The Presenters of the Atelier IZMIR 2011: Nele Hertling

Nele Hertling joined the team of mentors of the Atelier for Young Festival Managers from the very first edition in Görlitz (2006). She also took part in Varna (2009), Singapore (2011) and will again participate now, in the fourth Atelier, in Izmir. She also contributed to EFA BOOKS 3 – “Cahier de l’Atelier. Arts festivals for the sake of art?”, a reference book about arts festivals, in which renowned festival directors evoke their experiences and the challenge of creating arts festivals that enrich artistic expression. “A festival gives you the chance to do extraordinary things. It creates an atmosphere, and supports productions that most theatres wouldn’t be able to produce. And you can really use this atmosphere to take risks and to take an audience with you because they are in a group, sharing a moment together. But as a festival director, you have to keep in mind that you must support the artist and that the artist isn’t there to support you. You are the one to enable the artist to create something,” explained Nele in a joint interview with Bernard Faivre d’Arcier in “Cahier de l’Atelier.” Nele Hertling studied philosophy, German philology and theatre at the Humboldt University in Berlin. She collaborated with the media, developed concepts and produced educational programmes devoted to culture and art. From 1963 to 1988, she was Research Associate at the Academy of Arts in Berlin (West). In 1988, she was the Artistic Director of “Berlin - Cultural Capital of Europe, 1988”. One year later, she reactivated the Hebbel-Theatre in Berlin and managed it until 2003. Nele also organised contemporary dance festivals in Berlin: “Tanz im August” (1988) and “Internationales Tanzfest” (1999). She created, together with Thomas Langhoff, the programme of the 1999 edition of “Theater der Welt” festival. From 2003 to 2007, she was head of the Berliner Künstlerprogramm des DAAD, a well-known scholarship programme for artists in residence, associated with various fields of art: visual arts, filmmaking, literature and dance. Since 2006, she has been Vice-President of the Academy of Arts in Berlin and she is a founder and member of many international associations devoted to support and promotion of art, such as the European House for Culture or A Soul for Europe. Nele Hertling is one of the eight renowned festival managers from all over the world participating in IZMIR 2011. Under the coordination of Hugo De Greef they will guide the participants throughout the seven days of the Atelier. In the run-up of the Atelier we present you Robyn Archer (Australia), Hugo De Greef (Belgium), Rose Fenton (United Kingdom), Nele Hertling (Germany), Michal Merzcyński (Poland), Jonathan Mills (United Kingdom) and Fruzsina Szép (Hungary). Keep an eye! More info on the Atelier IZMIR 2011 at: http://efa-aef.eu/en/activities/atelier/izmir/