The Centre for Cultural Research ("Zentrum für Kulturforschung") is located in Bonn and Vienna. It was founded as an independent research body in 1972.
It conducts interdisciplinary and empirical research, provides documentation, organises monitoring and evaluation projects and provides consultancy services in various fields of cultural policy, media and cultural education.
Major activities undertaken by the ZfKf during the last 30 years have been:
During the 1970's, the most important project undertaken by the ZfKf was the The Artists' Survey ("Künstler-Report") which was conducted on behalf of the German Ministry of Labour (BMA), the Federal Parliament. The findings of the "Artists' Report", together with additional ZfKf-research on legal questions and lobbying on behalf of the artists, greatly contributed to the creation of a special artists' insurance programme in Germany. During the 1980's, the ZfKf published international comparative studies on cultural policies and arts funding and introduced co-operation in the field of "arts management" in Germany.
During the 1990's and in early 2000, the ZfKf conducted various culture industries studies for several Länder-Governments.
The ZfKf is recognised as a pioneer institution in the development of studies and reports on the status of women in arts and media professions, both in Germany and wider Europe. It is the inventor of the "Pyramid of Success" now being applied to understand the status of women working in different sectors of cultural life. The main in-depth studies carried out by the ZfKf in this field are: Frauen in Kultur und Medienbetrieb I (1987); Frauen in Kultur und Medienbetrieb II (1995); Frauen in Kultur und Medienbetrieb III (2001); Trotz Fleiß - keinen Preis? (1994, updated 2001).
