www.business-review.eu Business Review | November 2020
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38 CULTURE Business Review | May 2016
COVER STORY 14
Who will save Romania’s independent cultural sector? Once upon a time, Romania was an emerging market for artists and cultural entrepreneurs who were committed to work hard to define the Romanian independent cultural sector as a new creative hotspot in Eastern Europe. Festivals, events, performances, galleries, industrial spaces, concerts, and all kinds of artistic approaches had an open scene and an audience here. But the coronavirus pandemic has changed everything. By Oana Vasiliu HIGH HOPES MET WITH PROMISES An effervescent debate is taking place around the funding provided by the National Cultural Fund Administration (AFCN), in a project competition worth almost RON 32 million designed for the independent sector, with a limit of RON 85,000 per project. Is it enough for a team to create something artful, be paid for it, and also advertise it in order to attract an audience? Nobody knows, as the results of the winning projects are not public yet. Still, the entire independent sector cannot rely solely on these funds.
W
With indoors closed, arts and culture moved online. But few are willing to pay for this type of entertainment
There was some enthusiasm recently following a statement made by the new mayor of Bucharest, Nicusor Dan, who said that
ith no financial support from
which the Romanian cultural sector has been
an annual budget would be allocated to the
local authorities or any state
affected, one concrete action taken by the
independent sector instead of the public fairs
aid schemes from the Culture
Culture Ministry has been to allocate money
and free concerts which the previous mayor
Ministry, Romania’s independent cultural
for contemporary art acquisitions through
had primarily financed. “We have promised
sector is struggling. There is a little support
the National Museum of Contemporary Arts
emergency aid for the running costs
from initiatives like crowdfunding campaigns
(MNAC). An extra RON 2 million was ap-
of independent cultural institutions which
that may help independent actors pay their
proved for MNAC’s budget to buy Romanian
have been affected by the medical crisis,
rent and calls for micro-funding projects, but
contemporary art, following an acquisition
an emergency inventory of cultural spaces
the sector is currently bleeding out. Inde-
procedure carried out through an art expert
in Bucharest and, in the future budget, an
pendents, NGOs, and professional cultural
commission, which has been publicly criti-
allocation of funds for the independent
associations have met with the government
cised as not being very friendly to indepen-
cultural sector,” Nicusor Dan wrote on his
and demanded financial support or any kind
dent contemporary artists. Unlike concert
Facebook page.
of help, but there has been no news so far.
halls, theatres or cinemas, museums and
What’s more, Romania’s is not included in any of the EU’s cultural and creative guides. Plenty of information and resources are avail-
It’s quite interesting that not even seven
galleries are still open for public, so maybe
months after the pandemic first hit Romania
you could spare a penny for the arts.
does anybody know how many people in
Everything seems to have moved online,
the independent cultural sector have been
able online: for example, EUNIC Global car-
yet local streaming platforms, although
affected by the shutdown of spaces and the
ried out a quick survey among its members
well-advertised and promoted, are not hitting
cancelled events, let alone how many inde-
on their government’s initiatives to mitigate
impressive numbers. Concerts, theatre plays,
pendent cultural spaces which need financial
the loss of income for artists and creative pro-
live performances or even improv shows are
aid to pay their bills.
fessionals. It found examples from most EU
being delivered online for buy-in-advance
But everyone is still planning activities
member states, but nothing from Romania.
tickets, but few people are expressing inte-
and events for 2021, when we’re all hoping to
rest.
get our normal lives back.
While nobody yet knows the extent to
