DANSK

Colours of Being er et nordisk projekt, hvor unge kunstnere gennem workshops og interventioner (performances) forsøger at skubbe til den politiske dagsorden.

Projektet arbejder med tre temaer: Køn, lighed og social bæredygtighed.

• For hvert tema afholder Colours of Being en weekend med workshops.
  
  
• En professionel kunstner er tilknyttet som mentor, der deler sine metoder og erfaring. Mentoren skifter hver gang.
  
  
• Projektet rykker rundt mellem byer i Danmark, Sverige, Norge og Island. 
  
  
• Open calls udsendes altid for at inddrage lokale kunstnere og kulturinteresserede.
  
  
• Weekenderne kulminerer i en intervention - en performance præget af improvisation og arbejdet fra weekendens workshops.

Projektet blev afsluttet i 2023, men blev efterfulgt af Colours of Being x Ung Kult i 2024.

Colours of Being er støttet af IVÆRK og VOLT.

ENGLISH

Colours of Being is a Nordic project where young artists, through workshops and interventions (performances), attempt to influence the political agenda.

The project focuses on three themes: Gender, equality, and social sustainability.

• For each theme, Colours of Being hosts a weekend of workshops.
  
  
• A professional artist joins as a mentor, sharing their methods and experiences. The mentor changes for each theme.
  
  
• The project moves between cities in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland.
  
  
• Open calls are always issued to involve local artists and young people who are interested in culture and the arts.
  
  
• The weekends culminate in an intervention—a performance characterized by improvisation and the work from the weekend's workshops.
  
  

The project ended in 2023 but was followed by Colours of Being x Ung Kult in 2024.

Colours of Being is funded by IVÆRK and VOLT. 

Gender was the first of the project's three themes that the artists explored. First through a workshop in Vrå, Denmark, and then in Oslo.

The mentors ware performance artist Inga Gerner and theatre director Belinda Braza.

Facilitator Johanne Lund describes what the project means to her: 

“I used to have a belief that we are very similar in the Nordic countries, but I have gained a much greater understanding of our differences. In just one weekend, you discover so many different perspectives on some really important issues - and how young people of my age perceive them differently. 

I think it's crucial that we look beyond our own noses and social circles to understand problems and trends. Personally, I feel more empowered to explore or create more projects across national borders.”

Video: Paula Uspenski

Next up was "equality". The group explored what equality means to them through workshops - first in Aalborg and then in Göteborg.

The mentors were dancer/performance artist Sandro Masai from Denmark and artists Sunniva Fliflet and Johanna Karlsson. 

"The art forms can feel very segregated when you’re young. As a professional later on, it's more integrated, but when you're young, the disciplines are very divided.

This project creates an artistic Nordic network, where young artists can meet and draw on each other's experiences," project facilitator Nicolaj Mortensen explains. 

Video: Paula Uspenski

Read the article about the workshops (in Danish) 

Finally, it was time to work with the theme 'social sustainability'. This one was maybe the most complex and challenging theme to work with. 

The group did both the workshop and intervention in Reykjavík.

The mentor was impro comedian Pálmi Freyr Hauksson from Iceland. 

"The workshop with Pálmi was inspiring. We learned different principles and techniques from the improv world, and he was very generous and honest when telling us about his journey as a creative.

Iceland has been amazing - I could see myself living here! - and we have met some pretty cool people who have contributed to this project," participant Jakob Lundbye says.

Video: Paula Uspenski