Art and Educational Projects in the Regions and for the Regions.

Introduction

In this paper we discuss the problems of fusing Arts and Educational projects into the regional networks and regional culture. We present the following projects: Rat-2, Summer Schools Network 2000 (L2K) and Virtual Theater Workshop.

RAT-2 (French Connector 2000)

Reseau Art Technology Project gathering Russian and French artists, researchers, technicians and students will enable to share common researches. This project deals with the establishment of a pole of relationship between French and Russian artists and scientists. It takes part of a program of exchanges between CYPRES - Intercultural Center for Transdisciplinary Practices, Researches and Exchanges, located in Aix-en-Provence, the University of Pereslavl and the Program Systems Institute of RAS, located in Pereslavl-Zalessky.

This winter we accepted French artist Gerar Giachi who spend several weeks in Pereslavl-Zalessky and made a lot of works which are presented on the CYPRES server - http:// www.cypres.asso.fr

This tool is necessary for a concerted and continual action between the partners. This site is the starting point. It will permit not only the exchange of information between French artists working on the net, but also a veritable interactive exchange with Russian artists (fixed and animated images, sounds and texts), and a forum for electronic edition. In addition to the exchanges on the net a common workshop will make possible the physical exchange of Russian and French artists between the two countries.

During his visit Gerar actively working as an invited speaker and workshop organizer on the base of Pereslavl computer camp and show his works in Nizhny Novgorod.

Summer Schools Network 2000 (L2K)

We believe that WWW media is very promising way to reserve and share educational heritage. That is why we have organized special sites which present history Russian summer computer and ecological schools. School. There is information not only about Pereslavl summer schools but about summer schools in another regions - Nizhny Novgorod, Murom, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk. This summer we try to connect several schools into the network and to help them to provide following joint projects:

• The Regional Rivers;
• Frogs;
• One day in summer school life

There are following summer schools that take part in L2K project:

• Virtual Museum of Nature (Pereslavl-Zalessky);
• Shida Summer Camp (Irkutsk);
• Ecological Camp near Vetluga (Nizhny-Novgorod region);
• Summer Academy of Fine Arts (Pereslavl-Zalessky);
• Ethnographic Expedition Gorincy (Nizhny-Novgorod region);
• Ecological Camp in Old Pustyn (Murom)

The mostly interesting projects this year was connected with regional ecology and culture.

Virtual Theater Workshop

This projects starts by interactive performance "Fly in virtual space" proposed by the Institute of Puppetry of Yaroslavl (direct connection between Aix and Pereslavl-Zalessky, via video-conference). Staging of the first theater play by students of the School of Arts (Aix-en-Provence, France) and students from Theater Institute (Yaroslavl, Russia) made clear that the basic problems of the remote partners interaction are of cognitive rather than technical nature. This summer we try to share a theater performance in the regional network of Pereslavl-Zalessky and give a feedback from citizens to actors.

Conclusion

Arts and educational projects became a part of Internet-connected community of Pereslavl-Zalessky. That is a unique possibility for this city to accept new knowledge and practice.

Acknowledgments

The research reported here was conducted at Pereslavl-Zalessky during 1999 - 2000 and was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (Grant N 98 019), the Open Society Institute (Grant OCA912), and the Project Harmony (Grant 2411).

Evgeny D. Patarakin, director of the Uchcom Laboratory, PSI RAS, Ph.D. The head of Maple eco-education laboratory in Ecocenter "Dront", Nizhny Novgorod. He is a leader of the following projects:

- Educational superorganism in Pereslavl-Zalessky (RFBR 98 019)

- Contemporary Russian media-arts gallery (Russian Foundation for Human Sciences Research. Grant N 96-04-12067B)

- Virtual Pustyn (Open Society Institute IEA72Au),

- Summer Schools Network 2000 (Project Harmony ¦ 2412)

Larisa L. Travina, Senior Researcher in the Uchcom Laboratory, PSI RAS, Ph.D. She is a leader of the following projects:

- Cognitive map of Personality (RFBR N 96-06-80615);

- Virtual Theatre Workshop (Open Society Institute OCA912).