Inspiration

Bästa Biennalen

Bästa Biennalen, with almost 100 art venues in southern Sweden, is the country’s largest network for children and young people’s encounters with art and creativity!

The Bästa Biennalen network consists of both large and small art institutions and initiatives, located in rural areas and cities throughout southern Sweden. The network includes entities operated by regions, municipalities, non-profit associations, and private actors. Through collaboration within the network and with external partners, Bästa Biennalen positions itself as a leading national resource for encounters between children, young people, and art—regionally, nationally, and internationally. The network is coordinated, communicated, and developed overall by a working group based in Ystad.

Bästa Biennalen is a regional initiative focusing on children and young people’s encounters with art, which started in Skåne in 2013. Since 2021, organizers in Region Halland, Jönköping County, Kronoberg, Kalmar County, and Blekinge have also been included through Regionsamverkan Sydsverige. The activities are mainly funded by the respective region and the Swedish Arts Council.

Centrum för barnkulturforskning 
The Centre for Children’s Culture Research (CBK) at Stockholm University offers a unique education in the subject of children’s culture and also works to promote and strengthen knowledge development in the field of children’s culture in other ways. The center organizes open lectures, brings researchers together in interdisciplinary networks, and participates in various collaborative projects.

Svenskt barnbildarkiv

The Swedish Archive of Children’s Art (SBBA) has been collecting children’s artwork since 1977, primarily from Sweden but also from other parts of the world. The archive’s task is to receive, register, and preserve children’s drawings and paintings. The artworks can be used for studies and research, providing insight into and generating interest in children’s creative expressions.

All images in their collections are created by children and young people up to 20 years old. To make the images interesting and usable, SBBA also documents contextual information about the artworks. An old saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” but without valuable information such as the creator’s gender, age, hometown, and the situation and time when the artwork was created, researchers cannot make much use of the image. Therefore, SBBA does not accept images without accompanying factual information.

SBBA’s collections include competition, school, and home drawings. The collections span from the 1790s to the present day, though most are from recent decades. The children’s art archive contains 700,000 original drawings and 150 short films.

Periodically, the archive collects images on specific themes. Check their website for current themes.

Kurioso
Kurioso is an art festival for children and young people in Sörmland. Kurioso is a collaboration between Sörmland’s Museum and organizers from Gnesta, Flen, Strängnäs, Vingåker, Katrineholm, Oxelösund, Eskilstuna, Trosa, and Nyköping.

Turning Tables Denmark

Turning Tables Denmark was established in 2016 as a branch of the international organization of the same name. The focus is on children and young people who need extra support to enhance their skills, experience a sense of belonging, and increase their self-esteem through music, film, and photography. Children and young people are seen as cultural producers, and the cultural life in Denmark is enriched when space is made for young people who are not usually visible in culture or the public sphere.

Skoletjenesten i Danmark

Skoletjenesten i Danmark is a national knowledge center for learning in educational environments outside school, such as museums, art galleries, and other institutions.

Kulturprinsen, Danmark

Kulturprinsen is a development center for children’s and youth culture that creates projects, builds partnerships, networks, and communities both in Denmark and abroad.

Förbundet för finska barnkulturcentrum

The association promotes the activities of professional cultural centers for children and young people in Finland. The association publishes various method handbooks.

Quality Handbook for Children’s Culture

Contains definitions and indicators of quality for those working with children’s and youth culture to reflect on and analyze how quality is achieved in their work. The quality of activities is examined with a focus on art and culture, child orientation, professionalism, equality, sustainable development, and cooperation.

Guide for Sustainable Development for Children’s Cultural Centers:
Provides guidance and tips for cultural actors on how to consider sustainable development, climate change, biodiversity, and the preservation of the cultural environment in ecological, economic, social, and cultural terms in their artistic, scenic, recreational, and exhibition activities.

Accessibility Guide for Children’s Cultural Centers and Educational Institutions with Basic Art Education: Contains tools and tips on accessibility. The guide was developed as part of the SATA2, Accessible Art Hobby project.

Tate Kids
Tate Kids is a website about art for children. It features games and quizzes, films about art, and inspiration for creating art at home. There is also a gallery where children can display their own art and view the artwork of others.

London International Gallery of Children´s Art
The gallery currently does not have a permanent venue but runs educational projects. They bring originals of children’s artwork and art education programs to schools, community groups, hospitals, and galleries. They collaborate with organizations and venues that host temporary exhibitions.

Bästa Biennalen has compiled a list of all the artists who have worked with children during the festival since its inception. See the directory here!

International Dot Day – Internationella prickdagen
International Dot Day occurs every year in mid-September. Everyone is encouraged to create art using dots.

New Pattern – Trelleborg museum
A catalog full of tips from the large pattern project at Trelleborg Museum.

Svenskt barnbildarkiv
Periodically, the archive collects artwork created by children on various themes. Check their website to see the current theme.

Museum Jorn
Museum Jorn in Silkeborg has created a page with 100 art experiments based on artist Asger Jorn’s principles for creative creation.

Hospital Rooms
Artist Tim A Shaw and curator Niamh White founded Hospital Rooms after a close friend was admitted to a mental health hospital. When they visited their friend, they were shocked by the cold and clinical environment. They wanted to improve the experience of such places through art. On their YouTube channel, you can find several tips on how creative activities can be carried out in such an environment.

Bror Hjortföreningens konstpedagogstipendium
Since 2009, the association has awarded a scholarship each year to an active and innovative art educator at one of Sweden’s museums or art galleries.

Mark Rothko
Learn more about how artist Mark Rothko successfully worked with children based on his own principles.

Adelyne Cross-Eriksson
Adelyne Cross-Eriksson founded Levande Verkstad-pedagogy.

Carlo Derkert
Carlo Derkert was a Swedish museum curator and art educator.

Carlo Derkert, who earned his degree in 1945, was involved in founding the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, where he also worked as an art educator specializing in school youth. He was also active at the Nationalmuseum.

Book Recommendations:

Carlo Derkert – Porträtt av en konstvisare by Jan Bahlenberg.

Barn Bild Begåvning by Carlo Derkert and Jan Bahlenberg. (available at antiquarian bookstores)

Shane Brox

Shane Brox is a Danish-Canadian artist and designer who creates playful works using recycled materials. He has made award-winning TV series for children about creating.

Video

Villa Arttu, Hyvinge, Finland
Exhibitions, workshops, and events for the whole family are organized in the former fabric weaving mill at Hyvinkää Wool Factory. Villa Arttu is an inspiring learning environment for artists and enthusiasts of all ages. Villa Arttu has a unique international archive of children’s and youth art, with more than 100,000 works from various parts of the world.

Kullo children’s gallery, Tallin, Estonia
The gallery is located in an exciting medieval building on Kuninga Street in the Old Town of Tallinn. Children’s art has been exhibited in this building for 40 years, with over 900 exhibitions held during this time.

The International Museum of Childrens Art, Oslo
The museum focuses on exhibiting children’s artwork that has won competitions around the world.

VVJ art gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania
The gallery offers creative educational activities to introduce new forms of art to children and young people. Additionally, the gallery invites interesting and original authors, artists, and creators from various fields to conduct creative sessions.

Le Muz
A French virtual museum that collects and displays children’s art on its website.

Hamada Museum of Children´s Art, Japan