As part of the public programme for Collecting as Practice, this conversation sought to explore the public responsibilities of private initiatives.

This discussion involved two collectors-in-residence at Delfina Foundation, Lu Xun (founder of Sifang Parkland in Nanjing, China) and Luba Michailova (founder IZOLYATSIA, Ukraine) – whose own private initiatives are set within very different geo-political contexts but have overlapping aims of establishing invigorating and supporting cultural scenes for local communities.

The event addressed the ways in which local cultural histories and social needs can be acknowledged alongside national and international artistic communities and ask how artists, curators and private collectors collaborate in bringing trans-national critical thinking, pedagogy and exchange around visual art into the public domain in meaningful ways.