The ongoing COVID-19 situation has and will continue to have, a huge impact on people of all age groups, social classes, and cultural backgrounds. However, among the most challenged from the pandemic, are young people and cultural institutions. Educational, cultural and social activities everywhere are severely limited or under lockdown and, consequentially, social exclusion among young people is rising. Among these young people are future artists, creative entrepreneurs, writers, innovators, craftsmen and women, who have a huge potential to contribute to European society and culture. The situation also severely affects the cultural and creative sectors, and as a consequence, many of them are threatened on their livelihood with museums also generally struggling to attract young people. There is therefore a great need for cultural institutions to renegotiate their identity by interacting with their audience through new innovative approaches.

This is why UpCreate have created a new interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral partnership between 7 partners from 5 European Countries that will provide new, innovative solutions and opportunities for young people in Europe – and for the European cultural and creative sectors.

UpCreate has a partnership of 5 cultural institutions representing 5 different disciplines of art, 1 culinary actor, and a 1 higher educational institution and is led by Aalborg University, Denmark, involving the following competent partners: Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana (Slovenia), Associazione Marchigiana Attività Teatrali (Italy), Art Museums Skagen (Denmark), Einar Jónsson Sculpture Museum (Iceland), ARGE Gustav Mahler Festival Steinbach (Austria), and Alchemist Taste Lab (Denmark).

UpCreate will create new, innovative participatory approaches to how young people can engage with, develop and innovate the creative and cultural sectors. Doing so, it is the expectation that UpCreate will realise new synergies between fields of education, training and youth. Furthermore, by combining two essential cultural fields – Food and Art – in new, innovative ways, UpCreate will foster the creation of innovative solutions young people can use to face the current societal challenges, and which will support the recovery resilience of the culture and creative sectors.

Welcome!

Anna Marie Fisker, Project Leader