OSRODEK DZIALAN ARTYSTYCZNYCH FIRLEJ

Our mission is to create modern trends in culture in Poland and abroad. We organize leisure time activities for our neighbors - children from neighborhood, youth, pensioners. In our activities on stage and in the yard our main value is honesty. We want to promote open mindedness, both by the concerts we promote and by the international music projects we organize, as well as in activities focused on the local community. We want to support emerging alternative bands and music projects, which are driven by passion to music and exploring boundaries between music genres. In our local activities we focus on promoting attitude of sharing - by creating a space for sharing skills, knowledge and ideas. By organizing meetings, exchanges, events for neighbours, creative workshops which are open for everyone free of charge, we want to strengthen feeling of belonging to the community. In the future, we intend to become the leader of artistic and social activities in Poland and Central Europe, by becoming a leader of international cultural project organized in partnership with culture institutions from Visehrad countries and Westers Balkans, as well as developing our activities focused on needs and social challenges of our closest neighborhood, primarly by developing rich program for youth. The Centre for Artistic Activities “Firlej” is a city cultural institution organising cultural events (concerts, performances, shows) on a regular basis and it is also a local community centre. Its main activities are focused on 3 areas: - promoting alternative music in Poland - promoting alternative Polish music abroad - activities focused on local community. Firlej cooperates with artists and culture institutions from across Europe. During the cultural events organized inside the country, we present artists from Western as well as Eastern neighbouring countries. In years 2009 - 2016, Firlej organized Asymmetry Festival - a festival promoting artists experimenting in the stylistic of rock, metal and electronic music. Firlej also promotes Polish independent music abroad. In 2018, Firlej organized a project Polish Jazz 1918-2018, promoting Polish avant garde jazz musicians in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. This project was implemented with a cooperation of 5 cultural institutions in 3 capital cities: Budapest, Bratislava and Prague. The aim of the project was to create a platform for meeting of young emerging musicians from Visegrad countries, so to enable them to meet, work together, exchange experience and inspire mutually. With the project we wanted to learn about culture of organizing events in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, in order to establish the best way of international collaboration and initiate regular cultural exchanges in the region. In 2011 and 2012, Firlej organized an international festival UA/PL Alternative Music Meetings (2011: Kiev, Ukraine 2012: Kiev and Lviv, Ukraine). The goal of the project was to create a platform for exchange of music trends from Poland and Ukraine by organizing festival of Polish music in Ukraine and presenting Ukrainian bands in Poland. In 2013 Firlej organized ART Meetings in Tallinn, Estonia and in Lviv and Kiev, Ukraine, which were addressed to independent artists, journalists, culture promoters from Poland, Ukraine and Estonia. We are interested in developing international culture cooperation in the region, connecting West and East of Europe, and North and South. In the 2016/2017 season, Firlej started a new area of its activities - Kawiarnia Sąsiedzka (Neighbour’s Cafe). It is a centre facilitating and supporting initiatives of people from local community. Kawiarnia Sąsiedzka is an umbrella for cultural and social initiatives realised by people from neighbourhood. By its activities it tries to meet local community needs and animate people in neighbourhood. Under Cafe’s hub, there are organized workshops, exhibitions, games, flea market and meetings. The target groups of Firlej’s activities are