On the WOK.radar

Are cultural institutions destined to be organised in traditional ways? How can we think differently about structure and working methods? What kind of model would we like to see if we are tired of the hierarchy of roles? How can we communicate effectively? How can we make decisions safe and fast? These and other questions drove the workshop on the basics of sociocracy that I ran for the team of the Warsaw Observatory of Culture. Here is a brief overview of the model discussed for those interested in self-organisation.

Presenting the solutions developed by experts for the cultural sector during a time of transition. On 26 September, a debate on the organisation of the financing and functioning of culture in Poland took place at the Nowy Teatr in Warsaw. The debate focused on four main issues: the law on the status of professional artists, cultural institutions, the decentralisation of culture, and social and civic culture.

What are the interests of young refugees in Warsaw? How can we reach them? These are some of the questions that we at the Warsaw Observatory of Culture have been asking for some time, and then Oksana Kolisnyk, a student of Social Arts at the Institute of Polish Culture at the University of Warsaw, approached us with a request to organise workshops in our WOK.lab.

The project offers perspectives on the development of Warsaw's cultural offering until the year 2040. The results showed the directions that cultural institutions should take in view of becoming more attractive in the eyes of young people in the future. The results and the formulated recommendations can be adopted by all institutions in the development of their cultural offer.

The Museum Watch Governance Management Project was drafted to help the museum community address management challenges more efficiently. The idea emerged out of the existing Museum Watch Programme, introduced by CIMAM with the aim ‘to assist modern and contemporary art museum professionals in dealing with critical situations that undermine their ability to undertake their professional practice and effect a museum’s ability to operate to international standards of best practice’.

The Cultural Map of Warsaw project is developed alongside our other projects, and research and artistic processes. By adding new thematic layers, we will develop a map of Warsaw, or more precisely, a map of Warsaws – accessible, created and respected by different groups. We want it to benefit the people of Warsaw, respond to their needs, and inspire them to make unusual and surprising discoveries.