In this special episode, we're reflecting on the first three years of NAARCA – exploring what’s been achieved, what the challenges have been, and where things might go next.

We'll also be hearing about all the work that’s been going on within NAARCA, beyond what this podcast series has so far explored – including the role of the Eco Coordinator, the art commissions and writing commissions, and the workshops and pedagogical toolkit for children and young people.

NAARCA's online exhibition (available till 31.07.2024): https://naarca.art/online-exhibition

Creative Climate Champions digital toolkit for young people: https://naarca.art/resources

Sustainability Toolkit for Artists' Residencies: https://naarca.art/2023/11/02/naarca-publishes-sustainability-toolkit-for-artists-residencies

Contributors:
Alex Marrs, Programmes and Communications Producer, Cove Park; Leena Kela, Residency Director, Saari Residence; Rose Tytgat, Project Coordinator, Art Hub Copenhagen; Charlotte Hetherington, Director, Artica Svalbard; Helena Selder, Director, Baltic Art Center; Kamilla Gylfadóttir, Project Manager, Skaftfell Art Center; Lise Autogena, Director, Narsaq International Research Station; Celia Harrison, Director, Skaftfell Art Center; Jaana Eskola, NAARCA Eco Coordinator; Maraid Macewan, Designer of NAARCA's Digital Toolkit for Young People

Credits: Testing Grounds is produced and edited by Katie Revell and includes original music by Loris S. Sarid and artwork by Jagoda Sadowska. With thanks to Alex Marrs and the rest of the NAARCA team.

Contact us: naarca.art/contact-us

Who we are: Art Hub Copenhagen (Denmark), Artica Svalbard (Norway), Baltic Art Center (Sweden), Cove Park (Scotland), Saari Residence (Finland), Skaftfell Art Center (Iceland) and Narsaq International Research Station (Greenland).

Thanks for listening!

How might a philosophy of repair change our approach to planning and architecture?

Art Hub Copenhagen is NAARCA’s Danish partner, and the only member residency located in a major city. It opened in 2019 as a place for artists, curators and creative professionals to gather, network and collaborate.

Jacob Fabricius is the Director of Art Hub Copenhagen. He tells us about Art Hub’s development, including its upcoming move to a new – old! – building that’s being refurbished with an emphasis on reuse, recycling and sustainability. Jacob also introduces us to our contributors, Søren Nørkjær Bang and Emmy Laura Pérez Fjalland. Søren is a curator with a background in art history and philosophy – and a passion for architecture – who now works for Copenhagen Architecture Festival. Emmy is a Danish-Colombian cultural geographer, writer, researcher and teacher with a deep interest in human-landscape relationships.

Emmy and Søren explore the potential for more collaborative, humble and regenerative approaches to architecture and planning, the idea of “repair”, and the power of author Ursula K. Le Guin’s “carrier bag theory of fiction”.

Find out more:
Art Hub Copenhagen (https://arthubcopenhagen.net/en/)
Copenhagen Architecture Festival (https://www.cafx.dk/)
Thoravej 29 – Art Hub’s Future home (https://thoravej29.com)

Contributors:
Jacob Fabricius, Director, Art Hub Copenhagen
Emmy Laura Pérez Fjalland, cultural geographer, writer, researcher and teacher (https://emmylaura.info/)
Søren Nørkjær Bang, Curator, Copenhagen Architecture Festival

Credits: Testing Grounds is produced and edited by Katie Revell and includes original music by Loris S. Sarid and artwork by Jagoda Sadowska. With thanks to Alex Marrs and the rest of the NAARCA team.

Contact us: naarca.art/contact-us

Who we are: Art Hub Copenhagen (Denmark), Artica Svalbard (Norway), Baltic Art Center (Sweden), Cove Park (Scotland), Saari Residence (Finland), Skaftfell Art Center (Iceland) and Narsaq International Research Station (Greenland).

Thanks for listening!

What could it mean to decolonise art, and to use art as a tool for decolonisation?

Saari Residence is NAARCA’s Finnish partner. It’s located in Mynämäki, Southwest Finland, and maintained by Kone Foundation as a residence for artists of all disciplines and nationalities.

Leena Kela is a performance artist, and the Residency Director at Saari. She introduces us to the region, to Saari, and to our two contributors: Taru Elfving and Pauliina Feodoroff. Taru is a curator and writer focused on nurturing “undisciplinary” and site-sensitive enquiries at the intersections of ecological, feminist and decolonial practices. Pauliina is a Skolt Sámi theatre director, artist and land-guardian whose performance piece Matriarchy appeared in the Sámi Pavillion at the 2022 Venice Biennale. Taru and Pauliina explore ideas of decolonisation in art and “the art world”, both in the Nordic region specifically, and more broadly.

Find out more:
Saari Residence (https://koneensaatio.fi/en/saari-residence)
Snowchange Cooperative (http://www.snowchange.org)
Contemporary Art Archipelago (https://contemporaryartarchipelago.org)
Matriarchy (https://oca.no/thesamipavilion)

Contributors:
Leena Kela, performance artist, Residency Director at Saari Residence (http://www.leenakela.com)
Taru Elfving, curator and writer (https://contemporaryartarchipelago.org/about)
Pauliina Feodoroff artist, film and theatre director, land guardian, Sámi advocate (https://oca.no/thesamipavilion/thesamipavilion-pauliinafeodoroff)

Credits: Testing Grounds is produced and edited by Katie Revell and includes original music by Loris S. Sarid and artwork by Jagoda Sadowska. With thanks to Alex Marrs and the rest of the NAARCA team.

Contact us: naarca.art/contact-us

Who we are: Art Hub Copenhagen (Denmark), Artica Svalbard (Norway), Baltic Art Center (Sweden), Cove Park (Scotland), Saari Residence (Finland), Skaftfell Art Center (Iceland) and Narsaq International Research Station (Greenland).

Thanks for listening!