Zmina with Beat Carnival in Mariupol

September 22-24, IZOLYATSIA conducts a series of events in frames of Zmina project.

Zmina is a series of projects to be realized in the East of Ukraine, the goal of which is to involve local communities into the process of developing and realizing their own potential. The word Zmіna means “change” in Ukrainian, and at the same time refers to an industrial context, by alluding to “working shifts”, which symbolize an undisturbed way of life and a peaceful reality that should be maintained.

September 22, 18:00. Meeting with David Boyd and Paul Marshall (Belfast, Northern Ireland) on "role of culture and art in industrial city devided by cultural differencies" 

On September 24, David Boyd and Paul Marshall will conduct practical workshop together with residents of Mariupol on work of cultural organizations for reconcilliation in conflict areas.

David Boyd — director of Beat Carnival organization in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It organizes large-scale carnival for 25 years in order to reconcile two conflicting parties: pro-british loyalists and irish nationalists. During the meeting David will tell about parallales between situation on the West of Ukraine and North of Ireland and about ways for civil and cultural activists to start proccess of reconciliation in the country.

Paul Marshall is an artist from Belfast working with multimedia on post-industrial and post-conflict themes; examining people and places, architecture and culture, connections and sense of identity. Master of Fine Arts from Ulster University’s Belfast School Of Art and 2015 Royal Ulster Academy award winner.

Beat Carnival (the Beat Initiative) has been at the forefront of carnival arts in Northern Ireland since its inception in 1993. Since then Beat has been providing education programmes; development and work facilities; and producing carnival parades and large-scale performances involving thousands of people each year. Many of the carnivals and parades you have enjoyed over the years will have been Beat Carnival creations, although they were often branded in other ways (for example as the Lord Mayor's Parade or Belfast Carnival). Beat Carnival is unique in the Northern Ireland marketplace due to the scale of events we provide in terms of audience and artist participation, float construction, creation of props and costume and the high level of artist expertise.