Letter to Mr. Witold Mrozek and Gazeta Wyborcza.
Dear Editor,
in your article entitled “Bitches of revenge” depreciate “nest” in “Gazeta Wyborcza” on On October 12, 2020, a misleading phrase was found that: “The Ministry of Culture, which co-runs the theater [Ośrodek Praktyk Teatralnych” Gardzienice “], recently supported it with the amount of PLN 464,000. euro from part of the so-called Norwegian funds at its disposal ”.
We are sorry that you did not contact our institution while creating the material. This would avoid errors in your article which I suppose are due to incomplete information that you received from less informed sources.
Therefore, I allow myself to speak as the person responsible for the preparation of the application for the implementation of this project and I am sending you an explanation presenting the details of the issue raised by the editor.
The measures you write about in the article concern co-financing of the project: Practicing History. Norway and Poland – finding in time and space. An interdisciplinary project of the Stella Polaris Theaters and the Gardzienice Center for Theater Practices (with Partners) in the sphere of: theater and film; music and dance; visual arts and academic reflection, submitted by the Center for Theater Practices “Gardzienice” with partners: the Norwegian group “Stella Polaris” and the Center for the Meeting of Cultures in Lublin. They were awarded under an open competition under the “Culture” Program, Action 2 “Improving access to culture and art” of the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism for 2014-2021.
The project selection procedure under the EEA Financial Mechanism is transparent, and all information, including the ranking lists together with the grant amounts, is published on the program website: https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/pages/pl/strona- home.php
In accordance with the procedures applicable under the program, applications are assessed in terms of content by a team of experts – each application is assessed by both a Polish and Norwegian expert. The rating list is then approved by the Selection Committee for Action 2 composed of representatives of:
– the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage,
– the National Center for Culture,
– Theater Institute,
– the National Institute of Museology and Collection Protection
– and the Art Council of Norway.
On the basis of the Committee’s recommendation, a formal decision of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage is issued. A detailed description of this procedure can also be found in the Applicant’s Manual (point 7.5, p. 30, link: https://eogkultura.mkidn.gov.pl/modules/download_gallery/dlc.php?file=206&id=1582850546).
As a result of such evaluation, the application submitted by the Center for Theater Practices “Gardzienice” and Stella Polaris and CSK was rated the highest among 57 that passed the formal evaluation stage and was selected for funding as one of 14.
The grant awarded to all institutions involved in the project amounts to EUR 464 290.18 and covers the entire 2-year project. According to the project budget, which is part of the application documentation, the co-financing of activities for which OPT “Gardzienice” is responsible is EUR 191,158.44; the remaining part is intended for the activities of partners: the Norwegian theater “Stella Polaris” and the Polish partner – Center for the Meeting of Cultures in Lublin.
It is difficult for me to relate to Mr. Editor’s impressions about the difficulty in obtaining information about the financing of the Center. As a public institution, we care about the openness and transparency of our finances. Our financial statements are annually audited by a certified auditor and submitted for approval by the organizers. We were all the more surprised by the statement in the article, as we have not received any requests for more detailed information in this area from media representatives recently.
We understand that your article and the commitment you see in it result from your concern for Polish culture and institutions that are important to it. These are values that are also important to us. That is why we are open to cooperation and discussions about our artistic projects and plans – including issues related to their financing.
Yours faithfully,
Wojciech Goleman
deputy director for administration
–
Lublin, October 12, 2020