ABSTRACT
Even though the right to participate equally in art and culture has been a universal right since the mid-20th century, many people still do not participate in the arts. Artists, art institutions and cultural policies are attempting to change this through an increased focus on “citizen participation”, entailing new challenges and potentials. Building on a democratic understanding of participation, Eriksson examines two dilemmas encountered by cultural institutions trying to engage a wider and more diverse population in arts and culture: (1) some people are not interested in what art institutions have to offer; and (2) there is an inevitable paradox at stake when artists and art institutions try to design participation by other people. These two dilemmas echo challenges of participation that have been identified in contemporary development studies and aesthetic theory - and are closely linked to unequal power and to heterogeneous interests and valuation criteria. By tracing these inequalities and heterogeneities, Eriksson explores how these dilemmas are dealt with in two participatory artistic projects involving members of an embroidery club in Sant Llorenç de Cerdans, a small village in the Spanish Pyrenees, and the inhabitants of Hørve, a small village in Denmark. Based on an analysis of these two cases, she discusses how participatory art projects can connect to the interests of inhabitants in rural areas, reevaluate the artistic and social aspects of cultural participation and redistribute the right to invite, include and empower others.
