Kyiv / Kiev Expansion Plans
The Story of "Why Kyiv?"
The Glimworks Kyiv Project
Right now we have first co-workers in Kyiv and we are in active recruitment for more and new partners in Kyiv. Naturally we still recruit as usual in Lund!
The Joint Partner Kyiv Project
In November 2018 Glimworks met with some new partners at The Emerge Gathering in Berlin, a gathering from all spheres of society devoted to personal growth as a means of changing society. Together with about ten people at this gathering, including two artists from Kyiv, we decided to join a new initiative in the Ukrainian capital. The Kyiv project includes a number of initiatives that are in different ways related to what is called "metamodern" philosophy and arts, gathered under one roof -- a forum for smaller metamodern projects, including participatory events, arts projects, in-house writers, academic researchers and media production.
The space will likely be located somewhere in the Podil district close to metro stations.
One of our partners is planning to invest in a property in Kyiv in the size-range of some 1000 square meters, renovate as needed, and transform it into a novel and compelling space for meetings, business, events and learning. They plan to have this up and running at beginning of autumn 2019. Around this time, a "metamodern arts festival" is also being planned in Kyiv, to be organized by the same group.
When the project has come farther, our plan is to move our Kyiv offices to this fruitful and transdisciplinary space.
A Little about "Metamodernism"
Metamodernism is a growing contemporary perspective within arts, culture and philosophy. It attracts philosophers, sociologists, artists, researchers, designers, entrepreneurs and tech people. Long story short, metamodernism works from concepts that bridge opposites, such as "sincere irony", "informed naivety" and "pragmatic romanticism".
Compare the conventional Either/or paradigm with that of Both/and which corresponds to a more metamodern idea (taken from here)
- Either/or pits people and ideas against each other.
- Either/or means there has to be a winner and a loser.
- Either/or starts from a belief that resources must be limited (a "scarcity mindset") even if they aren't.
- Either/or limits options and by doing so limits the true breadth of possibilities.
- Both/and focuses on the big pictures goals that can accommodate multiple voices and opinions. It's inclusive rather than exclusive.
- Both/and doesn't place artificial limits on our decision space.
- Both/and starts without worrying about resource limitations: an "abundance mindset."
- Both/and can produce true "win/win" solutions.
There are of course many different voices with different perspectives on metamodernism. Here are a few sources:
The wikipedia article on metamodernism
Hanzi Freinacht on metamodernism
Seth Abramson on metamodernism
While Glimworks understands itself and is considered to be a metamodern company, you don't have to identify with metamodernism to work with us -- either as coworker, partner or customer. New solutions require new ways of looking at the world. Those in turn give form to new ways of working, tools, and doing. Metamodernism is one of several new ways of looking at the world "tools" Glimworks uses.
The Larger Kyiv Project Planning Meetings happening in Kyiv
The group that is preparing the forum as well as the festival (this includes Glimworks) are meeting in Kyiv, March 2019 weekend 7-11, with some arriving and staying longer, so if you want to be part of the festival contact us now and do meet the festival group during that time span. Initial landing page is coming up soon.