Based on our previous research (Rogers et al 2021) we noticed a difference between how artists think the arts relate to society, and how young people imagine this relationship. Young people wanted to see (and connected most strongly to) art works that more immediately engaged with the pressing social issues of Cambodia, many of which are political – including climate change, the expression of identity and human rights (e.g. LGBTQ identity), scams, and democracy. However, artists, particularly in the performing arts and music sectors, must walk a tightrope in making works that address this kind of content, with incidents of censorship most likely to occur in music (Brennert and Yean 2023). This raises the question of how the arts can connect to society, and the possibilities and limitations of this relationship. This project follows on from our initial findings, focusing on young people who may not have much experience of the arts. It considers how the arts may work for young people as a form of civic participation and what that might look like in Cambodia. To do this it traced the journey of four young interns in producing a youth festival (the 7 Colours Festival) during the course of 2023 for Cambodian Living Arts (CLA).
We examined their participation in creating the event, how they connected the festival to the social concerns of young people, and evaluated how young people participated in the festival.
