Contemporary circus and outdoor arts

LIVING BODY/IES IN CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS AND OUTDOOR ARTS : REFLECTING AROUND THE CONCEPT OF BODY/IES

WE ARE HAPPY TO SHARE WITH YOU THE FIRST ANNUAL RED-THREAD PUBLICATION WITHIN CIRCOSTRADA'S LATEST PROJECT "CS BODY/IES" BUILT AROUND THE CONCEPT OF THE BODY, SPANNING FROM SEPTEMBER 2021 TO AUGUST 2024. 
LIVING BODY/IES WAS THE FIRST THEMATIC FOCUS THAT TOOK PLACE BETWEEN SEPTEMBER 2021 AND AUGUST 2022, WHICH SOUGHT AND CONTRIBUTED TO “EXPLORE, PROMOTE AND ADOPT MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRAMEWORKS AND PRACTICES”.

With this publication, we aimed to give space to a multiplicity of voices and share some food for thought, while also summing up a part of the discussions held during the Living body/ies activities. The contributors to this publication are artist collective de Onkruidenier, Tiago Gambogi, Andrea Salustri, Marija Baranauskaité, Nathan Biggs-Penton, Eva Bubla, Emma Langmoen, Heidi Miikki and members of the Living body/ies Committee.

We hope you enjoy and continue the reflection around the Living body/ies thematics through this publication.

The publication is available in English and in French. Have a good read!

DISCOVER THE CS LAB#6 PUBLICATION

Designed around the topic of mental health and adaptability, this publication, entitled Caring in times of Crisis, goes deeper into the topics explored throughout the CS LAB seminar, which took place in Portugal from May 25-26th 2021 in partnership with Imaginarius – International Street Theatre Festival. What can you find in it?

It includes three main articles gathering inputs and perspectives from experts on the following issues:

• “How neuroscience can help deal with stress” by Vida Skreb,
•  “Have we burnt out culture?” by Miguel Bica,
• “From resistance to resilience: what about caring?” by Teresa Espassandim.

These reflection pieces are complemented by two interviews conducted with circus and street artists, who share their experiences and learnings with regards to how stress can impact their artistic practices, how they cope with it and how they navigated through the Covid-19 crisis. Last but not least, the publication includes a list of multimedia resources to go further on these issues, which resonate with all of us.

Does the name CS LAB ring a bell? This publication follows up on the CS LAB#5 webinar, which took place last June, co-organised in partnership with XTRAX around the theme “Leadership in times of crisis”.

Far from being a mere written report of the webinar’s contents, the present resource should instead be seen as a tool for reflection, providing rich and original ideas for ways forward, to help us grow as professionals and individuals working in the circus and street arts sectors. It gives us an opportunity to explore deeper the topics of leadership, diversity/inclusivity and advocacy, tackled through the Lab, thanks to the brilliant contributions from the speakers, who invite us to question ourselves, our organisations and our sectors, and call us to listen, think and act.

Their words take on their full meaning and perhaps resonate even louder now, as we are facing a context marked by uncertainty, anxiety but which could also open up multiple paths for positive and fruitful changes.

In a nutshell, the publication includes:

• 3 features articles by:

Hilary Carty: What do we need from cultural leaders in times of crisis?

Vicki Amedume: What is stopping from being fully representative sectors?

Michael Hoart: In this aftermath of this crisis, how will we need to advocate in order to sustain our organisations and our sectors?

• 2 interviews from UK artists, sharing their views and experiences of these issues in their artistic practices: Lina Johansson from Mimbre and Kevin Edward Turner from Company Chameleon
• A list of resources and additional contents for those who would like to go even further into these fascinating, complex and crucial topics.

Read it, reflect on it, share it!

In October 2018, Circostrada embarked a dozen of its members to Seoul (South Korea) for a one-week research trip to explore circus and street arts and gain a better understanding of their ecosystem. This field exploration followed a first research trip to Japan, organized in December 2016 with the complicity of Setouchy Circus Factory, and a second one held in Ethiopia, in partnership with Fekat Circus, in February-March 2018.

This research trip took place from 4th to 10th October 2018, in the frame of the Seoul Street Arts Festival–the largest street arts festival in Korea–and the Performing Arts Market Seoul (PAMS), which hosted a European focus on the occasion, organized in close relation and with the support of the European Commission. This focus gathered key European networks and platforms from the sectors, among which: the IETM, In SITU, CircusNext, On the Move, European Dancehouse, European Theatre Convention, and Circostrada.

The programme included key professional meetings with local stakeholders – Korean artists, organisations, cultural operators–visits of central venues dedicated to circus and street arts, various showcases, a dense artistic programme, some qualitative networking time, and many other parallel cultural activities, all set up with a view of grasping the stakes of performing arts in Korea, creating bonds with the main players of the eld, and expanding the network’s understanding, vision and connections of these art forms.

This publication aims to render the learnings from this research trip, by sharing the knowledge, experience and resources acquired throughout this one-week immersion in another culture, on the traces of Korean circus and street arts.

In Morocco, cultural figures are strengthening the links between artistic creativity and place(s), on a local, regional and international level.

Since the inaugural États Généraux de la Culture (General Assembly on Culture) in 2014, the landscape for street and circus arts has evolved considerably, with the arrival on the scene of new companies and projects, the creation of a Moroccan street arts federation as well as international cooperation projects. At a time when the twelve Moroccan regions are developing their Regional Development Plans (RDPs), how are artists and culture professionals addressing artistic issues in their territories and promoting their development locally?

After Tunis in October 2017, Circostrada, in partnership with Racines (a member of the network) joined forces to run a conference in Tiznit providing a forum for reflection and discussions on questions relating to international cooperation and the structuring of street and circus arts in Morocco. This KAHWA was held in Tiznit on 8th November as part of the third États Généraux de la Culture, an event open to all street and circus arts performers and professionals.

This publication draws up a non-exhaustive overview of circus and street arts in Morocco, highlighting the dynamics at play at local, regional, national level and presents the key players of the field through different focuses.

The contents of this resource are the fruit of research and observation, of the knowledge gained in the frame of the KAHWA meeting but also of the contributions of Racines and the Circostrada members, who generously shared their reporting tools, as well as their experiences et knowledge regarding Euro-Mediterranean cooperation.

After two sessions in Fossano and Rotterdam, the process of Co-design and Design Thinking (DT) has been fully explored, analysed and practiced during the third edition of the CS LAB, which took place in June 2018. In the unique location of the Centre International des Arts en Mouvement (CIAM), co-organiser of the event, participants have reflected on and co-created around their own professional challenges. As a group, they had the chance to grasp and experience how the Design Thinking process can help them address their daily issues in a new way. 

This report follows that of the CS LAB#2, which consisted in a prime introduction into the concepts of Co-design and Design Thinking, featuring definitions, presentations of practical exercises to apply when seeking to test this methodology. This one was instead conceived as a visual and practical tool, with real-life moment illustrations to guide you through the process and experience. Check it out!

Table of Contents 

• Design Thinking and Co-design
• Stage 1: Empathize
• Stage 2: Define
• Stage 3: Create and Prototype
• Socratic Dialogue
• Related resources on Design Thinking and socratic dialogue

The new mobility guide of Circostrada! 

In the past few years, artistic collaborations between Europe and Asia in the field of circus and street arts have never been more developed. However, information about Asian artistic circus and street art scene as well as those international collaborations seem not easily found and accessible for cultural professionals. After the first research trip of Circostrada in Japan in December 2016 and in the perspective of the next one in South Korea in October 2018, the network has decided, in partnership with On the Move, to create a mobility guide between Europe and Asia. Based on the needs and the strong interest of the fields, Circostrada presents its first mobility guide: SOYA – Stirring Opportunities with Yummy Asia. Conceived as a hand-on tool, it aims to be resourceful and inspirational for future collaborations. It not only gives an overview and a mapping of Asian artistic scene in circus and street arts, it helps also to organise and plan a mobility project for all cultural players through funding mobility schemes, administrative advices and inspiring collaboration testimonies.  

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• Appetisers A taste of Asian circus and street arts
• Small plates: like white on rice? An overview of circus and street arts festivals and venues in Asia
• Soup & salads: worth peanuts? Mobility funding opportunities
• Rice & noodles: bitter plant, sweet fruit? Administrative toolkit and advices 

Discover the publication in PDF here, or on Issuu.

Six months after heading to Alexandria, then to Cairo, with the goal in mind to meet two new members of their network, Circostrada initiated last October, in Tunis, a series of meetings entitled KAHWA (‘coffee’ in Arabic). It is from this first stage in Egypt, and more precisely the exchanges that took place during the Co-writing Lab, an initiative of Mahatat for Contemporary Art (Circostra-da member), that the KAHWA project was born. The KAHWA in Tunis took place under the guise of the 6th Dream City Biennale - a multidisciplinary modern arts festival - in collaboration with L’Art Rue and the Foundation Kamel Lazaar, and in turn marked the first step in the creation of a long-term project. For two days, participants exchanged ideas around various topics relating to local artistic creation, with the link between the arts and society as central theme. In a society in transition, deeply shaped socially, economically and politically by the popular uprisings of 2011, what is the status of artistic creation in Tunisia today?

Table of Contents

• A Little KAHWA in Tunis
• Dream City, the multiple dimensions of an artistic event
• To go further...

Download the publication in PDF or with Issuu.

This publication entitled “An insight into Co-design & Design thinking methodololy” follows the CS Lab workshop held on June 29, 2017 in Fossano (Italy).  This workshop, organised in partnership with Mirabilia in the course of Circostrada's General Meeting aimed at introducing a collaborative work methodology to the network’s members, so as to give them paths for reflection and lead them to question the way they approach team work. Co-design and Design thinking are processes which imply a dialogue and a collective creativity, quite often enabling its users to come up with original and innovative solutions. The present publication describes a concrete and pragmatic approach, which relies on the practical application of a diverse set of tools, applied to the context of circus and street arts production.

A very hands-on compilation of professional situations to be kept in mind when working on a project involving several stakeholders, but also precious guidance for those who simply want to improve their organization skills.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Setting the Stage
• The Tools / The Workshop: Practical Exercices 
• Grasping the Stakeholders of a Project
• Conclusions

You can read the publication on PDF, or on Issuu

This short publication and first of its kind was designed to benefit to all members of the Circostrada network, and more broadly to all cultural professionals eager to learn about the Japanese contemporary context of circus and street arts. It provides practical tips and contact information to foster professional opportunities and new collaborations between Japanese and European organisations. This guide will provide you with contacts, it will give you a quick insight into the recent history and current scene of two emerging sectors and it will help you understand better the local context. This is not a scientific and exhaustive article on circus and street arts panorama in Japan but rather an attempt to deliver an accurate report of the knowledge acquired by the network during a one-week research trip, and share an analysis built on the discussions and testimonies gathered on the spot with local people.

Table of contents

• "The sun rises in the East" - Tale of a one-week journey to Japan
• Historical landmarks and current challenges
• Circostrada top-10 venues and festivals across Japan
• Some of the most important street festivals in Japan
• The artistic address book of the network

You can also read this publication on Issuu.