‘Blooming’–nurturing the power of international solidarity in supporting post-colonial states through artistic research

Citizens around the world often fight for their rights and self-determination with little awareness of similar struggles outside of their region. Just as complex nuances of the fight for freedom in Eastern countries have often been oversimplified by the West, circumstances in my own country – Belarus – are also misunderstood. Overwhelmingly, we are represented as a colony supportive of Russia, even though Belarusians are a nation with a rich history and culture stretching back over a thousand years.

Building out from a currently developing project ‘Blooming’, my presentation will focus on how collaborative artistic research can help to bridge such gaps in mutual awareness and foster international solidarity.

‘Blooming’ is a new work for piano, chamber orchestra and narrator by Norwegian composer Kari Beate Tandberg (who will join me in conversation), which I will premiere at the Stavanger International Festival for Literature and Freedom of Expression one month before…