Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) is an agency that orchestrates public support for the promotion of culture, both in Spain and overseas. Its aims include promoting Spain’s rich and plural artistic legacy and fostering the internationalisation of its most contemporary creative and culture sector.
From historical heritage to emerging creation, AC/E strives to give prominence to culture as an essential component of a country’s reality and image, projecting it both within and outside Spain.
Highlighting the main creative and cultural fields – from science to history, and from visual, performing and audio-visual arts to literature, music, architecture and design, among many others – AC/E’s projects underline Spain’s diverse role in global culture, as well as the recent contributions of its newest creators.
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Significant commemorations
At AC/E we manage cultural commemorations considered to be of interest. Their purpose is to draw attention to events, people and art-historical, scientific or cultural facts in order to revisit, reinterpret and update their contemporary relevance.
Overseas, these commemorative activities furthermore provide an opportunity for enhancing Spain’s influence and relations with certain countries or regions.
Universal and International Expos
We organise Spain’s presence at Universal and International Expos approved by the intergovernmental organisation Bureau International des Expositions (BIE). These events are a platform for projecting Spain’s image and diverse reality abroad.
Prominent cultural events
We promote the presence of Spain’s creative and culture sector at prestigious international events and forums related to contemporary creation, such as biennales, fairs and festivals in various fields of culture and art.
Exhibitions and cultural activities
We produce exhibitions, shows, publications, audio-visual projections, concerts, presentations and other activities related to a broad range of cultural initiatives of our own or in collaboration with other organisations, both national and foreign. These activities can be complemented by side events such as workshops, interactive forums, meetings, etc.
Internationalisation of Spanish Culture
AC/E’s programme for the internationalisation of Spanish culture (PICE) provides incentives for boosting the creative and culture sector’s capacity to operate internationally. It promotes the circulation of works, productions, artists, creators, agents and culture professionals through the Mobility grants.
The programme also awards grants for international Visitors, enabling foreign influencers to come to Spain. They can thus gain first-hand knowledge of what Spain’s various cultural and artistic fields have to offer at festivals, fairs and other events.
Both types of grants, Mobility and Visitors, are awarded in two yearly calls for applications for each.
Residencies for artists and creators
The purpose of the residency programmes is to provide the creators taking part in them with the time, space and means to work abroad in optimal conditions. They are designed to facilitate participants’ maximum professionalisation through stays at centres of excellence or especially relevant to their creative development, as well as by equipping them with professional contacts in their particular field to further their creative career.
European Union cultural programmes
Given its aim of internationalising culture, we are interested in boosting the participation of Spanish projects related to the culture and creative sector in the EU’s Creative Europe programme http://ec.europa.eu/culture/creative-europe/index_en.htm
This programme is designed to strengthen the contribution of the European culture sectors to the EU strategy of job creation and sustainable and inclusive growth called ‘Europe 2020’.
