Art Spaces as Negotiated Inclusion: Cultural Practitioners Navigating Diversity and Institutional Tensions in Norway

Abstract

Debates surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have become increasingly prominent and contested across cultural sectors, where institutions are often expected to promote representation, accessibility, and social participation. These initiatives unfold within organisational structures shaped by professional networks, cultural policy frameworks, and broader sociopolitical debates. This study explores how cultural practitioners and organisational actors in Norway perceive and navigate these dynamics. Drawing on asynchronous semi-structured written interviews with eight participants working across the Norwegian cultural sector, the research examines how practitioners interpret the current climate surrounding diversity and inclusion, how arts-based practices respond to institutional and structural pressures, and how cultural spaces foster belonging for diverse communities. The findings suggest that participants perceive a persistent gap between institutional commitments to diversity and their implementation in everyday cultural practice. They highlight structural barriers affecting international practitioners, particularly in relation to language, professional networks, and access to opportunities, while also describing ongoing negotiations between artistic autonomy and institutional expectations. Artistic communities and collaborative networks emerged as important environments where inclusion is negotiated through everyday cultural practice. By foregrounding practitioners' perspectives, this exploratory study conceptualises inclusion as an ongoing process of negotiation across institutional practices, professional relationships, and artistic communities within Norway's cultural sector.