International Relations at IULM University, Milan; Director of the IRVAPP centre of Bruno Kessler Foundation, Trento; Senior Researcher, metaLAB (at) Harvard, and visiting scholar at Harvard University. He is the Special Adviser of the European Commissioner for Education and Culture, member of the Europeana Research Advisory Board, of the Economics of Culture Committee of the Italian Ministry of Culture, of the Advisory Council for Research & Innovation of the Czech Republic, and of the Advisory Council of Creative Georgia. He is Senior Editor of the Leisure and Tourism Section of Cogent Social Sciences. He has published about 200 papers on international peer-reviewed journal and edited books with major international publishers. He works and consults internationally in the fields of culture-led local development and is often invited as keynote speaker at major cultural policy conferences worldwide.
Julie Ward
Labour MEP for North West of England
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Julie Ward is a Labour MEP for the North West of England. She is also a writer, theatre-maker and cultural activist who began her working life on the factory floor before becoming a community arts worker and co-founder of a successful SME in the north of England, subsequently being named NE Woman Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003.
Julie was elected in 2014 and is a member of the European Parliament’s committees on Culture and Education, Regional Development and Women's Rights and Gender Equality.
| NXT Conference Participation Fee EUR 150 |
| The fee includes one dinner, one lunch, attendance to the NEU NOW performance and the conference materials. |
| 13.00 | Registration and Coffee |
| 14.00 | Welcome Address Carla Delfos (ELIA - European League of Institutes of the Arts) Bridget Kievits (Amsterdam University of the Arts) Michel Magnier (DG Education and Culture, European Commission) |
| 14.30 - 15.30 |
Plenary Entrepreneurship and the Arts: values, beliefs, and myths Elisabetta Lazzaro (University of the Arts Utrecht HKU) Milena Dragićević Šešić (University of the Arts Belgrade) |
| 15.30 - 17.30 |
Parallel sessions Social impact and social innovation Roberto Gómez de la Iglesia (Conexiones improbables) James Doeser (researcher, writer & consultant) Joost Beunderman (00, Impact Hub Islington, Impact Hub Brixton) Chair: Nadia Danhash, InnovationRCA, Royal College of Arts London Expanded professionalism in the arts Kai Lehikoinen (University of the Arts Helsinki) Iliana Fokiniaki (art critic & curator, State of Concept) Robert Glas (artist) Chair: Lars Ebert, ELIA Creative responses to labour struggles Anne Breure (Veem House for Performance) Marie Le Sourd (On The Move / Creative Tracks) Susan Jones (writer, researcher & consultant in visual arts) Chair: Marijke Hoogenboom, DAS Graduate School, Amsterdam University of the Arts |
| 17.30 | Transportation to Westergasfabriek |
| 18.30 | Opening NEU NOW Festival (Westergasfabriek) |
| 19.00 | NEU NOW Festival Programme |
| 20.00 | Dinner |
| 09.30 | Coffee |
| 10.00 - 11.00 |
Plenary Making a Living from the Arts Stephen Rockman (Merism Capital) Michiel Schwarz (Sustainism Lab) |
| 11.00 - 13.00 |
Face to Face STAGE 1: Approaching entrepreneurship in higher arts education Gwenoële Trapman (Master Creative Producing, Academy of Theatre and Dance, AHK) Jogintė Bučinskaitė (Nida Art Colony, Vilnius Academy of Arts) Stephanie Feeney (Z-Kubator, University of the Arts Zurich) STAGE 2: Entrepreneurial initiatives: new models of education? Luka Piskoric (Poligon Creative Center) Rosina Gómez-Baeza (Factoria Cultural Madrid) Anna Kinneir (Makerversity) |
| 13.00 - 14.00 |
Lunch and Networking |
| 14.00 - 16.30 |
Learning Café The Artist of the Future |
| 16.30 - 17.00 |
Closing Reception |
Anna Kinneir is the Partnerships Lead at Makerversity. Her career has focused on creative business - especially for those starting out - with previous roles at It's Nice That, Imagination and Bonsoir Paris. Makerversity is home to Europe's best emerging creative, tech and innovation businesses. It provides its member community with cutting-edge facilities that combine co-working space with clean and messy workshop space, software, machines, tools and expert technicians. Our education initiatives and curriculums build the future workforce and inspire careers in making. Alongside facilities, The Learning Lab kick starts creativity and improves learning agility through 21st-century skills and user centred thinking to build the future workforce and invent solutions for tomorrow.
Jogintė Bučinskaitė is a communication curator at Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts in Lithuania. The topic of her interest is the tension between the practical and theoretical communication of contemporary art.
Kai Lehikoinen is a university lecturer of performing arts at the Theatre Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki. Recently, Kai Lehikoinen has been appointed Professor to lead the Center for Educational Research and Academic Development in the Arts (CERADA) at the University of the Arts Helsinki in Finland. He is also Vice Director of the ArtsEqual Research Initiative.
During the last weekend of June, the NXT resident artists showcased the projects they have been working on since April, at the FabCity Campus.
FabCity was a temporary and freely accessible campus at Java Island in Amsterdam. It was conceived and realised as a green and self-sustaining city where urban innovators, students, creatives and artists worked on their pavilions, installations and prototypes. The NXT residents each found a way to connect to the ethos of this city of the future, for example by reinventing the rules of behaviour in public space and by repairing and reusing household objects to promote sustainability. Here are some of the highlights.
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Viktor Vejvoda’s bike and electronics repair container ISO Café was a huge success, not just during the final weekend but throughout the 3-months of the residency. Viktor had a high amount of visitors, equal to the large institutions present on the FabCity campus. Artists, companies, professionals and local inhabitants used the ISO Café as a meeting point, a confrontation moment, and a creative environment in which broken everyday objects are repaired, reused and reinvented. Viktor documented his journey on his blog, amsterdaminiso.tumblr.com.
Remi Duprat is an artist who works with sculpture, photography and installations. At the beginning of the residency, Remi shared the container workshop with Viktor, to experiment on building sculptures with recycled materials. Through the medium of sculpture, he attempts to create a new image and cleanse the object of its connotations. Furthermore, Remi continued working on an ongoing research on the concept of landscape as a complex object. Because of a solo exhibition in Paris, Remi could not attend the final showcase at FabCity.
During the course of the residency, Ben Smart developed a research on urban development. After confronting himself with various stakeholders, Ben was advised by the Amsterdam City Hall urban planning office, to look into a specific area in the west side of the city. Thus Ben developed a model for a part of the street called Jan Evertsenstraat. His plan was to collect creative solutions from residents and other stakeholders, who are normally less involved in the urban development process.
The Spacehunters Collective, aka Dora Durkesac and Zofia Kuligowska, collaborated on You have bright future behind you, a multimedia installation inspired by their shared living experience in close quarters in Amsterdam. The exhibition was composed of objects, photos, quotes and videos, harmoniously installed in the circular space of the Network Democracy Dome. Visitors could enjoy the multiple projections sitting on chairs set in a circle in the centre of the space.
Both artists developed individual artistic projects in addition to their collaborative installation.
On Sunday afternoon, Zofia performed a piece entitled Dog Wrapped in Bacon in which the audience was asked to divide their attention between pre-recorded videos uploaded on YouTube and the actual performance. It was a dynamic performance piece at the tip of Java Island. You can view her videos on her YouTube channel here.
In addition to the performance at FabCity, Zofia started a long-term project in Amsterdam that she will continue working on in other cities. Project Sirenium is a network of enjoyable and pleasant places in public spaces - accessible for everyone and open for all of you to make it grow. See the Project Sirenium Facebook page here.
Photos and illustration by: Zofia Kuligowska
Visual by Dora Durkesac
The FabCity Campus closed down at the end of June. It has been an interesting 3 months and the artists all had their individual journeys throughout the residency.
The artists of the NXT residency are wrapping up their projects in Amsterdam. They spent three months in Amsterdam, doing research, collaborating with other artists and designers on and off the Fabcity Campus and attending events organised by Europe by People.
At the end of June, the artists are going to showcase their projects that they were working on during those 3 months. Their projects are very different, yet they all embody the themes of the Fabcity campus: urban ecology, private space in the city, movement in the city and the recycling and reusing of materials to contribute to a more sustainable society.
The programme is still subject to change and it will be updated as soon as we have all the information regarding times and project descriptions.
Saturday, 25 June, between 13.00 and 18.00 – SPACEHUNTERS collective, New Democracy Dome at Fabcity Campus
Title: You have bright future behind you
Topic: The SPACEHUNTERS collective’s presentation in New Democracy Dome is a collection of treasures they gathered along the way, during the time they spent together and the things that they created to survive during their residency in Amsterdam for the past 3 months. The title came from song lyrics combined with associations they developed of their experiences during the residency.
The SPACEHUNTERS collective is (Dora Durkesac HR and Zofia Kuligowska PL).
Saturday 25 June, 15.00 – BEN SMART (UK) - Fabcity campus, the Wikkel huis
Title: Streetshaping – An artistic collaboration with you (presentation at Fabcity)
Topic: Artist in residence, Ben Smart, is collaborating with Amsterdam city council, to help visualise the future of Jan Evertsenstraat's western end with a collaborative, hands-on art project. He called upon the community earlier this week, now he will present his research to the public at the Fabcity campus.
Sunday, 26 June, 15.00 – DORA DURKESAC (HR) - Fabcity Campus, the Wikkelhuis
Title: Beautiful Struggle
Topic: Project Beautiful Struggle serves as a gathering platform for artist to share their unrealised or unfinished projects. The goal is to revive ideas, exchange with others, test them or start collaborations if possible or needed.
You are invited to come and share your unrealised project or unfinished ideas. Come with a text, picture or any other media or leave a contact for further collaboration on 26th of June.
Sunday, 26 June, 17.30 - ZOFIA KULIGOWSKA (PL) - Fabcity Campus, outdoors at the tip of Java Island
Title: Dog wrapped in bacon
Topic: Performance art piece combined with a screening of video performance series made in the city of Amsterdam. Dog wrapped in bacon is a description of the vision produced by Zofia’s brain without a particular reason. While it is a perfect example of randomness of her brain’s creation, it also depicts human’s relation with nature nowadays. The concept refers to coincidences that are happening to us and therefore underlines the tricky part of planning the future and the field we can actually foresee.
Ongoing ISO Repair Café project – VIKTOR VEJVODA (CZ) – until the 26th of June, Fabcity Campus, the Repair Café is located in the shipping container on the first floor nearby the entrance of the HvA Learning Lab.
Title: ISO Repair Café
Topic: Join artist-in-residence Viktor Vejvoda for a cup of Dutch espresso style coffee at the terrace of the Shipping Container Café to enjoy spectacular views of the eastern part of the island, Amsterdam Centraal Station and undertake activities including…
+ Small electronics repairs and destructions, bicycle basic repairs and bike parts library and exchange shop.
+ Print, scan and OCR on recycled printer, design of daily needed info papers: announcements, advice, lists not to forget, manifestos and greetings cards of only kind and more
Follow Viktor’s blog for the latest updates amsterdaminiso.tumblr.com
Registration is not necessary but is useful. This is possible by e-mail.
