ROSA’S HOUSE OF CULTURE (RHC)
WHAT: an initiative of the collective Chto Delat based on commoning and solidarity economy aimed at creating a community of comrades engaging into cultural activity and self-education. Rosa’s House of Culture was founded on 1st of May 2015 in Saint Petersburg.
WHY ROSA: A rose is a beautiful and very thorny flower. And, that’s the name of Rosa Luxemburg, a great figure in the history of the revolutionary movement, who is one of the few consolidating names for different fractions of leftists today who share feminist demands. ROSA’s name is the name of solidarity.
WHY A HOUSE OF CULTURE: This project draws on the history of Houses of Culture in socialist countries, the experience of social centers in Europe and Latin America, and the new politics of progressive art institutions that aim to overcome the alienation of the pure display and the passivity of the public. In contemporary Russia, we envision the House of Culture as a model that reestablishes a counter-public sphere (Nancy Fraser), serving as a “training grounds for agitation activities” with the ultimate goal of nourishing new sensibilities that are not always welcome around here, embracing the difference of many different species that may not want to become too visible, and protecting endangered and yet-unborn ideas. The House of Culture is a space for militant cultural environmentalism.
HOW IT WORKS: RHC is a space for running various workshops, reading groups, seminars, circles as well as a space for hosting different kinds of public events (lectures, film screenings, discussions, exhibitions and parties). RHC is home to the School of Engaged Art, as well as to a unique publicly accessible library dedicated to contemporary art and activist literature. The activities in RHC are coordinated by a self-management group and general assembly. The work of RHC is supported by the Chto Delat Mutual Aid Fund and by donations of its participants.
