The talk, as part of the next round of the Innovate, Create, Engage (ICE) program lecture series, will take place in 119 Rutledge Building at 7 p.m. and is free and open to the public. The talk is an approved cultural event.
ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University and the Knowledge Park Innovation Center continue to spark conversations about creativity, community, entrepreneurship and engagement with a special presentation on March 30. The talk, as part of the next round of the Innovate, Create, Engage (ICE) program lecture series, will take place in 119 Rutledge Building at 7 p.m. and is free and open to the public. The talk is an approved cultural event.
The talk will feature Leonie Hodkevitch, social and cultural anthropologist from Vienna, Austria. Hodkevitch will speak on “Social Justice and Culture,” especially as it relates to artists and other cultural players. She will explore why and how artists can contribute to creating social justice through art and other cultural projects.
“Social justice is the prerequisite for peace, prosperity and cultural blossoming; in our troubled times, it has developed to be an urgent necessity,” Hodkevitch said. “Consequently, the expectation that cultural projects should contribute to social justice through diversity, inclusion and equity has long gone beyond social projects and concerns a wide variety of art and cultural projects.”
Hodkevitch was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, and raised in Vienna, Austria. She earned her masters’ degrees in social and cultural anthropology and romance studies. Hodkevitch’s fascination and commitment for cultures led to founding Clearly Culture, a non-governmental organization that pursues inclusion through innovative educational programs with municipalities and ministries. Hodkevitch is the director of the cultural management postgraduate course at the University of Vienna and on the jury of experts for the European Union’s cultural funding. She teaches cultural management and intercultural relationships for distinguished universities across Europe. Hodkevitch is the author of the short stories “SALTY” and the novel “Stadlbauer.”
The ICE program is modeled after Microsoft’s popular TED (Technology, Entertainment, and Design) talks, in which experts from multiple fields share their ideas through brief powerful talks. Funding for the project was secured through a grant from the S.C. Department of Commerce for the Knowledge Park Innovation Center, submitted by the city of Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation in conjunction with Winthrop, York Technical College, Comporium, the city and other partners.
For more information, contact Whitney Hough, director of communications and community engagement for the College of Visual and Performing Arts, at 803/323-2399 or houghw@winthrop.edu, or visit the website at www.winthrop.edu/arts.
