Cultural Content of Independent Creative Spaces During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

One of the economic sectors most affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic has been the cultural and creative industries, turning cultural workers into a financially vulnerable group. The purpose of this study was to identify some early forms of the resilience of cultural activity during the emergency period of the COVID-19 crisis. The engagement index of the users’ communities was evaluated through some metric indicators in social media, the transfer of cultural-creative activities in the online environment, and the content and impact of digital stories. A sample of 126 independent cultural spaces in Romania was assessed. To validate the content of the social media stories promoted by various independent cultural entities, interviews with the managers of several creative spaces were performed. During the emergency period, we noticed the intensification of the digital activity, with creative spaces switching their activities from on-site to online. The content of Facebook posts highlighted stories about their own activity, about the activity of other spaces, or those encouraging social campaigns. The resilience associated with the independent cultural and creative sector is more an individual adaptation than an organizational or collective adaptation. For instance, the online cultural performances were some of the emergent reactions to the COVID-19 crisis.

文化和创意产业是受全球COVID-19疫情影响最大的经济部门之一, 文化工作者成为经济弱势群体。本文旨在确认疫情期间文化活动恢复力的早期形式。通过社交媒体的衡量指标, 本文评估了用户社区的参与度, 包括在线文化创意活动的转化、数字故事的内容及其影响。本文评价了罗马尼亚的126个独立文化空间。为了验证独立文化实体的社交媒体内容, 本文采访了数个创意空间的管理者。数字行为在紧急时期有所加剧, 创意空间活动从现场转变为在线。脸书热点故事包括：创意空间自身的活动、其它创意空间的活动以及鼓励社交的活动。独立文化和创意部门的恢复力, 更多是个体性的而非组织性和集体性的适应。例如, 在线文化演出是对COVID-19疫情危机的紧急反应。

Uno de los sectores económicos más afectados por la pandemia global del COVID-19 ha sido el de las industrias culturales y creativas, al convertir los trabajadores culturales en un grupo vulnerable desde el punto de vista financiero. El propósito del presente estudio fue identificar algunas formas tempranas de resiliencia en la actividad cultural durante el período de emergencia de la crisis del COVID-19. Se hizo la evaluación del índice de compromiso de las comunidades de usuarios por medio de algunos indicadores métricos en los medios sociales, la transferencia de actividades culturales–creativas en el entorno online, y el contenido e impacto de las historias digitales. Se evaluó una muestra de 126 espacios culturales independientes de Rumania. Para validar el contenido de las historias de los medios sociales, promovidas por diversas entidades culturales independientes, se administraron entrevistas con los directivos de varios espacios creativos. Durante el período de la emergencia, nos dimos cuenta de la intensificación de la actividad digital, con espacios creativos que cambiaban sus actividades de presenciales a online. El contenido de las notas publicadas en Facebook hizo énfasis en las historias relacionadas con su propia actividad, acerca de la actividad de otros espacios, o las que promovían campañas sociales. La resiliencia asociada con el sector cultural y creativo independiente es más una adaptación individual que una adaptación organizacional o colectiva. Por ejemplo, las actuaciones culturales online fueron algunas de las reacciones emergentes a la crisis del COVID-19.

Key Words:

• community
• community engagement
• COVID-19
• creative spaces
• digital stories
• resilience

关键词:

• 社区
• 社区参与
• COVID-19
• 创意空间
• 数字故事
• 恢复力。

Palabras clave:

• compromiso comunitario
• comunidad
• COVID-19
• espacios creativos
• historias digitales
• resiliencia

Acknowledgment

All four authors contributed equally to the design and implementation of the research, to the analysis of the results, and to the writing of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The results of this research are associated with the project PNCDI III: PN3/3.1 Bilateral/multilateral AUF-RO program, Grant Number 17-AUF/01.03.2019, “Heritage and Urban Renewal: Creative Spaces, Inclusive Culture and Civic Engagement.”

Notes on contributors

Ana-Maria Pop

ANA-MARIA POP is Senior Researcher in the Centre for Regional Geography, Faculty of Geography, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania 400006. E-mail: [email protected]. Her research interests include regional geography, territorial planning, and territorial governance.

Alexandra-Camelia Marian-Potra

ALEXANDRA-CAMELIA MARIAN-POTRA is a teaching PhD Assistant in the Department of Geography, Faculty of Chemistry, Biology, and Geography, West University of Timișoara, Timișoara, Romania 300222. E-mail: [email protected]. Her research interests include regional geography, territorial planning, tourism and tourism development, and GIS.

Gheorghe-Gavrilă Hognogi

GHEORGHE-GAVRILĂ HOGNOGI is a Lecturer in the Center for Regional Geography, Faculty of Geography, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania 400006. E-mail: [email protected]. His research interests include GIS, regional geography, territorial planning and remote sensing, virtual reality, and extended reality.

Julia A. Nagy

JULIA A. NAGY is a Lecturer in the Research Centre for Sustainable Development, Faculty of Geography, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania 400006. E-mail: [email protected]. Her research interests include urban policy, urban development, place branding, and sustainable development.