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Alternative Education & Community-Based Artistic Approaches

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Alternative Education & Community-Based Artistic Approaches

Two days of self-learning and shared practices for artists, curators, cultural workers and educators

8–11th May

Republic of the Sawmill, Partizanų str. 5A, Švenčionėliai

 

Creative Landscapes develops across two contexts: Sasso Marconi, in the Bolognese Apennines, Italy, and Švenčionėliai, a small forest town in north-eastern Lithuania. Although geographically distant, both places share a deep connection to the land and a desire to connect cultural regeneration with environmental awareness.

The two days are not conceived as a frontal training programme, but as a space for self-learning and horizontal exchange, where educational models, roles and methodologies can be collectively deconstructed by sharing practices, tools and experiences. The goal is not only to transmit skills, but above all to create the conditions to learn together through listening, dialogue and shared work.

The initiative is addressed to those working in decentralised contexts as well as in urban or institutional settings, and to anyone who wishes to adopt or strengthen an ecological, situated and community-based approach within their artistic, curatorial, educational or cultural practice.

An open invitation to all who feel the need to rethink the way they work in relation to territories and communities

Programme

8–11th May

Republic of the Sawmill, Partizanų str. 5A, Švenčionėliai

 

Saturday, 9th May

LOCAL MEMORY AND REGENERATIVE PLACEMAKING

10:00 – 11:00 Trainspotting residency

  • Project Creative Landscapes
  • Presentations of Artists’ Projects

11:00 – 12:00 Šilainių sodai

  • Community-based practices and co-creation
  • Regenerative placemaking in urban areas

12:00 – 13:00 Discussion

13:00 – 14:45 Community lunch – making pizza in an outdoor oven

14:45 – 17:00 Tour – the history of local vegetable and fruit growing, garden culture, and their significance

Sunday, 10th May

TRANSFORMATIONS IN THE REGION

10:00 – 11:00 Miško uostas, NOKA

  • events space The Republic of Sawmill 
  • creative industries centre DEPAS 

11:00 – 12:00 Innovators Valley

  • The Conversion of the Kamariškės Manor
  • Hojskole initiative

12:00 – 13:00 Discussion

13:00 – 14:45 Community lunch – making pink cold beetroot soup

14:45 – 17:00 Tour – renovated spaces in Švenčionėliai

Participants

Kultūros dirbtuvė

„Kultūros dirbtuvė“ is a non-profit, non-governmental organization whose mission is to initiate and facilitate regenerative placemaking processes in urbanized areas, revealing the biocultural uniqueness of these places and empowering communities to act as co-creators. Regenerative placemaking is understood as a strategic process that restores people’s relationship with social and ecological systems through site-specific activation leading to long-term change. Drawing on experience gained since 2015 in the Šilainiai neighborhood of Kaunas, the organization develops and implements methodologies and programs that promote community engagement and awareness, while through listening practices, experiments, and small-scale projects, it strengthens the connection to the local context and seeks to create sustainable, systemic change in Lithuania and beyond.

Innovators’ Valley

“Innovators’ Valley” is an organization founded in 2015 by the National Institute for Social Integration that operates as an open space for creativity and collaboration in nature, dedicated to the development of social enterprise and innovation. Based on the values of empathy, community, and connection with nature, the organization conducts training sessions, projects, and discussions on topics such as social exclusion, human rights, education, and ecology. Located in historic Antalieptė, the organization brings together nature, culture, and history to create a space where social innovations are born and communities are strengthened.

Miško uostas x Trainspotting residency

Based in Švenčionėliai, the community “Miško Uostas” has been revitalizing the town’s industrial heritage since 2016, transforming abandoned railway areas into vibrant cultural spaces. This initiative organizes residencies, exhibitions, concerts, and community activities that strengthen local identity and encourage resident engagement. The “Trainspotting” residency has become a key element of these efforts, contributing to the formation of a creative ecosystem and the realization of the area’s cultural potential.

The Trainspotting residency fosters a vision of Švenčionėliai as a regenerating town of creative industries, creates platforms for artistic practises and cultural events promoting a sustainable, community-based way of life. Set in the urban landscape of railway transport infrastructure and architecture, the programme aims to adapt the spaces of repurposed buildings, public spaces and surrounding nature spaces for cultural, recreational and educational activities, showcase professional art in the region and support co-creation with the local community.

Parsec

“Parsec”, located in Bologna, works at the intersection of contemporary art, education, and ecology. “Parsec” organizes residencies, exhibitions, and public programs that explore how creative practice can address environmental and social transformation. Among its main initiatives are the Terrapolis Festival, dedicated to art and ecology, and Green Screen, a moving-image program focused on sustainability and cultural change.

The event includes contributions from: Kultūros dirbtuvė, Innovators’ Valley, NOKA

Curated by Parsec and Miško Uostas in collaboration with Trainspotting residency as part of the European Erasmus+ project Creative Landscapes.

Funded by the European Union.