Some observations on commitment and dialogue

The aim of the Creative Curating at Bergen Academy of Art and Design, Norway, is to create an understanding of what it takes to shape and carry out curatorial projects. The programme is built around two focal points: the development of individual projects realized in ‘real-life’ and the internal exchange of knowledge during the seminars. One of the questions raised in the process of creating the programme was how to institute numerous voices as an integral part of the learning environment. Theoretical sources for this article come from Mikhail Bakhtin and Paulo Freire. Both discuss dialogue as part of a learning environment. Bakhtin sees the dialogue as an on-going event that involves manifold voices of the past and the future. For Freire dialogue is a creative activity; it happens between people with common interest and mutual respect. Both underline how real dialogue can challenge pre-conceived ideas, demanding and creating critical thinking.