Come to Mama

Micz Flor on Zagreb’s impressive new New Media Centre

Take a deep breath of Zagreb’s multimedia Institute MaMa and then turn around and dive into the western side of Europe, the well-healed cultural scene which allocates exponential funds to its burgeoning New Media centres and institutes. There is one crucial and striking difference: motivation. As western funders have discovered, backing New Media is the perfect way to balance expenditure between culture (i.e. the public good) and the economy (i.e. training people in IT skills). As a result, many of the activities in this environment seem rather opportunistic, primarily fulfilling funding criteria.

Back in Zagreb: rarely has there been a more committed group of people from various backgrounds pulling off a project, not because there is money available, but simply because it needs to happen. During my chance visit to MaMa, I met both the Croatian digital Diaspora, who’ve left a big impression and many projects around the world over the past years, and the head of the Centre for Peace, Nonviolence and Human Rights – who naturally plays a crucial role in programming the place. I also engaged in an illuminating discussion with two philosophy students who speak fluent German and run an ongoing seminar on German media theorists – in two languages.

MaMa has just opened its doors, with a permanent installation by Vuk Cosic, public terminals, an excellent reading room and slick interior design – which has turned out to be an important source of income, with theatre and TV companies hiring it to stage their press launches. All homemade and more still coming out of the kitchen.

Micz Flor <micz AT eudoramail.com>