Starting in 2020, the CoMuseum International Conference has re-established itself as both a physical as well as a digital platform for museums and cultural professionals.
Its goal is to share the best ideas and practices from around the world, highlight contemporary challenges and create a global network of professionals that will co-design a ‘culture-edge’ future for our societies.
This year’s CoMuseum conference – focusing on healing through cultural and creative outlets – will take place in a hybrid format: face-to-face in Athens and Thessaloniki, and through live streaming for those of you who prefer to participate online.
As always, the conference will feature top international experts from museums and cultural institutions in Greece, the UK, the US and beyond, who will share insights and ideas on the present and future of museums.
The CoMuseum International Conference is the core activity of the of British Council’s Museums Revisited capacity building programme for the museum sector in Europe.
12th CoMuseum International Conference
Although the global community seems to be slowly exiting the pandemic crisis, it still faces increasing challenges with regional conflicts, the effects of the climate crisis, economic and financial instability, and social injustice. However, these crises and recovery periods present an opportunity for mobilisation, change and innovation – for humans, institutions, societies, democracies, economies and ecologies.
What is the role of art and culture in this recovery? Is now the time to demonstrate how and why culture matters? Can museums and cultural organisations participate in the social, economic, and wellness-based recovery needs of the communities in which they reside?
In answering these questions, organisations will need to adjust their models and business structures, moving from known frameworks to unknown and new paradigms of operation.
Through this year’s theme, the International CoMuseum Conference will focus on Culture, Care and Healing, exploring how the cultural and creative sector – museums and cultural organisations – can contribute to the recovery and development of our societies, institutions, and relationships.
Speakers
Among this year’s speakers, don’t miss our invited guests from the UK, the US and partner organisations across Europe, including:
- Victoria Hume, Director, Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance (UK)
- Dr Nuala Morse, Lecturer in Museum Studies, School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester (UK)
- Dr Karen Mak, Research Fellow in Quantitative Social Science, UCL (UK)
- Dr Tom Fleming, Director, Tom Fleming Creative Consultancy | Expert on Creative Economy, Cultural and Arts Policy (UK)
- Sebastian Cichocki, Chief Curator, Modern Art Museum in Warsaw (PL)
- Nathalie Bondil, Director of Museum and Exhibitions, Institut du monde arabe in Paris (FR)
- Dr Alessia Fassone, Curator, Egyptian Museum of Turin (ΙΤ)
- Professor Fiona Kearney, Director, the Glucksman, University College Cork (IE)
- Brenda Cowan, Professor, Exhibition & Experience Design, Fashion Institute of Technology/SUNY (U.S.)
- Angela Lombardi, Director of Outreach and Audience Engagement at North Carolina Museum of Art (U.S.)
The full programme of the three-day conference – including the full line-up of speakers – is available on the CoMuseum website.
Registration
Registration for the conference will remain open until 7 December and for the workshops and masterclasses until 1 December 2022.
Participation is free following registration.
Further information
- Maria Papaioannou | Maria.Papaioannou@britishcouncil.gr
- Chrysoula Melidou | Chrysoula.Melidou@britishcouncil.gr
Past and future events
Previous editions of the International Conference for Museums are available on the CoMuseum website.
If you’d like to stay up to date with all our museum events, join our Museum Professionals Network, and register for our Arts newsletter and/or CoMuseum newsletter.
The 12th International CoMuseum Conference is being organised in partnership with the Benaki Museum and the Embassy of the United States, in collaboration with the British Embassy in Athens, the Norwegian Embassy in Athens, the Netherlands Institute at Athens and the Thessaloniki Concert Hall.
Major Sponsor: Microsoft Hellas
The Benaki Museum Official Hospitality Sponsor: Coco-Mat Hotels
The Benaki Museum Official Air Carrier Sponsor: Aegean Airlines
The conference is taking place under the auspices of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports, the City of Athens, the Municipality of Thessaloniki and ICOM Greece.
