We are extraordinarily pleased by the news that we have been honored with this award. It honors an entire network of civic associations, creative artists, and their partners, whom we at the Society of the New Patrons advise and support as they embark on ambitious projects to transform a piece of their surroundings and communities.
Developed by Kulturpolitische Gesellschaft e.V., the new award honors exemplary initiatives and outstanding projects that put forward-thinking cultural policy ideas into practice. It is designed to generate attention for innovative practices, visions, and paradigms in cultural policy and spotlight the honorees’ distinctive contributions to civil society. The award is given out every two years in the three categories “standalone projects,” “initiative and network projects,” and “(pilot) projects in municipal self-government” and comes with a total prize money of €15,000. Established in 1976, Kulturpolitische Gesellschaft e.V. (KuPoGe) is a nonpartisan alliance of individuals and organizations throughout Germany who take an active interest in cultural policy. It is the leading platform for debates around cultural policy in Germany and guided by the conviction that “cultural policy is social policy.”
“The New Patrons are an innovative and participatory model for a cultural policy that is designed to meet the sociopolitical needs of the day and facilitates a democratic production of ‘culture for all by all.’ Their approach provides a thematically open framework that allows for a discourse to be cast into concrete form, and is scalable and adaptable to a variety of contents and structures. The organization of the project’s work in several model regions throughout Germany ensures its broad-based impact,” Dr. Tobias Knoblich (president, Kulturpolitische Gesellschaft) explained the jury’s decision during yesterday’s award presentation ceremony.
“The New Patrons’ winning this prominent accolade makes us optimistic that their model project of a democratic culture aspiring to the highest standards of artistic quality will be adopted more widely in Germany as well. The Federal Cultural Foundation believes that the award acknowledges a successful partnership between art and politics in which all parties’ actions are guided by the interests of civil society.” Hortensia Völckers, artistic director, Federal Cultural Foundation.
Image: Die Neuen Auftraggeber von Eberswalde. Photo: Victoria Tomaschko
