Folk art meeting in Sweden 2012

HCA have had good links with the international Organisation of Folk Art IOV

They are organising a youth congress next year in Sweden, and by youth they mean up to 35. The event looks great and is fully funded so the only cost is your air fair, all food accommodation transport etc is free. Max 5 places available from the UK, I wish I was younger. 2012 is also the centenary of the National Association of Handicraft in Sweden so there will be plenty of craft events.


YOU ARE WELCOME TO APPLY FOR THE THIRD IOV WORLD YOUTH CONGRESS
“Youth empowerment in the Intangible Cultural Heritage”

The IOV World Youth Congress is an international gathering of young people, which takes place every two years. Folk art and culture, intangible heritage, tradition and their applications in the 21st Cen­tury are the subjects that inspire discussions, workshops and lectures during the week-long meet­ing. IOV Youth are professionals seeking new ideas and fresh approaches to their work as teachers, arts administrators, handicraft counselors and artists. They are also amateur hobbyists and students, whose interests include storytelling, singing, weaving and dancing. IOV Youth are brought together by a shared interest in folk art. Friendships are built and networks established that will last a lifetime; and when the IOV Youth Congress concludes, IOV Youth will have a better apprecia­tion of folk art as a tool to build bridges to cultures and people.

The 2012 Congress will focus on the issues and relationships of a living heritage:

Passion and Engagement – From personal life to professional career

Think local, act global

Where is folk art today, and where will it be tomorrow

IOV is a worldwide organization of individuals and institutions working to document, preserve, and promote all forms of folk art, both tangible and intangible.

IOV sponsors national and international folk art festivals, as well as cultural exchanges of perform­ing artists and visual art. Through scientific and pedagogical symposia and workshops, IOV supports scholarly research, documentation, and publication on a board range of topics relating to folk art and folk culture.

The UNESCO 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, with its emphasis on research and documentation, and the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, provide the foundation for IOV programs and projects.

OFFICIAL INVITATION TO THE THIRD IOV WORLD YOUTH CONGRESS,
The International Organization of Folk Art/IOV, in operational relations with the United Nations Educational, Sci­entific and Cultural Organization/UNESCO is pleased to extend this Official Invitation to you to participate in The Third IOV World Youth Congress 2012 on Youth Empowerment in the Intangible Cultural Heritage, June 25-29, 2012.

The congress is being organized by the National Associa­tion of Handicraft Societies, Västarvet/Handicraft in West and the IOV Youth Commission, with support from the IOV Secretariat.

Congress theme
Youth Empowerment in the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Participation
The congress is open to IOV Youth members between ages 18 – 35. Applicants should be passionate about folk art and desire to take part in establishing the international network - IOV Youth.

Applicants may be students, researchers, and activists, as well as young professionals and others interested in folk art and folk culture, folk art history, civil society administration and related fields. Because space is limited, confer­ence participation will be granted to no more than one hundred youth participants. There will be an initial limit of 5 participants from each country. We will also strive for equality in gender and diversity of cultural expression.

If you are not a member of IOV, we invite you to join us at: www.iov-world.com.

Congress overview
• June 24 – Arrival at Arlanda Airport in Stockholm, Sweden

• June 25 – The participants visit a national Folk art exhibition in central Stockholm, celebrating 100 years of organized handicraft. In the afternoon, we travel by bus to Billströmska folk high school at the island Tjörn in the southwestern part of Sweden, where the confer­ence will be held

• June 26 – “Show Me” – A creative workshop model for teaching intangible culture

• June 27 – Lectures and theme workshops.

• June 28 – Conclusions and aims for the future

• June 29 – Folk Art Festivities. We celebrate 5 years of IOV Youth

• June 30 – Departure from Arlanda airport

Costs
There is no registration fee to participate. The Swedish organizers and sponsors will cover the costs of your partici­pation in the congress program, including local transportation, accommodations, meals and airport transfer from Arlanda on June 24th and back on June 30th. The participants will cover the cost of their international travel, visas and medical insurance.

Congress language
The congress language is English. Translation services are not provided.

apply here