The time is now for arts and culture to unite us

The creative sectors are some of the most important when it comes to social impact and human connection. When connected to the power of new technologies, arts and culture have an immense potential to nurture a culture of peace. At their core, arts and culture are telling human stories. Stories that rely on and feed on our basic instinct for empathy. And when that empathy results in positive behaviour, arts and culture are a powerful force for good, resolution and unification.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the past two years have been a time of immense uncertainty, frustration and acutely high levels of fear. During this time arts and culture, and in particular music, has facilitated our fundamental human need to remain connected with one another and enabled us to express our emotions.

As we now embark on the long process of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, we are faced with another challenge: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The relentless bombardment of the country’s cities and towns has led to over 2000 civilian deaths, destroyed civil infrastructure and forced more than 3.3 million people to flee Ukraine, creating a new humanitarian crisis in Europe.

An open letter written by Laura Davies, UNESCO ambassador for the UK, which was signed by UNESCO representatives from 46 countries, states that “according to the figures recently released by the UNESCO secretariat, 53 cultural buildings had been damaged or destroyed by 31^st March”. It’s now estimated that the number of Ukrainian cultural sites damaged or destroyed is closer to 100.

Cultural heritage is what makes us human. It gives us a sense of place, and identity. It can and should be used to explain and explore a common human past – one that identifies our similarities, unifies and connects us. This cannot be achieved if cultural heritage is destroyed, or worse deliberately targeted, during war.

The Venice Biennale features many powerful and thought-provoking artistic expressions. Arguably the most poignant and powerful exhibition is called This is Ukraine: Defending Freedom. Presented with the Office of the President and Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, it contextualizes Ukrainian history and culture, with some contributions from international artists.

The exhibition reasserts Ukraine's cultural resilience that has always defined itself, even in the most challenging times, through its ability to think and create critically. Artists refuse direct war narratives and instead reflect deeply on their meaning, origin, and impact. This exhibition is a powerful example of arts and culture being used to demonstrate human resilience and strength. But most of all, it is a demonstration of our collective freedoms—the freedom to choose, the freedom to speak, and the freedom to exist.

“Support this fight with your art” was the message President Volodymyr Zelensky conveyed in his official address to the artists and public of the Venice Biennale.

It is also of importance to highlight that many Russian artists are also manifesting against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Ever since the Russian federation pavilion at the Venice Giardini, designed by the architect Alexey Schusev, opened its doors to the public in 1914, it has been home to Russian art and culture at the Venice Biennale, forging the Russian character in the visual language to international and local visitors. For the 59th international art exhibition, curator Raimundas Malašauskas and artists Alexandra Sukhareva and Kirill Savchenkov resigned from participating in the Biennale as a sign of their absolute and total opposition of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Never has there been a time more important, more pressing, than the present for arts and culture to unite us.

A highlight of the arts and culture program at the Annual Meeting in Davos this year is the concert that will be performed by musicians Emanuel Ax and Yo-Yo Ma. Whilst he has spent the majority of his life and career living and working elsewhere, Emanuel Ax was born in the Ukrainian city of Lviv. Both of his parents were Polish and Jewish, having escaped the concentration camps during the Second World War before settling in Ukraine.

Yo-Yo Ma is one of the United Nations Messengers of Peace and has been outspoken about the war in Ukraine in a number of different contexts. He recently performed an impromptu concert on the street outside the Russian Embassy in Washington D.C as a means of protest against the war. Music resonating from his cello carrying with it a plea for peace and unification.

Arguably, the single most powerful universal language is music. It transcends linguist barriers. Unlike language, music activates every subsystem of our brains, triggering a multitude of sensations, feelings and emotions. The increased empathy and social connection music brings into our lives is not only undeniable but vital. In good times and challenging times, music helps us maintain our hope and our empathy towards one another. This has never been more important.

The concert entitled “Our Shared Humanity” celebrates our very essence and connection to nature and to one another. It is also a musical statement of support and solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

“I think that Peace is, in many ways, a precondition of joy” – Yo-Yo Ma

As part of an accompanying immersive visual backdrop, the concert also features striking portrait images that illustrate our collective humanity. These images are provided courtesy of Atlas of Humanity, a cultural non-profit association that serves as a meeting point for debate, exchange and promotion of artistic and cultural activities.

Also featured is an exclusive filmed performance by dancer and choreographer Ahmad Joudeh, who was born a stateless refugee growing up in Yarmouk, a Palestinian Refugee Camp in Damascus, Syria. At the age of eight Ahmad discovered his passion for dance, but with the outbreak of the civil war, his life was turned upside down. The war had a devastating impact on Ahmad and his family. Five of his relatives lost their lives and his family lost everything, as their home was destroyed by a bomb.

Ahmad received constant threats by extremists simply because he danced. Despite these threats, Ahmad continued to dance and in 2016, performed in the Roman amphitheatre of Palmyra. He dedicated this performance to the souls of those who had lost their lives in the civil war. Fortunately, Ahmad’s performance was captured by Dutch journalist Roozbeh Kaboly as shortly after, the amphitheatre of Palmyra was destroyed.

“Dance gave me hope. It gave me purpose. It gave me wings” – Ahmad Joudeh

Combining the power of music, visual storytelling and dance, this concert vehicles a powerful message of hope and of our collective humanity that can contribute to solving some of the current global crisis. When you experience culture there is a sense of expansion when you cease to think about yourself and you feel part of something larger.

“Culture turns “the other” into “us.” The shared understanding that culture generates can, in these divisive times, bind us together as one world” – Yo-Yo Ma