Distant Connections - Public Intimacy

Now more than ever, public space is an indispensable place to build civil society.

ARé festival is a continual experiment of communicating in public space and exploring public space as a vital part of democracy, freedom, and independence.

Socially engaged public art in public space can become the epicentre of social interactions by articulating the public's shared joys and frustrations of the current moment, and invoking site-specific stories lost in-betweens of the cultural amnesia.

The word “community” has lots of meanings and ways of manifesting itself: friendship, acceptance, connection, honesty, belonging, togetherness. We hope all these meanings gain new nuances after enjoying “doing art together” heading towards fostering social integration and innovation.

Participation is a right, not a gift. And we keep exploring it.