An observatory to unite cultural circles in French-speaking Switzerland

Subsidies, precariousness of artists, audience attendance: the cultural world in French-speaking Switzerland is facing a number of challenges. Structural difficulties - highlighted more than ever by the health crisis - have revealed the need, indeed the urgency, to decipher the situation of players in a rapidly changing ecosystem. To meet this need, the Observatoire romand de la culture (ORC) will shine the spotlight on societal, political and financial issues in studies conducted by a pool of experts.

Created in September 2022, the ORC will produce in-depth analyses of a wide range of themes, covering all disciplines (music, performing arts, cinema, museums and libraries). Its main mission will be to gather reliable, verifiable data from the relevant circles, and then to synthesize them into substantiated, independent studies.

The aim? To offer a range of tools designed to support institutional practices and adjust cultural policies. "The ORC will be responsible for the data published, but not for the interpretations that cultural players and political authorities draw from it", explains Olivier Glassey, Director of the ORC and Professor at the Institut de hautes études en administration publique (IDHEAP).

Two studies have already been launched: the first deals with public funding for culture, while the second provides an overview of artists' careers. The themes have been validated by the support group made up of members of the umbrella organizations and approved by the strategic committee.

At the same time, the ORC team will collect existing studies and mechanisms, which will be brought together on a digital portal that, while not exhaustive, will centralize and enhance the information available. The Observatory will also carry out specific mandates, commissioned and financed by its partners.

This structure - a first in Switzerland - is the fruit of a partnership between the University of Lausanne (UNIL), the HES-SO, the Conférence des chefs de service et délégués aux affaires culturelles (CDAC) of the seven French-speaking cantons and fourteen cities. Modelled on the Observatoires de Grenoble and Wallonie-Bruxelles, the ORC is currently in a three-year pilot phase.

The ORC will also be organizing meetings to fulfill one of its essential missions: to unite the cultural communities of French-speaking Switzerland.