Last week’s ETHO Technical Community Conference in London was the first time in more than three years that ELIA’s technical community came together in person. Things are not often perfect in life, but ETHO in London came very close. We were hosted by our colleagues at the Royal College of Art for a full day of panel discussions, workshops and demonstrations, which included tours of their beautiful new building. This was followed by two days of visits to six other ELIA member institutions in London, where colleagues had gone to great trouble to present and discuss their buildings, facilities, as well as the new and old techniques employed. The networking that happened between participants as a result was enthusiastic, thoughtful, productive, and carried on non-stop deep into the night. See more about it here.

Equally exciting last week was the launch of the ELIA Academy 2023 registrations. Hosted by the School of the Arts at the University of Évora in Portugal from 10-12 May 2023, we will deep-dive into the topic of ‘Situatedness’. The Academy, ELIA’s signature event on teaching and learning, promises you a precious few days of ELIA networking, in Zen style – after all, Évora and the Alentejo region were recently chosen as the 2027 European Capital of Culture with their theme: ‘slow living’. A big thank you already to all those who submitted their proposals for this academic conference and congratulations to those who were selected.

 

I want to draw your attention to the statement that ELIA issued recently regarding the earthquake relief efforts in Turkey and Syria. ELIA members in Turkey are affected and we hope that you will be able to help where you can. ELIA also expressed its solidarity with the students, staff, artists and other cultural professionals peacefully protesting in Greece against the downgrading of degrees from institutions offering higher education in the performing arts to the same level as secondary education and post-secondary vocational education. 

 

Finally, 24 February 2023 marked one year of military aggression by Russian forces against the sovereign state of Ukraine. You may have seen the statement that ELIA President Susanne Stürmer issued together with Rebecca Duclos, Chair of UAx. The UAx Platform is ELIA’s support and membership programme for Ukrainian art universities and academies, as well as art students in Ukraine, supported by the largest gift ever given by the Abakanowicz Arts and Culture Charitable Foundation. 

 

Through ELIA’s UAx programme, we have become deeply involved. We now have five ELIA members in Ukraine (with more joining in 2024 and 2025). We currently employ two Ukrainian nationals at our Amsterdam office who are running the ELIA UAx bureau. On 24 February we conducted the second round of interviews for the role of UAx Platform Manager. One of our candidates brought us hyacinths to mark the day. Another was going to a peace for Ukraine demonstration after the interview, and came dressed in a beautiful Ukrainian-style blouse. It was a momentous day filled with our hope for peace and recovery. We look forward to introducing our UAx Platform Manager to you soon.