BOHEMIA,CZECH REPUBLIC
CENTER FOR CREATIVE SUSTAINABILITY
MISSION
BRINGING THE PRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES OF OUR TIME INTO TANGIBLE ART FORMS THAT INSPIRE, IGNITE, AND ENGAGE THE PUBLIC AT LARGE IS OUR GOAL AT ARTMILL AND THE BROADER OUTREACH POSSIBLE WITH ARTDIALOG. IT IS ALSO A PROCESS WE HOPE WILL INVIGORATE THE ARTISTIC COMMUNITY AROUND THE WORLD, BY INSTILLING ARTISTS WITH A MODEL FOR SUSTAINABLE AND NON-HIERARCHAL EXHIBITION PRACTICES.
ARTDIALOG BUILDS CULTURAL DISCOURSE THROUGH CREATIVITY, RESEARCH, THE PUBLIC AND EXPERIENTIAL LOCAL LEARNING. IT IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WORKING IN SUSTAINABLE EDUCATION VIA THE ARTS AND SCIENCES, WITH INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH THAT ULTIMATELY AFFECTS POLICY. WE PRODUCE EXHIBITIONS, CATALOGUES, EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS, WORKSHOPS AND OTHER VISUAL MANIFESTATIONS TO PROMOTE OUR GOALS OF STEWARDSHIP OF THE PLANET AND SOCIAL CHANGE.
ESTABLISHED IN 2004 IN PRAGUE, THE INITIAL IMPULSE CAME OUT OF THE TURBULENT AND INSPIRING EVENTS IN CENTRAL EUROPE IN 1989. U.S. ARTIST BARBARA BENISH, ALONG WITH MANY ARTISTS AND FRIENDS, HELPED ORGANIZE AN ART EXCHANGE BETWEEN LOS ANGELES AND PRAGUE DURING THAT TIME. IT WAS THE FIRST TIME IN NEARLY FORTY YEARS THAT NOT ONLY ART, BUT ALSO THE ARTISTS, EXPERIENCED ONE ANOTHER'S CULTURES FIRST HAND, AS THE TOTALITARIAN REGIMES WERE DISMANTLED AND THE BORDERS OPENED.
Why go to the middle of nowhere, in the center of Europe? Because we don't let you turn on your laptop around the campfire at night. There are too many stars to watch, stories to share, and dreams to dream.
Because there are children born in major cities today who not only prefer the cement of playgrounds to grass parks, but are afraid of the greeness beneath their feet. Because I meet more and more adults who say "Can I come to summer camp?" Because when we create, it is making the intangible tangible; a note on the horn, electricity from the sun, a line into a sculpture. We use that other side of our brain that is intuitive, emotive, and expressive- all things arguably needed for the future of our species.
ArtMill is a place to create. It doesn't have to be art, but whatever you do here, or take away, it will change the world, one molecule at a time. And we are committed to that: making the planet a safe place for all, and teaching sustainability along the way. Our non-profit, ArtDialogue takes ArtMill's philosophy out into the world, via exhibitions, catalogues, events, and workshops. We bring people and ideas back to our Center for Sustainable Creativity and mix it up in a green environment that challenges the idea that one has to be in a metropolis to make a difference.
BARBARA BENISH
Founder, ArtDialog