Die Initiative Leipzig + Kultur – Leipzig Plus Kultur

The Initiative Leipzig + culture sees itself as representing the interests of all cultural initiatives, project groups and cultural institutions in a non-public ownership, as well as all freelance artists of the city of Leipzig.

A Central aim of the Initiative is to improve the production and presentation conditions for free culture projects, the Position of free culture in Leipzig in politics and public awareness raising and networking of stakeholders to contribute.

Leipzig + culture to develop on the basis of the previously created and continue to qualifying development concepts in the individual divisions, together with policy and management, the funding guidelines, criteria and instruments, as well as the award procedure and the culture needs to encourage a fair, transparent, and participatory design.

Leipzig + culture wants to be the basic concerns, interests and problems of free culture, the media, and the Public.

Background

The end of the 1990s, a hand-founded full free artists, clubs, and cultural centers of the Initiative Leipzig + culture, to do something against the annually recurring funding cuts in the cultural scene. Since then, L+K has become the cultural and political voice of the scene and the first point of contact for the town Council and cultural management for the interests of the Free culture in Leipzig developed.

In the first years of its existence, the Initiative is with art actions, tried to draw the attention of the city Council on the Situation of the independent scene. Here we could point to the impressive sawn piano in the ballroom of the town hall or the white Shape, in the upper foyer on the ground, so that the aldermen had to get on your way to the chamber about this. On the Scene, a banner with the inscription "Becomes no longer".

However, with the "White January", a strike action at the beginning of the year 2002, in which it was demonstrated how colorless the cultural calendar of the city and, if all of the items that are normally filled by the activities of the independent scene, to remain free, something came in movement. For the first Time, we had the impression that our arguments heard, our existential needs were at least guessed.

With the round table for Free culture, a panel of policy, administration, and representatives from the independent scene, which wanted to improve the conditions for free cultural work in Leipzig was founded. After all, a half a year has kept this Alliance and a thesis paper should help to strengthen the political Lobby of the scene is created. It was an auspicious beginning – but unfortunately, also a short spring.

The free movement of artists and initiatives that had to do with their daily struggle to Survive on their hands and, in consequence, no power to stay permanently in the political Ball. The funding from the independent scene, fell to the summer of 2007, more than a quarter, during the cultural budget increase by a total of 8%–. An incredible over-exploitation on the Basis of our city of culture, the prepared but at the same time the ground for a re-gasp of the Forgotten.

The "catalogue of demands for free cultural work" and Leipzig + culture was returned to the political stage. For the many amazing art projects that are dying, and for the only house of culture in Stötteritz, which had to close in the year, was built in a stunning art project of Leipzig's culture cemetery in the middle of the city centre and on Wednesdays for the Council meeting in front of the chamber established. We developed the campaign Five for Leipzig – 5% of the cultural budget for the independent sceneled countless people talking in the Background, a lively round table re-enabled, the Leipzig population and received on 17. September 2008 what we had asked for: the city Council, the means for the independent scene of the then 2.4% to 5% increase.

This was the beginning of a fundamentally new approach of policy, administration, and stakeholders to each other in our city. Today, we discuss with the Leipzig culture politicians about much more than Numbers, as only about money. Currently, the framework Directive and the technical support policy will be revised in the culture of the city. A process, in Leipzig + culture brings with emphasis, because the conditions for free cultural work will be defined in the future. We are also makers in intensive talks with the city's decision on the design of more transparency, to increase the technical quality and democratic legitimacy in the urban development process, as well as the anchoring of a jointly-developed strategies for the future of Free culture scene.

With the international Congress culture | location.determination we have set in September 2015, a Europe-wide acclaimed cultural and political pulse, and the discourse of a modern concept of culture, as well as the tasks and conditions of free cultural work continued.

At the time of their re-establishment in the year 2007, the Initiative Leipzig + culture has a Structure given, are depicted in the main fields of action of free culture. We have formed 7 divisions, whose representatives of the artists of the Genres are chosen and, together, the Spokesperson form. This acts as the contact person of the independent scene for policy and management and is accepted, unlike in the summer of 2002 – these consistently.

In 2014, we founded the Club Leipzig + Kultur e. V. as a structural support for the Initiative and to cultural and political project work. This has enabled us to meet the needs of independent artists in the political processes. Each division has developed a medium-term development concept and our goal is to make this as the basis for setting priorities in the promotion of culture.

We want a self-determined culture, and one of the actors co-determined cultural policy!