World Arts Forum Annual Report
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World Arts Forum Annual Report JULY 2019 – JUNE 2020 Contents Context 3 2019-2020 Overview 4 Annual Meeting 2020 7 The New Narratives Lab 12 Arts and Culture Global Solidarity Network 14 World Arts Forum 16 2 Finding Hope by Mehdi Ghadyanloo – Annual Meeting 2020 Context Recent events, notably the coronavirus Role of Cultural Leaders pandemic and racial tensions, have As part of the World Economic Forum’s emphasized the critical role of the arts multistakeholder platform, Cultural Leaders and culture to inspire, create solidarity, play a critical role: they raise awareness of shape narratives and innovate for inclusive societal issues, speak truth to power, open solutions. The World Economic Forum’s up new avenues for leaders to imagine a continuous and devoted collaboration with better shared future, shape narratives, and Cultural Leaders and cultural institutions 3 create coalitions across sectors that lead to has deepened amidst a world in crisis and, more inclusive and sustainable action. despite the circumstances, allowed for a richer engagement. The Platforms The pandemic has devastated the cultural Cultural Leaders use the following Forum sector globally, forcing the closure of platforms to create impact: museums and cultural spaces, the cancellation of events and festivals, and – Forum global and regional physical and putting an immediate stop to productions. virtual events with world leaders The knock-on effect has had a severe – Ongoing Arts and Culture initiatives, impact on the livelihood of millions of artists such as the New Narratives Lab and cultural workers. The situation calls fellowship and the Arts and Culture for the need to reassess the health of the Global Solidarity Network sector, fix perennial issues and to innovate – Ongoing Forum initiatives and projects, for the long term. In this time of crisis, the on issues ranging from gender diversity Forum has played a major leadership role in to sustainability, where they are bringing together the global cultural sector integrated with leaders from other sectors to share information and lessons learned – Forum governance boards, including across disciplines and geographies, and to Yo-Yo Ma serving on the Forum’s Board create a sense of global solidarity. of Trustees – The Forum’s immensely influential social media platforms, reaching 17.2 million followers 2019 - 2020 Overview Cultural Leaders YouTube star Molly Burke (Canada) and transgender advocate Geena Rocero (US/ There are currently 240 active Cultural Philippines). Leaders, including 58 who engaged with the Forum for the first time in the past fiscal Several Cultural Leaders serve on Forum year. These include international diversity governance boards, including Yo-Yo Ma advocate and model Thando Hopa (South on the Forum’s Board of Trustees, will.i.am Africa), classics professor Mary Beard 4 on the Fourth Industrial Revolution Advisory (United Kingdom), artist Qiu Zhijie (China), Committee and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy on the Global Shapers Foundation Board. Cultural Leaders Cultural Leaders by region by gender 32% 7% 4% 50% 4% 32% 8% 50% 3% 4% 4% 2% Cultural Partners – Engagement with more than 100 artists and cultural institutions through the Cultural partnerships development with newly formed Arts and Culture Global artists and institutions has included: Solidarity Network, including the Serpentine Galleries (United Kingdom), – Ongoing collaboration with the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art Smithsonian Institution, through (China), Arts at CERN (Switzerland), another major collaboration around the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Annual Meeting 2020 Main Exhibition, Tourism (United Arab Emirates), Pro “Partnering with Nature”, with the Helvetia (Switzerland), State Hermitage Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum (Russia) and University of Museum; ongoing curation of the Arts Johannesburg (South Africa). and Culture Transformation Map; and engagement of Smithsonian experts in Forum events and networks, including the Cultural Leaders network, Young 5 Scientists community and Global Future Councils network. – A new partnership with Lynette Wallworth and the Ford Foundation for the New Narratives Lab fellowship for a two-year period and launched at the Opening Concert – Annual Meeting 2020 Annual Meeting 2020. – Ongoing collaboration with conductor – Ongoing collaboration with the Natural and 2019 Crystal Awardee Marin Alsop History Museum, London, through as part of a three-year engagement as the second presentation of the Wildlife music director of the Annual Meeting Photographer of the Year Award Opening Concert (2019-2021 events); exhibition at the Annual Meeting 2020; and collaboration with up to eight and ongoing integration of museum orchestras and choirs from around the network experts into Forum events world for the production of a virtual and communities, including the Young concert for 2021. Scientists community. Events – Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2019, New York, USA Cultural Leaders participated in 14 major – India Economic Summit 2019, New events, including seven virtual events in the Delhi, India wake of the COVID-19 outbreak: – Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils 2019, Dubai, United Arab – Young Global Leaders Annual Summit Emirates 2019, Dalian, People’s Republic of China – World Economic Forum Annual Meeting – Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2020, Davos-Klosters, Switzerland 2019, Dalian, People’s Republic of China – Five monthly Town Halls, Arts and – World Economic Forum on Africa 2019, Culture Global Solidarity Network Cape Town, South Africa – Virtual Ocean Dialogues 2020 – Great Reset Initiative Dialogues 2020 6 Qiu Zhijie, Mapping the World – Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2019 Annual Meeting 2020 2020 Crystal Awards The “Festival” On the occasion of the 26th Annual More than 40 Cultural Leaders took Crystal Awards and the opening night part in a “festival” at the Annual Meeting of the 50th Annual Meeting, the World 2020 around the theme Stakeholders Economic Forum celebrated the leadership for a Cohesive and Sustainable World, of four outstanding personalities: artist participating in more than 20 performances, Theaster Gates (USA), for his leadership installations and exhibition aimed at 7 in creating sustainable communities; spurring meaningful dialogue around key choreographer Jin Xing (China), for her issues. In addition, Cultural Leaders had leadership in shaping inclusive cultural 73 speaking roles in 51 sessions across norms; actress Deepika Padukone (India), the overall Annual Meeting programme for her leadership in raising mental health and shared the stage with chief executive awareness; and artist Lynette Wallworth officers, civil society leaders, policy-makers (Australia), for her leadership in creating and young change-makers. inclusive narratives. Programme Highlights Nature and sustainability featured high on the agenda and were included in the main exhibition “Partnering with Nature” in collaboration with the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Four interactive installations encouraged participants to create, rethink and re- explore the human relationship to nature. Partners included Atelier Luma/Luma Arles, the Department of Seaweed, Totomoxtle and Sam van Aken. Theaster Gates receives the Crystal Award from Hilde Schwab at the 26th Crystal Awards Tree VR, by Milica Zec and Winslow Programming also focused on the role of Porter, was a great success again and youth and young change-makers in shaping spurred meaningful dialogue around the a more sustainable and inclusive future, climate crisis. Crystal Awardee Lynette on the importance of shaping inclusive Wallworth’s deeply moving and poetic narratives, and on the fast development of acceptance speech on Australia’s bushfires technology, communication and innovation received nearly a million views and moved in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. audience to tears. 8 Mary Beard, A History of Feminism – Annual Meeting 2020 Media and Social Media Cultural Leaders were highly visible throughout the Annual Meeting on the Forum’s media and other media outlets as well as on social media platforms. The Caroline Casey, Closing the Disability Inclusion Gap – Cultural Leaders reached a total of 1.7 Annual Meeting 2020 million livestream views online, 2,300 global media mentions, 29,000 views of the Disability inclusion continued to be a focus. Forum’s Agenda blogs and 163.5 million Several prominent Cultural Leaders joined reaches on social media. the conversation on closing the disability inclusion gap, and The Valuable 500 Media coverage of Cultural Leaders and the initiative, launched at the Annual Meeting arts and culture at the Forum has featured 2019, became a Platform Initiative of the in The New York Times, the BBC, Reuters, World Economic Forum. In addition, a panel CNBC, Independent Online and several addressed disability for the first time at the social media platforms, including TikTok, Open Forum for a local audience. Facebook and Weibo. Exhibitions, Installations and Special Experiences – Highlights The Forum worked with Cultural Leaders and institutional partners to produce numerous exhibitions, installations and special experiences during 2019-2020. Tree VR The award-winning Tree VR, a multisensory 9 and virtual reality experience by artists Milica Zec and Winslow Porter (New Reality Partnering with Nature Co.), invited participants into the rainforest Developed in collaboration with the Cooper to become a tree and experience the tree’s Hewitt Smithsonian Design