You Do You: Transcultural Education
artlink’s cultural mediation and education programme invited children and adults to actively experience cultural diversity, engage in dialogue with one another, and discover new perspectives together.
WHAT WAS ARTLINK'S CULTURAL MEDIATION AND EDUCATION PROGRAMME?
For over 30 years, artlink developed a wide range of cultural education activities for schools and cultural institutions in collaboration with artists with migration experience. From workshops and project weeks to participatory art projects, these initiatives invited participants to explore diverse life experiences and perspectives through creative practice, reflect on their own viewpoints, and express them artistically. The artists led the individual projects, drawing on their own experiences and perspectives to enrich participants' learning process.
IN SHORT
- 1990 – 2024
- Directed at schools (primary up to grammar schools and vocational schools), as well as cultural institutions
- In partnership with educational institutions and artists who have migrated to Switzerland
WHY WAS THE CULTURAL MEDIATION AND EDUCATION PROGRAMME IMPORTANT?
The programme strengthened the ability of children, youth and adults to engage openly and respectfully in a diverse society. Through encounters with artists with migration experience, participants were encouraged to adopt new perspectives, reflect on diversity, and question stereotypes. Children and young people acquired knowledge and skills across a range of artistic disciplines. They were encouraged to trust their own voices, express themselves creatively, and participate actively in society. At the same time, the programme promoted the cultural participation and professional development of the participating artists with migration experience by creating opportunities for them to work in educational settings.
Take a look at the project ‘La Diversité’, involving 330 primary school pupils in the Bernese Jura:
A selection of past projects
ARTOUT (2023/2024) - WORKSHOPS FOR SCHOOLS
artout was a workshop project on freedom of expression through pen and voice, developed by artlink in collaboration with artists and Amnesty International. The workshops invited students on the Lower Secondary Level (Sekundarstufe 1 or gymasiale Oberstufe) to experiment creatively alongside professional artists. Participants wrote, painted, created collages, spoke, rapped, or sang while exploring how to express their opinions freely without discriminating against others. The workshops are still available for schools to book. They are led by Amina Abdulkadir or Kay Wieoimmer, together with a facilitator from Amnesty International Switzerland. > Learn more about the workshops
SOLO-ALONE-IN SOLITUDE (2022) - COMMUNITY PROJECT
Solo-Alone-In Solitude brought together Basel residents aged 10 to 85 and an interdisciplinary, culturally diverse group of artists to explore the theme of loneliness. Through songs, poems, interviews, audio documentaries, and other creative formats, participants reflected on how loneliness affects us and how we can learn to cope with it. The project culminated in an interactive art installation that served as a vibrant meeting place for anyone interested in engaging with the often-taboo subject of loneliness. The installation was presented to the public during a weekend event at the Kaserne Basel. > Listen to the radio programme ‘Wie klingt Einsamkeit?’
SCHOOL PROJECTS
Diversität (2021)
As part of a project week, 80 children from the third and fourth grades of the Opfikon Primary School in Zurich explored the topic of diversity with the artists Mariana Vieira Grünig (Brazil) and Viviana Gonzalez Mendez (Colombia). In Mariana’s programme, ’Walk a Mile in Someone Else’s Shoes’, handmade shoes served as a metaphor for the children’s own migration stories. Together with Viviana, the children created imaginative mythical creatures. The project concluded with an exhibition for the entire school.
Equal = Equal? (2020/21)
Over two five-month periods, performance artist Diana Rojas worked with 80 children from the four sixth-grade classes of Opfikon Primary School on the topics of racism and diversity. A sound designer, a musician, a writer, a set designer, and a theatre educator accompanied the project. Together, they developed an exhibition, theatre performances, and a live radio programme hosted by the children themselves. > Listen to the programme
Fleeing Home. Tears, Rivers, Sea (2018)
This four-month interdisciplinary project by performance artist Diana Rojas with one primary school class and one secondary school class from Weinfelden (TG) explored the question 'Where do I feel at home?' and addressed themes such as displacement and migration. What challenges do people who have migrated to Switzerland face? Why can a so-called migration background lead to exclusion? The final radio play created during the project was presented to the public at the Thurgauer Kunstmuseum in Kartause Ittingen. > Listen to the radio play
Writer in School Residence (2014/2015)
The Croatian-born author Dragica Rajčić was a writer in residence at schools in Biel (2014) and Bern (2015) for one year each — a first in the German-speaking world. She worked with hundreds of primary school pupils from three schools. The projects resulted in plays, novels, poetry, crime stories, newspapers, fairy tales, and texts from many other genres. Language correctness was secondary. What mattered was creativity and imagination.
Nulle part ailleurs (2018)
‘Nulle part ailleurs’ or ‘Nowehere Else’ was a four-month theatre project by Congolese actor, dancer, and director Blanchi Lusilao with twelve primary school pupils from the comprehensive school in Souboz in the Bernese Jura. The children were encouraged to express themselves creatively and, through this process, to strengthen their self-confidence. The project concluded with two performances to full audiences. One mother commented: ‘I never thought my daughter could perform on stage with such confidence.’
La Diversité (2013)
For three months, 330 primary school pupils and 52 teachers from the school association in Cormoret, Courtelary, and Villeret in the Bernese Jura explored the theme of diversity together with an intercultural team of professional musicians, dancers, visual artists, an illustrator, a writer, and a video artist. The children crafted, filmed, photographed, danced, acted, printed, wrote, drew, and painted. They presented their works during a wonderful final event.