Artists from twenty European Countries
gathered in Denmark in May 1995 to ratify the statutes of the European
Council of Artists - ECA. They came from Belgium, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France,
Germany, Great Britain, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania,
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sameland, Slovakia, Spain and
Sweden.
The ECA is unique among arts organisations. It is an interdisciplinary umbrella organisation for co-operation between professional artists in Europe. Each country sending a delegate to the ECA has its own national, interdisciplinary umbrella grouping of artists’organisation: The writers, the musicians, the actors, the painters, coreographers, sculptors and playwrights from each country have a channel of communication with each other troughout Europe.
The purpose of the ECA is to develop the cultural space within European society by enhancing the role of the arts and the professional artists within Europe. The ECA will work for the interests of professional artists, writers and performers in political, economic, legal and social contexts and wishes to establish a dialogue partnership and service partnership with the political institutions of Europe. The ECA reaffirms the responsibilities of artists to society and artists’ commitment to participate in dialogue regarding democratic cultural development in Europe.
In its report on Information, Communication and Openness, the European Commission states that “they must listen to the views of key opinion-formers and decision-makers.....“. The artist of Europe are seeking a new openness in the decision-making prosess affecting them. According to the report just quoted, this “openness.....would strengthen the democratic nature of its institutions and the public’s confidence in its administration....“ and it recommends “an open and structured dialogue between the Commision and special interest groups.“
The European Council of Artists in its own structures reflects this democratic context and wishes to establish a meaningful channel of communication with the European Institutions so that the voice of the creators of Europe, i.e. the artists, can be heard.
Extract from a speech by ECA-President Eamon Colman, Avignon, France, July 1995