Looking back at Central de Cultura

Central de Cultura ended its activity in December 2012. The fund was made possible through the support of six large Dutch Culture Funds: Fonds Podiumkunsten, Mondriaan Fonds, Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie, Nederlands Letterenfonds,  Filmfonds en Fonds voor Creatieve Industrie.

The two-year programme (2011-2012) aimed to stimulate cultural exchange between the Netherlands and Brazil, based on values as cooperation, reciprocity and equality.

The Central de Cultura program was to contribute to long-term partnerships between Dutch and Brazilian professionals in the culture field and to perpetuate the economic and diplomatic relations between the two countries.

As such, the multidisciplinary Central de Cultura gave meaning to the realization of one of the top priorities within the Dutch International Cultural Policy,in particular to initiate and realize cooperation with Brazil.

Central de Cultura supported 67 projects in total with a contribution of 1,003,051 Euros in total. The support came mainly from the six funds, supplemented by additional funding from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Dutch embassy and consulates in Brazil and the Brazilian embassy in the Netherlands.

The supported activities focused on different themes such as cultural participation, sustainability and stereotypes. In 2011, priority was given to the development and support of activities in the Netherlands and in 2012 on joint activities in Brazil. Various activities supported were covered by national press, including the design project My Waste is Your Waste and the visual arts-architecture project Paradiso Occupado.

The program coincided with several other Brazil-related activities such as the year of the Netherlands in Brazil in 2011: Ano da Holanda. In 2011 there was a major cultural event in Amsterdam on Brazil, initiated by the Concertgebouw. There was intense collaboration with Europalia Brazil, organized in Belgium.

In 2012 an impressive Dutch trade delegation (250 participants) visited different cities in Brazil, led by Prince Willem Alexander and Princess Maxima, the Minister for Foreign Trade Lilian Ploumen and the Secretary of State for Culture Sander Dekker. In this context Central de Cultura funded various cultural activities, such as a design exhibition and a symposium on Dutch architecture.

The Central de Cultura program gets a sequel in 2013. The program is to be administered by DCICC. The focus of the follow-up program will be on information, network expansion and greater visibility for Netherlands-Brazil-related activities. A Program Advice Council will be created which should initiate further cultural activities.