Biennale of Young Artists from Europe and the Mediterranean
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Alexandria—The Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures, an institution of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership founded at the Barcelona Conference in November 1995, was created and is co-financed by the European Commission and the 37 Member States of the EMP.
The Foundation's main objective is to bring people and organizations from both shores of the Mediterranean closer to each other in order to promote a common area of dialogue, exchange and cooperation guaranteeing peace, stability and prosperity in the Mediterranean basin.
The fields of activity of the Foundation are education, culture, science and communication; the respect of humans right, sustainable development, gender equality and the access to the development for the youth are integral components of the Foundation's strategy.
Within the framework of its 2007 programme, the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation decided to grant its support and its patronage to the Biennale of the Young Artists from Europe and the Mediterranean to be held in Alexandria, Egypt from 25 November to 4 December 2007.
The event is organized by the International Association of the Biennale of the Young Artists from Europe and the Mediterranean (BJCEM), the Governorate of Alexandria and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, under the patronage of the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures and under the high patronage of Her Excellency Mrs. Susanne Mubarak.
This multi-disciplinary artistic event will involve workshops, exhibitions and shows in the fields of visual art, applied art, theatre/performance, film/video, literature and poetry, gastronomy, and music.
During the ten days of the Biennale, Alexandria will receive more than 1000 young artists from more than forty countries of Europe and the Mediterranean (including the 37 countries of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership), and public spaces of the city will come alive with the creations of the young artists. The Biennale will be visible and legible throughout the city, and this event will be a truly public festival, open to all.
The theme of the 13th Edition of the Biennale will be "Our Creative Diversity. Culture in Everyday Life: Kairos". The Greek word "Kairos" indicates a point in time when change is possible.
The Executive Director of the Anna Lindh Foundation, Dr. Traugott Schoefthaler, explained the importance attached by the Foundation to this event in the following terms: "In the present crisis in cultural relations between North and South we send a signal to Europeans and their Southern neighbors: Cultural differences are not a threat; cultural and religious pluralism is our common wealth. Young artists are invited to help our societies better understand that every individual enjoys the right to cultural expression and that we need to prevent cultural uniformity through promoting creativity of all citizens".
In the twenty years of its history, the Biennale has provided young people with a concrete opportunity for dialogue and cooperation through art. Since the first edition in Barcelona in 1985, it has presented almost 10,000 artists and received 2 million visitors.
It is the first time that this prestigious event will be organized in a Southern Mediterranean country, outside of Europe.
For more information on the Anna Lindh Foundation, please contact:
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