Available art
Available art. How the art of the Lodz region counteracts social exclusion
Project title
Art of Lodz against the European art. Excluded / Included
Name of Beneficiary/Beneficiaries
University of Lodz in partnership with the Museum of the City of Lodz
Name of programme
Knowledge Education Development Operational Programme
Competition
Third Mission of Universities
Project value
PLN 958 947
Funding value
PLN 808 200,57
Project delivery period
2nd Feb 2019 – 31st Jan 2022
Meet our team
project manager, University of Lodz
Museum of the City of Lodz
project administration, University of Lodz
lecturer, University of Lodz
lecturer, University of Lodz
What problem is addressed by the project?
The project "Art of Lodz against the European art. Excluded / Included” solves a number of problems related to access to non-formal education and cultural heritage for people with special needs, especially people with sight and hearing impairment.
Thanks to the activating classes, participants acquire competences that in the future will allow them to independently develop their skills and gain knowledge in accordance with the ideas of "lifelong learning" - also after the end of the project.
Addressing the offer to disadvantaged groups, i.e. people with special educational and cognitive needs, affected by age exclusion, as well as coming from small towns, is also a response to the need to reach with modern education models also to recipients with limited access to education, culture and art.
Art classes, supplemented with workshop elements and the possibility of direct contact with art, also have a therapeutic and revalidation dimension. This applies to both young people with disabilities, who, through their own artistic activity, can shape a sense of agency and joy from spontaneous creativity, and seniors - suffering from various dysfunctions related to age and illnesses. Thanks to their participation in the project, these people can learn about new forms of using the cultural offer of various institutions, which do not exclude them due to perceptual difficulties.
The transition to the online system - forced by the COVID-19 pandemic - allowed us not only to distribute knowledge about the art of Lodz land, but also to support, among others psychological care for the elderly and children "imprisoned" in their homes. Posting the program content on the Moodle UŁ remote platform allows participants to keep track of activities in the project throughout its duration, regardless of where they are.
The activities carried out during the project, including trips around the Lodz region, are also an important contribution to activities for social and intergenerational integration, which is a certain antidote to the problems of the atomized society of the 21st century.
Who uses the project results?
Target group of the project: children and seniors 60+ with sight and hearing impairment, regardless of the degree of its damage, from the Lodz Province. These are both individuals and organized groups, including:
- School and Education Center for Deaf, Hard of Hearing and Aphasia Children in Lodz
- Primary School No. 168 in Lodz
- Major Hieronim Baranowski Special School and Educational Center No. 6 in Lodz
- Polish Association of the Blind Lodz - Górna Circle
- Polish Association of the Blind in Sieradz
- Uniejów University of the Third Age
- University of the Third Age in Aleksandrów Lodzki
- University of the Third Age at the University of Computer Sciences and Skills in Lodz
- The Circle of Rural Housewives in Pruchensko Male
- Nursing Home in Przatowek
- Nursing Home in Wronikow
- Senior-WIGOR Daily Home in Tuszyn
What was the greatest challenge during project implementation?
The challenge is the process of recruiting participants - people with disabilities, especially in the context of all the necessary documents to complete. Another great challenge is the transition to an online action system forced by the COVID-19 epidemic.
Our advice for other applicants
Don’t give up 😀