In support of democratic expression through art

Copyright: Franke James

In support of democratic expression through art

This blog post is Nektarina’s official statement regarding recent events with regards to the art exhibition of Canadian artist Franke James’s work that we have been organizing:

            Being very active in the area of fighting climate change through raising awareness on the importance of reducing GHG emissions, using renewable energy sources and embracing a more sustainable lifestyle, Nektarina Non Profit decided to create a series of exhibitions on climate change, in order to educate the general population, young people in particular.  Our aim is to build a better understanding of the impacts of climate change, to inspire people to make positive changes in their lifestyles and thus lower their impacts (carbon footprint) on the environment.

Nektarina Non Profit has been in contact and following Ms James’s work since the Fall of 2009. Franke James has been a great inspiration to us since the  foundation of Nektarina in August 2009. The uniqueness of her artwork is in combining science, art and storytelling, creating powerful and thought-provoking visual essays. Franke does not preach, she tells a story, educates and explains, leaving it to the viewers to make their own choices and decisions.

When Nektarina decided to present Franke’s artwork in a series  of exhibitions in Europe and Central Asia, we felt confident of the support of Canada – Franke’s homeland.  Regrettably, the Canadian Government has since declined support for the project, verbally explaining that “She (Franke James) speaks against the Canadian Government”. Nektarina Non Profit was deeply surprised and disappointed by the reaction of official Canada, yet we decided to carry on with the project.

 Nektarina Non Profit believes that it is the right of every person – artists and intellectuals in particular – to freely express their opinion and to be able to pose the question about their government’s accountability on specific decisions.  This is all the more important when such governmental decisions potentially impact the welfare of a large demographic, natural resources or both. 

In the past few months we have encountered many difficulties in organizing the exhibitions, usually connected to interventions of the Canadian Government or institutions under Canadian governmental control.  We continued to look for ways to collaborate with the home land of the artist, although at times we felt patronized and even intimidated, as a small NGO trying to reach an understanding with a powerful state.

This was most surprising given Canada´s reputation over many decades as a leader in promoting democratic freedoms, the right of free expression and also supporting the international community (through its role as a peace keeper and in many other ways).  It is clear that Canada has a difficult position to resolve in relation to its narrower national interests (in particular the exploitation of natural resources) and its wider responsibility in the international community.  We will continue to try to reach out to Canadian society and we feel sure that the positions taken do not reflect the attitudes of Canadian society as a whole and we are confident that we have many friends in the country.

Whilst this has been a setback for Nektarina Non Profit, as a small NGO with limited  financial resources we will press on.  We are proud of what we have achieved in the past two years of our activities with local municipalities, schools, universities, parliaments and ministries.   We will continue to work on educating, inspiring and connecting people on environmental and climate change issues and we will also continue to be a voice for free expression through art.