Bringing together creative professionals to celebrate Phnom Penh, its heritage and culture. Our City Festival is a platform for dynamic art and architecture events, talks and exhibitions that celebrate urbanism in Phnom Penh and fosters opportunities for dialogue and public engagement. The festival is built on principals of community participation at all levels including programming, funding and development. Our City proposes to develop cross-sectoral involvement in this year’s festival activities and publications.
Urbanism is a growing concern around the world. In the year 2025, 65% of the world’s population will live in cities, with 20,000 moving to a city every two hours. Over the last three decades, Cambodia has emerged from turmoil and instability and today, is regarded as having one of the fastest growing economies in the region. Development and investment has been concentrated largely on the urban centers, with an urban population growing at a relatively high rate of 3.5% a year. Currently only 20% of the country’s population is concentrated in the cities and is still in early stages of evolution. This provides a critical window of opportunity to affect the long-term urban development and sustainability.
Building on the momentum of development, the Our City Festival aims to engage the public in this forward motion promoting positive models of development that integrate artistic-lead processes.
Celebrate, Engage, Collaborate, Discuss, Document, Educate and Inspire. The Our City Festival organizes a series of events including exhibitions, performances, talks and tours offered to the public, free of charge. These events will take place in both private and public spaces, using the city as a backdrop and context for individual content. Materials and publications developed for the festival are designed to be interactive, accessible and educational.
The Our City vision states: "Our City celebrates the living city, its denizens and culture. Through arts and architecture as a platform, Our City envisions that people in urban environments around the world have the opportunity to affirm their urban heritage, engage with and generate critical dialogue about urban issues, participate in international exchanges and future developments."
Our City is a collaborative and grassroots effort, powered by JavaArts, a cultural enterprise, supported by the following partners: ArtXProjects, French Cultural Centre, Heritage Mission, JavaArts, Khmer Architecture Tours, Khmer Arts Ensemble, Manolis House, Meta House, SaSa Bassac, Space for Architecture, Studio Revolt and others. The Our City Festival was first conceived by JavaArts in 2008, when members of the art and architecture community were invited to join in a month-long series of events that highlighted architecture and urbanism. Now, in its fourth year, it is strengthened by continued support from the community, recognition from international media and arts and educational institutions worldwide.
2011 Theme | In Between Places: Participation in the city
Cities are constantly in motion and little remains static. An old building is knocked down to make way for a new building and in the time in between, a temporary restaurant does a roaring trade. A small blade of grass appears in between a crack in the pavement, like a new idea coming to light. Naturally across time, ground shifts, cracks appear, and places in between emerge. As new opportunities open up for beauty, growth, and potential transformation, the city can be perceived in a different way.
The process of urbanization is occurring rapidly in cities around the world, affecting their spaces and people. If the cities we create impact and shape our daily lives, how in return, can we be active in shaping the identity of the city? Amidst this change, how can the places in between that appear be utilized by the city’s many voices? This year, Our City Festival invites you to explore Phnom Penh with fresh eyes, discovering it’s "in between places" with us.
