Artistic Freedom | Towards the Culture Compass: A Sector Blueprint

This briefing on Artistic Freedom (Chapter 1) was edited and coordinated by Reset! and forms part of 10 policy briefings in the discussion paper ‘Towards the Culture Compass: A Sector Blueprint‘ published by Culture Action Europe. Read other briefings on:

• Working Conditions
• Artistic Research, Culture and Innovation
• International Cultural Relations
• Culture and Health and Well-Being
• Culture and Sustainability
• Cultural Participation
• Access to Cultural and Arts Education
• Culture and Security
• Culture and Digital

download the sector blueprint

Context

‘Artistic freedom is the freedom to imagine, create, and distribute diverse cultural expressions free of governmental censorship, political interference or the pressures of non-state actors. It includes the right of all citizens to have access to these works and is essential for the well-being of societies.’ UNESCO defines artistic freedom in these terms, underlining its essential role in safeguarding pluralism and free expression. We consider artistic freedom to encompass not only the freedom of artists but also freedom of other workers in the cultural and creative sectors and the autonomy of cultural organisations.

In light of the increasing instrumentalisation of culture and the arts for political messaging or propaganda, clear and context-sensitive safeguards are needed. In spaces dedicated to artistic expression, whether on-site or online, audiences should be able to expect artistic ambition and creative experimentation. At the same time, in broader public information spaces, transparency and accountability standards must apply, without allowing such standards to become a pretext for censorship.

Alongside media independence and academic autonomy, the degree to which artistic freedom is upheld serves as a strong indicator of a society’s democratic health. Today, however, artistic freedom in Europe faces increasing pressure. Attacks on artistic freedom in Europe are taking increasingly diverse and concerning forms—from direct censorship and political interference to the manipulation of public funding. While these developments differ across national contexts, they point in the same direction: a broader trend of democratic erosion, where cultural expression becomes a target of political control.

In recent years, cultural actors across Europe have observed several cases of politically motivated changes in the leadership of public cultural institutions. These dismissals—sometimes imposed from above, other times prompted by pressure leading to voluntary resignations—signal a clear attempt to subordinate artistic vision to political agendas. Such ‘purges’ have been documented across several Member States.

Another critical pressure point is the growing politicisation of public funding. With cultural budgets shrinking in many countries, funding decisions have become an increasingly effective tool of influence. In some cases, governments—whether national or local—explicitly or implicitly condition financial support on alignment with official narratives. Institutions or individuals expressing dissent risk being excluded from subsidies. For example, in the context of what many international observers and legal scholars describe as a possible genocide in Gaza, numerous cultural actors across Europe have reported being pressured 8 into silence regarding their support for Palestinian communities, for fear of losing institutional support or public funding.

These developments are compounded by other repressive mechanisms. Self-censorship is on the rise, as artists anticipate potential backlash, reputational damage, or financial consequences for critical or controversial work. In parallel, direct censorship is deployed in certain countries where authorities openly block or ban artistic productions that diverge from dominant nationalist or ideological narratives. They sometimes even restrict access to public spaces for the purpose of creating art. These restrictions disproportionately affect marginalised communities, whose voices are already underrepresented in mainstream culture.

Online repression is also an emerging front. Artists increasingly face harassment and disinformation campaigns on social media, often coordinated and amplified by algorithms that reward polarisation and outrage. The resulting digital climate has become hostile to artistic expression and fuels further self-censorship. Although these pressures manifest differently across the Union, the underlying trends—political interference, financial coercion, and institutional vulnerability—are widely shared. Yet, no EU-wide mechanism exists to systematically monitor these developments. Unlike the media sector, which benefits from regular analysis and public indices, artistic freedom remains largely undocumented at the European level. This absence of reliable, comparable data represents a major blind spot in policymaking and prevents timely, coordinated responses.

The European Union has a clear legal and moral obligation to act. Article 13 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union states: ‘The arts and scientific research shall be free of constraint. Academic freedom shall be respected.’ As such, the EU must take steps to ensure this freedom is not only acknowledged but actively protected.

Proposals

• Integrate artistic freedom into the Rule of Law Report. The Rule of Law Report’s chapter on media freedom and pluralism should be expanded to cover the full spectrum of freedom of expression, explicitly including artistic and academic freedoms. Together, artistic, media, and academic freedoms form a mutually reinforcing ‘triangle of expression’ that is integral to democratic governance. The inclusion of artistic freedom in the Rule of Law Report would help document the growing threats to cultural expression and provide a structured basis for response. Monitoring of infringements on Artistic Freedom as part of the Rule of Law Report could be supported by regular research and reporting mechanisms coordinated with a European observatory on artistic freedom.
• Establish a European Observatory on Artistic Freedom. It is proposed that the Commission establish a dedicated and independent observatory to monitor and report on violations of artistic freedom in collaboration with organisations with proven expertise and active engagement in the field. It could be structured as a multilingual online portal allowing artists and institutions to confidentially report cases of 9 censorship, harassment, or political interference. Built in collaboration with European networks and other organisations already documenting such threats, the observatory would publish an annual analytical report and serve as a central hub for data collection. This data could contribute to and inform the Rule of Law Report.
• Develop an EU Artistic Freedom Index. To raise public awareness and enhance institutional accountability, the European Commission should support the development of an EU Artistic Freedom Index, possibly through the work of the European Observatory on Artistic Freedom. Inspired by the World Press Freedom Index compiled and published by Reporters Without Borders, or the Free to Think report by Scholars at Risk’s Academic Freedom Monitoring Project, or the Academic Freedom Index, this tool would provide an annual ranking of Member States based on the state of artistic freedom, drawing on data from the proposed observatory and civil society partners.
• Develop an Artistic Freedom Act. The Act could establish safeguards for artistic expression and institutional autonomy across the EU: prohibit political interference in programming and funding, require arm’s-length governance for publicly supported cultural bodies, and mandate transparent, non-discriminatory criteria with due process and appeal when support is restricted or withdrawn.
• Create a funding mechanism to support artists and workers in the cultural and creative sectors facing restrictions on their artistic freedom. Following the model of the Creative Europe’s Media Freedom Rapid Response Mechanism, the EU should establish a dedicated emergency fund for artists at risk under AgoraEU. Grants could be allocated to those facing repression, harassment, or loss of income due to the political content of their work.
• Introduce artistic freedom clauses in EU funding. We welcome the recognition of artistic freedom as a guiding principle of the Culture Strand under the proposed AgoraEU programme. The Commission should make respect for artistic freedom (incl. non-discrimination, institutional autonomy, and freedom from political interference) a formal condition for receiving support through EU funding streams.

While the EU can commit to upholding these principles in its own funding decisions or require cultural organisations to do so, we acknowledge that it cannot directly prevent political interference at national or local levels. Therefore, artistic freedom conditionality in AgoraEU should be supported by strong leverage mechanisms that influence Member States, as outlined in other proposals.

In cases where a Member State systematically breaches the rule of law and is consequently defunded, this may also jeopardise funding for civil society. To avoid this, safeguards are needed. For instance, in the Multiannual Financial Framework 2028–2034 proposal, funds decommitted from a Member State’s National and Regional Partnership Plan due to rule of law violations should be made available again for use under other programmes, particularly those that support democracy, civil society, Union values, or the fight against corruption. We 10 stress that these funds should be redirected to the AgoraEU programme to continue supporting civil society, including cultural actors.

• Regulate tech platforms to prevent online harassment of artists. The European Commission should ensure that digital platforms are held accountable for enabling or tolerating harassment against artists. Clear regulatory guidelines must require tech companies to monitor and remove content that targets artists and cultural workers, while upholding principles of free expression and artistic integrity. The guidelines could be introduced as part of the upcoming Digital Fairness Act.
• Support youth-led initiatives and awareness campaigns. To engage younger generations, the Commission should fund and involve youth-driven artistic initiatives and digital campaigns that promote freedom of expression and artistic freedom. This engagement should begin with understanding how young people themselves define and experience artistic freedom, particularly within today’s polarised digital sphere. The Commission could establish a group of young contributors to act as an advisory sample—both to learn from their perspectives, which may be more informed than assumed, and to ensure they can meaningfully shape outcomes. Such initiatives could take the form of EU-sponsored podcasts, panels, exhibitions, and targeted social media campaigns highlighting the role of artistic freedom in democratic societies.

Annex: Resources

1. Academic Freedom Index, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, V-Dem Institute, 2024.
2. Artistic Freedom Under Attack: A Matter for Us All, IETM, 2024.
3. Barometer on Political Influence in Museums in Europe, NEMO, 2025.
4. Call for Testimonies: Palestine: Censorship in Culture, Media, and Academia, Reset! network, 2025.
5. European Media Freedom Act, European Commission, 2024.
6. Free to Create: Artistic Freedom in Europe, Council of Europe, 2023.
7. Free to Create, Create to Be Free: Manifesto on the Freedom of Expression of Arts and Culture in the Digital Era, Council of Europe partners, 2020.
8. Free to Think Report, Scholars at Risk’s Academic Freedom Monitoring Project, 2024.
9. International Cities of Refuge Network — Platform.
10. Norway: ‘Ways of Seeing’ and How Come That Truth Is Not Enough to Counter Fake News (V. Shishkova), IETM, 2020.
11. Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories, United Nations, 2024.
12. Reset! Chronicles 2024, Reset! network, 2024.
13. Safeguarding Artistic Freedom. Summit Report, World Summit on Arts and Culture / Kulturrådet, 2023.
14. SH|FT — Platform.
15. Targeted Destruction of Ukraine’s Culture Must Stop: UN Experts, UN Human Rights, 2023.
16. The Bratislava Declaration, Open Culture! Platform, 2025.
17. The Cultural Intifada — Platform.
18. The Fragile Triangle of Artistic Freedom (O. Reitov; S. Whyatt), Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen, 2024.
19. The State of Artistic Freedom 2025, Freemuse, 2025.
20. Ukrainian Culture Under Attack: Erasure of Ukrainian Culture in Russia’s War Against Ukraine, PEN America, 2022.
21. Un plan en faveur de la liberté de création, ARTCENA, 2024.
22. ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, Amnesty International, 2024.

Culture Compass for Europe

The Culture Compass for Europe released by the European Commission in November 2025 announces a new periodic State of Culture report, which will “assess progress regarding the development of the cultural and creative ecosystem” with a particular emphasis on artistic freedom. This will be supported both by a new EU structured dialogue process with cultural and creative sector stakeholders to monitor the progress of the goals outlined in the Culture Compass, as well as a new EU cultural data hub that will analyse cultural data and information, monitor trends and developments, and pool best practices. The Compass also announces a new Youth Cultural Ambassadors network to discuss culture policy matters, and proposes a new EU Artists Charter that will include measures to increase compliance and accountability by recipients of EU funding for culture with certain fundamental principles.

The Culture Compass is accompanied by a draft Joint Declaration entitled “Europe for Culture – Culture for Europe” to be agreed upon and signed by the European Commission, European Parliament and the Council of the EU. The first Article recognises that freedom of artistic expression is “the foundations of culture, and play an indispensable role in fostering democratic societies and in upholding European values.” In relation to this, they commit to:

• Safeguarding the freedom of artistic expression and respect of EU values as a cornerstone of democracy and fundamental rights within the European Union
• Protect artists and cultural professionals from censorship, intimidation, and undue interference
• Shield the independence of cultural institutions.