Alongside the Mobility Info Points (MIP), some On the Move’s members (organisations and individuals) have set up a working group on (En)forced mobility to share practices, common actions, advocacy tools and when opportunities arise, to share their experiences in public sessions.
What do we mean by (En)forced mobility?
(En)forced mobility refers to an artist or a cultural professional whose mobility is not purely voluntary. It can be linked to taking up a professional opportunity in another country or region, such as a performance, exhibition, residency or study, but there is a definite element of constraint. The artist / cultural professional may have moved location to avoid censorship and persecution, armed conflict, natural disasters, violations of human rights including freedom of sexual orientation, extreme poverty, or other difficulties that made them need to leave their home. They may be constrained to stay in a country they assumed would only be a temporary stay, due to pandemic health restrictions. Their visa may be temporary; their civic status may be in flux: they may have been denied citizenship, be seeking asylum, have gained (or not) refugee status, be clandestine or simply classed as a migrant.
Activities:
Report of the working group discussions in 2018 (Lisbon) and 2019 (Prague) - Document edited by Mary Ann DeVlieg, with inputs from Cité Internationale des Arts, MobiCulture, Arts and Theatre Institute, Touring Artists, IGBK, Cultuurloket, Wales Arts International / Arts Council of Wales. ARC-Artists at Risk Connection, Howlround and Tamizdat.
(En)forced Mobility, an On the Move supported session in partnership with Howlround, 9 June 2020 - A one hour online session with representatives from ICORN, Howlround, Touring Artists and Cité Internationale des Arts - video
Other resources:
Publications, Projects and Mapping related to refugees and migrants
Photography @ Mohammed Abakar. Photography part of a project in Lesbos in collaboration with Mathieu Perot on Lesbos Island. Mohammed Abakar is a member of the Atelier des Artistes in Exil in Paris.
