Over a three-year series of plenary meetings IETM has been exploring themes linking the arts with contemporary society: ownership, collaboration, participation in political life, rights, ideas and ideals.  Here comes a big one: Trust. 

Who, after all, do we trust? As societies in Europe continue to change, whether it is due to recession, austerity cuts, revelations of clerical abuse or the rise of fascism, how do we, as citizens, trust those in authority? How do we as artists, curators, producers and cultural workers trust one another and the structures built to support our work? How do our audiences learn to trust us, to support the development of new types of work and models of presentation? How has the swift advance of technology changed the way we relate to one another? Has it impacted on our ability to trust one another?

It is trust that creates the conditions for any change to occur; it is trust that binds communities; it is trust that allows any sense of democracy to exist. Without it, without the values that will allow trust in our fellow humans to be strong again, it will be impossible for us to get out of the critical state in which we find ourselves now.

The three days of discussion and networking, preceded by a pre-meeting trip to Castletown House, developed between content sessions and an intense artistic programme, curated by Cian O’Brien of Project Arts Centre in close collaboration with colleagues and the local performing arts community. The annual General Assembly lead to the election of the new Board members and Advisors and contributed to the thinking that will lead to a new Three Year Plan 2014-2016.

IETM Dublin 2013 was an initiative of the Arts Council of Ireland in partnership with Culture Ireland, produced by Project Arts Centre and supported by Dublin City Council and Fáilte Ireland. It was part of both the Arts Council’s and Culture Ireland's Culture Programme to mark Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Image in banner: © Senija Topcic