Résumé
Swiss cultural policy is a relatively recent affair, and within the federal organisation it is under the sovereignty of the cantons. In 1986, in the spirit of cooperative federalism, a specialist conference was created under tutelage of the Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (EDK/CDIP) which allowed the cantonal culture officials to meet, exchange, discuss and support common projects and commonly defend a cantonal position in debates on cultural policy: the Conference of Culture Officials (KBK/CDAC). This study looks at the 35 years of the existence of this conference, from its founding until the challenges posed by the outbreak of the COVID pandemic in 2020. It analyses the main characteristics and evolution of the KBK and its delegates, its main achievements and its biggest challenges. Mainly, it analyses how the KBK positioned itself in a fast developing institutional field of cultural policy in Switzerland, how it related to its political conference EDK and to the key federal institutions, the Federal Office of Culture (BAK/OFC), and the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia (PH). In doing so, the study contributes to the as yet largely unexplored field of research on the history of Swiss domestic cultural policy, with an intention to contribute to the reflection on future developments.