At the state level, mobility was mentioned directly in previous strategic documents, specifically the National Cultural Policy for 2009–2014 and the Strategy of More Effective Support for the Art for 2007–2013.
Residency stays have been used in the Czech Republic as a mobility tool for a long time. Their development in the non-profit sector has been supported via subsidy award procedures organised by the Ministry of Culture since the mid-1990s and this practice continues.
At the state level, direct support for creative residency stays, involving both Czech artists abroad and foreign artists in the Czech Republic, has been provided via ATI since 2004. The system of residency stays for writers organised by the Czech Literary Centre at the Moravian Library in Brno currently works on a similar exchange principle. In 2008, the Ministry of Culture set up the Programme of Providing Contributions for Creative or Study Purposes (a "scholarship programme") for Czech citizens. The creative scholarships are designed to support creative artistic activity or creative artists' stays of six months to two years leading to the production of a work of art or a collection of works of art. Study scholarships are granted to support study stays at significant artistic, scientific or otherwise specialised workplaces, at home or abroad, for a period of at least one month.
In 2010, a document called Analysis of Obstacles to Mobility in the Czech Republic was drawn up in line with the strategic documents and a round table was held to discuss support for mobility in culture and obstacles to the mobility with representatives of individual art disciplines.
The recommendations stemming from the analysis focused on three areas: legislation, finances and information provision. Recommendations concerning tools for mobility funding included the creation of brand-new support tools (such as "go and see grants", short-term travel grants, grants for support of market development and grants for support of participation of Czech professionals in international networks). In the area of information, the chief recommendation concerned the accessibility of information on mobility and its coordination.
Many of these recommendations have been put into practice in subsequent years. The government has reinforced its support for the development of foreign markets (mainly support provided via the Czech Film Fund in the area of cinematography) and support for residency stays and the initiation of new ones, while, in 2013, it introduced award procedure for the support of short-term mobility – travel grants for professional artists.
In the past 10 years, in particular the environment motivating the cultural mobility of both artists and works of art has undergone fundamental transformation (strengthening the grant procedure regarding support for translation of Czech literature to foreign languages, for instance). In 2016, SoundCzech, a Czech music export office, was set up by ATI to promote contemporary music, and the Czech Literary Centre was established at the Moravian Library in Brno to support the promotion of Czech literature. A new government programme providing support to large international arts festivals was announced for 2017, facilitating the invitation of a large number of foreign guests to prestigious festivals and shows.
Finally, at the information level, the establishment of a Mobility Info-point in the Czech Republic was anchored in new strategic documents, specifically the National Cultural Policy for 2015-2020 (with outlook until 2025) and the Strategy of Support for the Arts for 2015-2020.
At the level of municipalities and regions, the issue of direct support for mobility has not yet been dealt with to a great extent. When Czech artists and exhibitions sent abroad receive support at this level it is linked to the promotion of a particular place, rather than with a purposeful support of mobility. The main contributor in this regard is the City of Prague, which provides backing to a large number of projects connected with international cultural cooperation and mobility, including residency stays, through its grant system.
For more detailed information on individual programmes providing support to international art projects see the updated version of the Cultural Mobility Funding Guide – Czech Republic.