Eforie Colorat, the first International Contemporary Art Hub from the Black Sea, talks about the ethical and coherent exploitation of tourism potential, about circular economy, ecology, civic spirit, sustainable development and about opportunities for growth through culture in an area that, until long ago, even commercial offers could no longer really ensure its development. Drawn into the summer adventure, Eforie Sud, a city with over 100 years of history, seemed for a while to forget its identity and past, the memories of public gardens, parks and restaurants or the fact that it was the only place in the south which had as early as 1920 a casino on the water and a functioning theater. The first resort built on the Romanian coast, a real pearl by the sea, was once sought after by European bohemians, writers, artists, lovers of sunbathing and sea cures from the trend of the time. After decades of confusion, a time when most considered it just a lost point on the map of the Romanian coast, the city of Eforie Sud has gained enough openness in recent years to become the first meeting place for contemporary arts by the sea. Integrated with other dynamic local processes, the Eforie Colorat creative hub has become one of the local community development vectors, undertaking education, social cohesion or ecological awareness projects.
Photo credit: Ruxandra Lipan, Alice Oșlobanu
Initially through the Cinemascop Festival and, later, through the series of events held under the umbrella of Eforie Colorat, the summer garden was brought back to life, which in recent years has remained open to the public throughout the summer. The Eforie Colorat Hub started with high hopes and quickly established itself as an alternative seaside meeting space, a new stop on the artists’ summer route and a creative space open to the public and local community alike. Through performance sessions, contemporary art openings, workshops or films, the series of events, organized annually at Eforie Sud, talks about simplicity, nature and education, in a way that has managed to inspire others. People and institutions gather year after year at Eforie to tell a new story, perhaps not specific to such places, but certainly important for their development. Developed in partnership with European cultural institutes, diplomatic missions and international film festivals, Eforie Colorat is supported by local authorities and the community. The Kaufland Romania team is part of this story for the fourth consecutive year and contributes to the preparation of a new summer edition, together with the team of the Forumul Artelor Vizuale organization, the initiators of this program.
Photo credit: Alice Oșlobanu
Short Film Breaks
Photo credit: Ruxandra Lipan
Creative workshop, modelling, cyanotype
Photo credit: Diana Păun
“Current art contains a meditation on the most urgent of contemporary themes, from global warming and pollution, to economic, social or personal crises. We talk more and more lately about how the world is changing, shaped by crises of all kinds or by digital expansion, by scientific discoveries or by new kinds of social upheaval. Artists have always been part of their time, and now they themselves take on other missions, leaving a classical, contemplative role to become participants in this transformation process. We gathered to talk, in various voices, from multiple perspectives, about the Romanian coast and the community of Eforie Sud. We made a proposal together, and the local authorities agreed to try. Thus, the oldest resort on the Romanian coast came to bet on the newest language of social dialogue: contemporary art.
As a first step in the development process, we started in 2021 with a seasonal cultural offer, we opened alternative exhibition spaces, where creative communities meet their audiences year after year, using art as a way of questioning society. Starting from 2021, we have thought of an extensive development program, which will keep Cinemascop garden, the wonderful open-air cinema of Eforie open throughout the year, but also include other places in the Eforie-Techirghiol area, including the coastal area. I also activated the high school in Eforie Sud or other local community centers for this project. It is understandable why the business environment is so important to carry this message forward. The business environment is a vital partner for such efforts, projects that do not aim at commercial success, but at the long-term development of hitherto invisible communities. We are glad that the Kaufland Romania team relies on the same values, which have become the foundation for many future plans”, spun Alexandra Dumitrescu and Emil Cristian Ghitafounders of Eforie Colorat.
Photo credit: Ruxandra Lipan
The programs run by the Eforie Colorat creative hub take into account the identity of the city of Eforie Sud and, above all, the specifics of life in an area that is only active seasonally. The mission is clear, starting from local peculiarities, such as the ebb and flow rhythmicity of life dynamics, specific to permanently inhabited resorts on the Romanian coast. In season, local communities in tourist towns are, more often than not, invisible, a kind of discreet assistant, meant only to maintain the vocation of a holiday destination. It happens in Paris and Venice, but, above all, in coastal cities, understood, more often than not, only as a summer setting that borrows its definitions from the echoes and bustle of travelers. Completely depersonalized in the off-season, such a place holds its breath for a few months a year, waiting for a new life cycle. The quiet becomes really oppressive only at the beginning of October, after the last nostalgic ones steal the last rays of September. The lights are turned off in the guesthouses and on the seafronts, the locals retreat to the courtyards and wait for summer. Rarely, a small event brings the community together over the winter. However, there are also young people in December in Eforie, who might need something more than commuting to the nearest town for a few hours of fun at the end of the week. Those who wanted to exploit the resort for tourism were not interested in cultural development until now. For pragmatic reasons, perhaps, it is difficult to recoup an investment from just a few months of sunshine, and culture anyway, as we already know, is a dispensable field. After several stages of sanitation, the Eforie Colorat team succeeded, last year, through the program 1 MP of Art, to renovate the summer garden’s former screening booth and ticket office, spaces that hosted a suite of scheduled and off-season events throughout the year. By reopening the Cinemascope, new opportunities for cultural services were created for the public, but also a new exposure platform for emerging and established artists alike. We are still talking about the beginning, but the changes are already having effects: the Eforie Colorat initiative has transformed Grădina Cinemascop into an alternative meeting space at the Black Sea and, at the same time, into the first center dedicated to contemporary arts on the Romanian coast.
Photo credit: Ruxandra Lipan
“Kaufland Romania supports the story of the largest summer cinema on the Romanian coast”
“We were inspired by this program, which aims to reduce the gap in access to culture specific to communities in small towns and train people in educational approaches that increase the cohesion of groups and the feeling of collective well-being. Eforie Colorat brings contemporary art to the local community and promotes good practices, creative recycling, sustainable growth, respect for the environment and cultural diversity, values from which Kaufland Romania takes inspiration and cultivates as a priority”. say Anna Katharina ScheidereiterKaufland Romania CSR Manager.
“In any project, you have to start from a need, and this need for development in areas with limited access to culture is one of the central themes of the partnerships we develop with civil society and creative communities”, says the representative of Kaufland Romania, a company that strategically plans its long-term community investment.
“We take seriously the responsibility we have towards the environment and towards society”
“-For us, at Kaufland, involvement makes the difference. Based on this creed, we consider ourselves a reliable, consistent, creative and coherent social partner in a continuous and proactive dialogue with the communities we belong to. Although we adhere to the standards that have brought us global prestige, it is the local colors that provide us with the motivation and inspiration necessary for each journey. The cinemascope in Eforie Sud tells a story of resilience and continuity in a community mission and it is a joy for us to support its return, anticipating its impact on people. Because this is a priority objective in all our actions. We take seriously the responsibility we have towards the environment and towards society. And we choose our partners wisely”, he says Anna Katharina ScheidereiterCSRManager of a company that invests in five strategic areas, education, social projects, sports and health, environmental protection and culture.
Last year, Kaufland was involved in the development and implementation of social responsibility projects worth 9.7 million euros, including two funding programs through which Kaufland offers non-refundable grants to non-governmental organizations. With 177 stores, the company recorded a turnover of 3.74 billion euros (March 2023 – February 2024), thanks to the efforts made to remain the preferred shopping destination of Romanians.
“For us, this is the fourth year in which we support the Eforie Colorat project, an example of good practices for community development”, he says Anna Katharina ScheidereiterKaufland Romania CSR Manager.
Credit photo: Aleksander Janas
Mihai Mija: “The project attracts over 30,000 people every summer season”
“Eforie Colorat is a project dear to me because, in each of the two years of collaboration, we contributed to the revitalization of an outdoor cinema, which we transformed – together with the Forumul Artelor Vizuale team – into a creative hub , perhaps the only one on the Romanian coast. Kaufland Romania understands that cultural development is a basic index by which the standard of living of a society can be measured. The support of the company Kaufland Romania allows us to offer members of the community and tourists a vibrant space, with activities cultural and educational. Cinemascop Garden is a film and contemporary art project that balances an area with a deficit by building a local cultural ecosystem”, says Mihai MijaCreative Curator.
Starting from the need to create links between the private environment and artistic communities, the position of Creative Curator is a key position in the economy of such an endeavour, the specialist who ensures that the right people and the right ideas meet, with the aim of creating authentic communities through coherent visions and unique experiences. Its role is to develop and implement creative strategies for cultural and artistic projects. That also includes creating and managing partnerships with various companies, creatively integrating brands into projects, and facilitating collaborations with artists and other creative industries.
Basically, Mihai’s role contributed to the project not only running smoothly, but also being enriched with innovative artistic and cultural elements that attract and captivate the public.
Photo credit: Ruxandra Lipan
“It is essential to have such initiatives to keep alive the cultural identity of the area and to stimulate local and tourism creativity. The project attracts over 30,000 people every summer season. We have managed to develop a community in this space, a community that has grown organically through the authenticity and dedication of the people involved and who have brought this place to life.” he also said Mihai Mija.
Source: www.iqads.ro
