IFIMA is an international cultural organization committed to:
- promoting art as a cultural activity in which the creative process contributes towards people’s developmental needs on an interdisciplinary and participative platform
- forging collaborations, networking and resource-sharing across disciplines, and across cultures
- promoting discourse across disciplines and sectors so as to build engagement amongst co-participating communities in arts and cultural activities
- curating and organizing art and cultural events which respond to specific cultural contexts
- devising and facilitating context specific training and resource-building programmes with aim of promoting self-management and professionalism of arts communities
IFIMA’s activities
Our activities are art-based and diverse, and designed to address specific contexts, cultural and developmental needs. As such, our projects entail study of each site and cultural context and identifying and organizing the appropriate activities. These activities ranges from curating and organising exhibitions, seminars, workshops; networking, resource-sharing and capacity-building, consultancy, management and administrative services, human resource training, advocacy, writing, publishing, research, to other necessary activities. We source and raise funds for suitable personnel to be appointed for specific projects. We channel resources to those who are lacking and in need of assistance.
Beginnings
IFIMA evolved from a non-profit art space arting, which was founded by Jay Koh, and was located at Bruesseler Strasse 29 in Cologne from 1992-1999. arting promoted contemporary art, and worked in a interdisciplinary manner with other art and cultural foundations and organizations. It has shown works of artists from over 20 countries, from Eritrea to Korea, Kurdistan to India, USA and the U.K. and was supported by the Art Council of Cologne. IFIMA developed as an international platform to coordinate arting’s then expanding cross-cultural activities.
IFIMA’s work in Asia
From 1996 to 2003, IFIMA has been working with artists, groups and individuals in Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, China, Cambodia, The Philippines, Bangladesh and more actively in Myanmar (Burma) and Singapore, in building up relationships for sustained engagement which we believes are necessary for effective cross-cultural collaboration, understanding and exchange, in arts and cultural activities.
