The Vienna Master Team, along with our new Program Assistants (PAs), would like to introduce a short blog series called The Art of Human Rights. We begin the series with Human Rights and Arts?—an introduction to the integration of arts and human rights. How do arts and human rights come together in an academic setting, and what does such a space aim to accomplish? The series will explore the connection between art and various fields to examine the potential of human rights practices outside of their usual boundaries. We will present program alumni who work at this intersection and highlight interdisciplinarity, which is central to the program. The series will conclude with a blog reflecting on our PAs’ experiences, sharing their overall perspectives after completing their traineeship with the Vienna Master Team.
At first glance, arts and human rights may not seem to have a clear or natural link. Although this connection can be challenging to pinpoint, we believe that this relationship forms a foundation for addressing new and evolving human rights challenges. To introduce the relationship between arts and human rights, the Vienna Master curriculum and program ethos will be presented. The Vienna Master Team believes that applying human rights principles to all areas of government and society is essential. We view human rights not just through legal or normative lenses, but we strive at building a human rights culture (UN Declaration on HR Education and Training) that should be at the foundation of building democracy. This human rights culture should be mainstreamed into and permeate all aspects of democratic functions. Human rights should become the “normal”.
Our assumptions are as follows: in times when people are not fully aware of their rights and face unique challenges worldwide, arts and cultural practices, alongside human rights, offer a pathway for expanding the public’s understanding and awareness of human rights. Arts and cultural practices create spaces where human rights customs can grow and be critically examined. By creating space for this relationship, both fields can develop further and come together in research, laying a foundation for transformative responses to today’s issues. This is the culture we believe must be normalised within democratic processes in favour of universal human rights—a culture that is explorative and welcomes new ways of thinking to address challenges requiring imaginative solutions.
The program’s overarching objective is that “Upon completion of the program, students are equipped with the necessary knowledge, attitudes, and skills to establish themselves as agents of human rights change, acting with professionalism and creativity and combining normative/legal, social scientific, and artistic/cultural approaches.” This objective is based on the principles of interdisciplinarity, applied human rights, and holistic learning. Our courses are structured accordingly, and our aim is that students’ understanding of these principles and their work during and after the program will reflect this objective.
To structure our courses this way, we include a wide variety of subjects. This mix starts with an introduction to foundational concepts in law, social sciences, and art. The foundational courses are followed by others that provide students with interdisciplinary application and testing. Students complete the program by conducting scientific or artistic research for their master’s thesis. Throughout the two-year program, these fundamentals are fortified with post- and decolonial perspectives on human rights, skills for promoting diversity and inclusion, practices for fostering non-violent resilience and well-being, and courses in areas like cinema and human rights, social design and architecture, human rights in the digital age, sustainability, and torture prevention.
As Program Assistants, we experience these aspects of the program firsthand in our daily work with the Vienna Master Team. Our first introduction to this interdisciplinary approach was through the students’ human rights projects. These projects connect the program’s collaborators with the students, offering opportunities to work on various initiatives as and with human rights professionals. Examples include an informational video for immigrants in Vienna, an interactive conference focusing on political prisoners, and an exhibition on the experiences of Black people in Vienna.
Initially, our PA Ayesha expressed uncertainty about how a program focused on both arts and human rights would work in practice. Although the theoretical link was clear to her, as she also came from an interdisciplinary program, conversations with team members and students helped her see this connection more clearly. For her, the link becomes evident in how people use their skills innovatively for human rights projects. Examples include informational exhibitions, podcasts, human rights training for police, participatory projects for migrants, and ethically sourced photographs for organisations—just a few of the projects and fields that students, team members, and alumni have worked on.
Similarly, Anne sees the potential of art to promote human rights. She believes that art is essential for conveying experiences that cannot always be expressed in words. This relationship between the arts and human rights can create a space for a broader understanding of human rights issues. Anne’s experience with the Vienna Master program has strengthened this view and allowed her to gain a deeper understanding of the work involved. Rosa, another PA, recalls that when she first learned about the program, she thought about how art could be used to shed light on human rights violations. On the flip side, it became clear that the rights of artists must also be protected. Protest art, for example, is an art form that highlights human rights violations but can only be created if artists themselves are protected.
The Vienna Master Team believes that practical solutions found in arts and cultural practices can be used to protect and promote human rights. The skills gained in the program are designed to equip students with an analytical worldview, interdisciplinary knowledge, and the attitudes necessary to innovate across disciplines. The program creates a space for students from all backgrounds to come together and begin the work of learning and contributing to the fast evolving field of art and human rights, which we believe is essential for addressing a world of ever-evolving human rights violations and challenges.
