Art Lab for Human Rights and Dialogue

Art Lab is a laboratory of artistic interventions.

The Art Lab Platform was initiated during a Design Thinking workshop co-organized by UNESCO and OHCHR in Geneva in February 2020. The worksho brought together practitioners, cultural operators, artists, experts in human rights, cultural rights and intercultural dialogue, and humanitarian workers. The workshop resulted in a workplan to mainstream the arts in humanitarian and development programmes, basedon three major pillars:

  1. Raising awareness within UN agencies and other stakeholders on the transformative power of art and culture in humanitarian work;
  2. Consolidating the Art Lab Platform in facilitating exchanges between cultural and humanitarian workers, artists and researchers;
  3. Strengthening research and capacity-building, and pilot-testing tools in the field.

The UNESCO Chair is a key collaborative partner in Art Lab.  Read more at the UNESCO website: Art Lab

Art Lab 4: "The Imperative of Cultural Justice: Arts for Inclusion, Equity and Human Rights"

On 10 December 2020, members of the Art Lab platform presented findings and recommendations of four working groups at Art Lab #4. A key issue running through the entire Art Lab programme is the exploration of the idea that cultural rights might be brought to embrace cultural justice. What new spaces can be accessed through such a move and with what gains for human rights and dignity?

The event featured RILA Artists in Residence Dr Gameli Tordzro and Tawona SitholĂ©, collaborating researcher Piki Diamond, and UNESCO Chair Prof Alison Phipps.

Links to the programme and accomapnying documentation for the event are available in the quick links section. You can also download a script of the performace/presentation given by the UNESCO RILA Team > Art-Lab4 Script (10 Dec 2020)

Piki Diamond (AUT) at Art Lab #4