European Capitals of Culture. the Road to Success. From 1985 to 2010

8/2/2019 European Capitals of Culture. the Road to Success. From 1985 to 2010

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Luxembourg: Oice or Oicial Publications o the European Communities, 2009

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1 / Graz 2003 - photo Harry Schifer

2 / Linz 2009 - Ars Electronica photo Ars Electronica Linz

3 / Vilnius 2009 - Let there be night: Baltijos otograjos linija, Kstutis Vanagas

4 / Linz 2009 - House o the Holy Aro photo Arts Projects Australia

5 / Graz 2003 - photo Harry Schifer

6 / Graz 2003 - photo Harry Schifer7 / Stavanger 2008 - Opening day photo Kjetil Alsvik


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1985 Athens1 (Greece)

1986 Florence2 (Italy)

1987 Amsterdam3 (Netherlands)

1988 Berlin4 (Germany)

1989 Paris5 (France)

1990 Glasgow6 (England)

1991 Dublin7 (Ireland)

1992 Madrid8 (Spain)

1993 Antwerp9 (Belgium)

1994 Lisbon10 (Portugal)

1995 Luxembourg11 (Luxembourg)

1996 Copenhagen12 (Denmark)

1997 Thessaloniki13 (Greece)

1998 Stockholm14 (Sweden)

1999 Weimar15 (Germany)

2000 Avignon16 (France)

2000 Bergen17 (Norway)

2000 Bologna18 (Italy)

2000 Brussels19 (Belgium)

2000 Helsinki20 (Finland)

2000 Krakw21 (Poland)

2000 Prague22 (Czech Republic)

2000 Reykjavk23 (Iceland)

2000 Santiago de Compostela24 (Spain)

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2001 Rotterdam25 (Netherlands)

2001 Porto26 (Portugal)

2002 Bruges27 (Belgium)

2002 Salamanca28 (Spain)

2003 Graz29 (Austria)

2004 Genoa30 (Italy)

2004 Lille31 (France)

2005 Cork32 (Ireland)

2006 Patras33 (Greece)

2007 Sibiu34 (Romania)

2007 Luxembourg35 (Luxembourg)

2008 Liverpool36 (England)

2008 Stavanger37 (Norway)

2009 Vilnius38 (Lithuania)

2009 Linz39 (Austria)

2010 Essen40 (Germany)

2010 Pcs41 (Hungary)

2010 Istanbul42 (Turkey)

2011 Turku43 (Finland)

2011 Tallinn44 (Estonia)

2012 Guimares45 (Portugal)

2012 Maribor46 (Slovenia)

2013 Marseille47 (France)

2013 Koice48 (Slovakia)

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The European Capitals o Culture are a fagship cultural initiative o the European Union, possibly the best

known and most appreciated by European citizens.

They are a clear illustration o the EUs commitment to cultural diversity, but also o how culture can unite

people within Europe. Indeed, the Capitals have always been an opportunity or Europeans to meet, tolearn about their diversity, but at the same time to enjoy together their common history and values, to

cooperate in new initiatives and projects: in other words, to experience the eeling o belonging to the

same European community.

I am convinced that the European project is undamentally a cultural project. Over and above the task o

uniting markets, bringing together the dierent peoples o this continent with their dierent ways o lie,

languages and traditions is clearly a cultural endeavour.

In addition to its intrinsic value, culture is also essential or achieving the EUs strategic objectives o pros-

perity and solidarity, and ensuring a stronger presence on the international scene.

European Capitals o Culture are proo that culture has a major role to play at the heart o our policies o

sustainable development, because they are part o the long term development o European cities and

their regions, as well as a source o stimulus or dynamism, creativity, but also social inclusion.

I would like to thank all the cities which have put Europe to the ore during their year as European Capital

o Culture and I wish the European Capitals o Culture every success or the next 25 years.

1

Jos Manuel BARROSO

President o the European Commission


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Making Capital out o Culture .............................................................................3

Stories rom 25 years o European Capitals o Culture ...................................11

Athens 1985 .................................................... .................................................... ....................................................... .................................. 12Florence 1986 .............................................................................................................................................................................................14

Glasgow 1990 ..............................................................................................................................................................................................16

Antwerp 1993 .............................................................................................................................................................................................19

Lisbon 1994 .................................................................................................................................................................................................22

Thessaloniki 1997 .......... .................................................... ................................................... ..................................................... ................24

Stockholm 1998 .........................................................................................................................................................................................25

Weimar 1999 ...............................................................................................................................................................................................26

Brussels 2000 ...............................................................................................................................................................................................29

Helsinki 2000 ...............................................................................................................................................................................................30

Krakow 2000 ................................................................................................................................................................................................32

Santiago de Compostela 2000 ..............................................................................................................................................................36

Bruges 2002 .................................................................................................................................................................................................38

Salamanca 2002 .........................................................................................................................................................................................40

Graz 2003 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................42

Lille 2004 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................45

Cork 2005 .....................................................................................................................................................................................................48

Luxembourg 2007 .....................................................................................................................................................................................51

Sibiu 2007 .....................................................................................................................................................................................................54

Liverpool 2008 ............................................................................................................................................................................................57

Stavanger 2008 ..........................................................................................................................................................................................60

Linz 2009 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................63

Vilnius 2009 .................................................................................................................................................................................................66

All views expressed herein are those o the authors and do not necessarily represent the view o the European Commission.


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European Capitals o Culture, according to latterday leg-

end, were born at Athens airport in January 1985, a day o

high winds and delayed fights. Sitting in the lounge wait-

ing or their planes were glamorous ormer actress Melina

Mercouri, then Greeces Minister o Culture, and her Frenchcounterpart, the charismatic Jack Lang.

They were resh rom a meeting o Europes culture minis-

ters, and said it was a shame that there were so ew occa-

sions o this kind. They talked about this and that and as

they killed time in lively conversation, Mercouri came up

with the idea o launching a series o yearly events that

would put the spotlight on cities around Europe and their

role in the development o European cultures. Lang was

keen, and no sooner had they reached their respective

destinations than they set the ball rolling.

Twenty-ve years later and the European Capitals o Culture

are Europes most ambitious collaborative cultural project

both in scope and scale, with budgets ar exceeding those

o any other cultural event. Among other things, their aim

is to make Europeans aware o what they have in common.So ar, 39 cities have sported the title and the event has

acquired considerable prestige among Europes citizens.

A study by an independent expert about the 1995-2004 Europe-

an Capitals o Culture showed that the vast majority o organisers

elt the event had been benecial to the cities both rom a cultural

point o view and or their long long-term development.

Cities designated so ar have included national capitalsas well as small but symbolically signicant places like

Weimar and Santiago de Compostela. In 2000, no less than

nine cities celebrated the millennium simultaneously, and

since 2007 two cities share the accolade every year with the

exception o 2010, when three cities are to host the event.

No two cities are alike and no two cities handle the year-

long jamboree in the same manner. Like a living organism,

the event is orever evolving and developing. Even agreeing

on what is meant by culture can be a programme in itsel.

Geography, history, a countrys size, politics, budgets, the

cultural scene, the men and women on the board o

Athens1985MelinaMercouri


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the project and those organising its artistic side, all mix up

into dierent cocktails o distinct favours. Some Capitals o

Culture are considered resounding successes and serve as

role models, others were elt to be missed opportunities.

To a degree, assessment is in the eye o the beholder. Euro-

pean Capitals o Culture dont compare easily and the ater-

eects o a cultural year are hard to evaluate. Their most

commonly cited positive oshoot is that they have made

a radical contribution to a citys revitalisation. Even i some

cities didnt take up the challenge o thinking in innovative

ways about their own signicance and uture, there is no

denying that the European Capitals o Culture have hit the

collective imagination and that their potential as a tool or

their own development and the development o a sense o

European identity is enormous. Although not all cities wereaware o this potential, some took it ully in their stride.

The rst European City o Culture (as they used to be

called) selected by the European Unions ministers o cul-

ture - naturally went to Melina Mercouris Greece and in

1985 Athens was the rst city to take on the mantle. It is

time or our (culture ministers) voice to be heard as loud as

that o the technocrats, said the orceul Mercouri. Culture,

art and creativity are no less important than technology,

commerce and the economy. Europes culture ministers

could not but agree that culture can be a transormative

power or the good, and that neglecting it is to orget to

nourish a nations soul.

Only seven months were spent on planning Athenss year

as European City o Culture, and inevitably it was a rushed

i buoyant aair. The concept was new and that very rstevent did not include the experiments in social integra-

tion o minorities oreigners, old people, the disabled

o which later events chose to make a priority. It opened

with reworks on the Acropolis, and vaunted the cultural

heritage o Greece mainly through exhibitions.

The process o a yearly designation o European Cities

o Culture was launched, and it took no time or a list o

15 cities to be drawn up: Florence in 1986, ollowedby Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, Glasgow, Dublin, Madrid,Melina, Genser, Papandreou or the inauguration


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European Capital Culture

Antwerp, Lisbon, Luxembourg, Copenhagen, Thessalo-

niki, Stockholm and Weimar in 1999. As o 1992, a Eu-

ropean Cultural Month was to ocus mainly on cities o

eastern and central Europe, starting with Cracow with

expectations that they would link up with the European

Cities o Culture.

Until 2004, the designation o European Cities o Culture

was an inter-governmental aair in the hands o the Coun-

cil o Ministers, without the involvement o external expertsor any ormal assessments. Artistic programmes, organisa-

tional structures, unding, what makes or breaks a cultural

year, are oten radically dierent. Glasgow 1990 is deemed

to have rejuvenated a city suering rom urban decay,

heavy unemployment and a reputation or street crime,

with many positive ater-eects on the creative scene and

a radical boost to its international image. Not only do ca-

s ll its streets on sunny days, but it is now considered a

major cultural tourism destination. Antwerp 1993, too, hadinteresting ater-shocks: it helped to challenge some o the

extremist political tendencies that were emerging there.

Key restoration projects were initiated, cultural projects

launched and the city has now become synonymous with

creativity.

At the other side o Europe in 1997, Thessalonikis ambition

was to brand itsel as the metropolis o the Balkans. The

planning was stormy: our artistic directors and our ma

naging directors resigned in clashes with the board, which

didnt help or the smooth running o the event, although a

number o building projects were launched, rom renovat-

ing theatres to turning port warehouses into arts venues.

Thessalonikis cultural inrastructure is now second only to

that o Athens.

Not everyone was happy with the EUs Council o Ministers

decision to select nine cities as European Cities o Culture

or the millennium year - Avignon, Bergen, Bologna, Brus-

sels, Cracow, Helsinki, Prague, Reykjavik and Santiago de

Compostela. Some elt that sharing the title diminished the

prestige and increased competition or visitors. Neverthe-

less, it was an interesting attempt at cross-border culturalcooperation.

Why have cities been so keen to invest large sums o money

and energy into organising these cultural years? Answers

vary rom wanting to make a mark on the world map to

launching long-term cultural development to attracting

visitors rom inside the country and abroad. Some see it as

a question o building up local pride and sel-condence,

others want to stimulate interest in culture, still others wantto have a year-long celebration.

Cork

2005photocarnival7-ArthurEllis

Vilnius2009Baltijosotografjoslinija,arnasMaeika


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Brussels 2000 named its top priority as creating social cohe-

sion, while Porto 2001 made it clear that economic develop-

ment was as important as its cultural programme.

The actual organisation o a cultural year usually takesapproximatively our years, although Dublin ater a change

in government in 1991 had only 14 months to do so. Some

cities have big teams working on the cultural programme,

others just a handul o organisers, but most o them ace

the same basic conundrum. How do you establish a good

working relationship between the political players in power

and the organising committee? Oten, several public au-

thorities are involved, including local municipalities, the

region or province and the national government.

Indeed, striking the right balance between political support

and artistic reedom is one o the main challenges most Capi-

tals ace. On the one hand, political commitment is unda-

mental as most o the unds or the event are public, but this

investment inevitably means strong expectations to make

political capital out o the year, oten to the irritation o the

events management who may eel put under intense pres-sure. On the other hand, artistic and cultural excellence are

also undamental, which requires a large degree o reedom

rom politics. Whatever the personality and style o the per-

son running the cultural programme, he or she naturally has

a lot o strong characters to contend with including their

own. A number o artistic administrators have slammed the

door and walked out, leaving less time or their successors

to get the ball rolling. To some extent this is inevitable due

to the nature o the event, but uture Capitals can certainlylearn rom the experiences o those who went beore them.

The cultural programmes themselves are born o a

complicated alchemy between city, organisers, ambitions,

vision and so on. But whether the organisers aim is to

think in thoroughly urban terms and to intimately integrate

their projects into the citys cultural abric, or whether they

simply plan to put on a series o autonomous projects and

events, all have to contend with a number o conficting

pressures, such as creating a balance between high and

low art, traditional and contemporary expressions, high-prole events and local initiatives, big international names

and local talent, or simply how many projects to take on.

Dierent cities dene culture dierently, although many

opt or a wider meaning than the production o art and in-

clude sport, gastronomy, and much else besides. In Graz, the

Kitchen cooking project involved the making o ethnic meals

cooked by local citizens in a central park o the city; Helsinki

had a sauna o the month project and in Rotterdam, Preach-ing in Another Mans Parish involved ministers o dierent

K

rakow2000photoMariuszMakowski


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aiths preaching in each others places o worship.

In 2001, Rotterdam and Porto shared the title, and Basel

and Riga held Cultural Months. Bruges and Salamanca were

the cities or 2002, Graz had 2003 all to itsel, with the cul-

tural month going to St Petersburg, and 2004 was sharedbetween Genoa and Lille. Sharing helps exchanges and co-

operation, although this is sometimes easier said than done

and cities oten went it alone.

In 1999, the European Parliament and the Council o the

European Union decided to call the European Capital o

Culture scheme a Community Action, and set up a new

designation process that would apply or the - 2005-2012

titles. Member States were listed in chronological order so

that they could take turn to host the event. An international

panel was set up to assess the suitability o cities proposed

by Member States. Among various criteria, each city had

to include a project involving cultural cooperation across

Europes borders.

For Irelands turn in 2005, the Irish government nominated

our cities Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterord. Aterhearing all our bids and visiting two o the cities, the selec-

tion panel settled its choice on Cork. Their report was then

examined by the Parliament and the Commission, beore

the Council o Ministers gave it the go-ahead. The British

were particularly ambitious in their 2008 bid, launching a

major country-wide competition with 12 cities battling or

the title. An independent panel studied the bids beore

recommending Liverpool to the British government. Liver-

pools theme was the world in one city, and its stated aimwas to become a major tourist destination. This was much

more in the spirit o things. Most cities have used the capital

year as an occasion to restore, transorm or build new cul-

tural and other buildings. Weimar 1999 renovated its train

station, Copenhagen 1996 developed its ormer naval yards

to house academies, Thessaloniki 1997 and Porto 2001undertook major urban remodelling, Luxembourg 1995

had the world-renowned IM Pei design their new museum

o modern art and French architect Christian de Portzam-

parc a magnicent new Philharmonic concert hall. But it isnt

just a question o insrastructure: oten the image o the city

changes or the better, thus encouraging investment

Lille2004-Openingday6dec.03photoJ.Corbeel


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and tourism, and ostering employment and growth. In some

cases, the citys cultural players discovered new ways o work-

ing together, and some new and enduring collaborations were

also born at a European level.

A major contributor to a cultural years success is media

coverage and, increasingly, the creative use o the inter-

net. Since 1995, all European Capitals o Culture have had

websites and many have used the internet or debates,broadcasting and e-conerences. Another major plus is

the eectiveness o partnerships with local sponsors. For

Lille 2004, or instance, the national railway SNCF oered

cut-price tickets to Lille rom cities in France and Belgium.

More recently, the rule-book was given another shake-up,

and the selection procedure has been made more com-

petitive or cities named as o the 2013 title. Indeed, beore

this change, too many Member States tended to proposeno more than one city to the assessment panel, and the

programmes European dimension was oten weak i not

entirely absent. Now the European dimension is a precon-

dition or obtaining the title, as well as citizen participation

and the long-term ater-eects.

From now on, a selection panel made up o experts cho-

sen by the European institutions (Commission, Parliament,

Council o Ministers and Committee o the Regions) and by

the Member State concerned assesses the proposals and

settles its choice on one city. The EU Council o Ministers

then ocially designates the city. Ater that, an advisory

panel named by the European institutions accompanies

the cities in their preparations. As well as the manage-

ment o the ormal selection and monitoring processes,

the Commission has published a guide or candidate cit-

ies and osters the exchange o good practices. The Com-

mission contributes a small subsidy to European Capitals

o Culture. Between 1995 and 2004, the average total

budget or a European Capital o Culture has been o 8-74

million with money provided by the State, the region and

the city itsel. Sponsorship usually represents some 13%

o the budget. As o 2010, the Commissions contributionwill be allocated via the so-called Melina Mercouri prize o

1.5 million. The money wont be allocated automatically

but on condition that the city has respected its commit-

ments made at the selection stage.

So ar, the European dimension has been expressed in a

number o ways. Among other projects, Vilnius 2009 looked

at the Baroque movement and its specic imprint on the

city, with infuences rom Italy and central Europe. Musi-cians, artists, dancers, writers and academics rom around

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Stava

nger2008-OpeningDayKjetilAlsvik


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Europe took part. Lille 2004 ocussed on Europes artists

and held thematic weekends on other European as well as

non European countries.

Graz 2003 chose the gure o the Slovenian architect JozePlecnik whose infuence has arguably been as great as that

o Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius. Irish artist Dara McGrath

at Cork 2005 turned the spotlight on notions o territoriality

and nationality with an exhibition o photographs taken at

border checkpoints. Stavanger 2008 chose a more overtly

political agenda by launching a conerence by the human

rights organisation that will now take place every two years.

Istanbul 2010, or its part, is planning a lm event that tells

tales o immigration and highlights the shared plight o the

uprooted. Istanbul also plans an ambitious cross-border

project involving photographers rom across Europe, andyoung Turkish snappers. Essen or the Ruhr 2010 is promo-

ting regeneration through culture and Pcs 2010 aims to

position itsel as a gateway to the Balkans.

As well as these thematic models, the European dimension

o the Capitals o Culture takes place through collaborations

and exchanges between artists rom dierent countries, like

Genoa 2004s Theatres o Europe with plays in their origi-

nal language, and Porto and Rotterdam, both in 2001, who

shared a Squatters Project in which international artists ex-

plored urban space in the two cities, and compared them.

Luxembourg, when it held the title or the second time in

2007, involved the whole country and spilled over into Bel-

gium, France and Germany. Other ventures have touched

on innovative tourism, approaches o other languages and

the development o all kinds o networks.

Citizen participation is another criteria the European Union

has decreed a central requisite o any European Capital

o Culture, starting with street parades and moving on to

anything that makes people eel involved. Patras 2006 put

orward a major programme or volunteers who became

ambassadors or the event, Liverpool 2008s volunteer pro-

gramme gave the people o the working-class district o

Meyerside the chance to train as city hosts, and in Lille 2004

locals were involved rom the start and the participationrom schools was very active. In the same spirit,

Luxembourg2007photoB.Berhin


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The Commission asked all previous European Capitals o Culture 7 questions about the event they organised.

It received answers rom 23 cities, which are published in this brochure.All views expressed herein are those o the authors and do not necessarily represent the view o the European Commission.

ImagecourtesyoLiverpoolC

ityCouncil


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What was the impact o the event onthe city during the year?

It was something very new as Athens 1985 was the very

irst European Capital o Culture. People were very curious

and impressed, and a large number o citizens ollowed

all the numerous events throughout the year. There have

been many exhibitions, events etc. but also some excep-

tional documentation has been published in order to

remember the events.

Best and worst memories about theorganisation o the year?

Generally I have very good memories. Concerning theorganisation it has however been dicult as only a small

core group o about 10 people in one oce within the

Ministry o Culture was in charge o the organisation. Oten

we had to work like crazy. But Melina Mercouri was an ex-

ceptional woman and so everybody was very enthusiastic

about this new idea.

hat was tthe city du

It was so

irst Eur

an i

a t

1985

Melina, Genser, Papandreou

or the inauguration

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A couple o events with a specifcallyEuropean slant?

The perormances in the streets o Athens, where groups o

European dancers and singers were perorming. Also, the

great exhibition in the National Art Gallery was inaugurated

by Franois Mitterrand, the ormer French President. And we

had many international visitors.

Which part o the programme do you considerto have been the most successul?

The most successul part is always music. Music is a language

that can be understood by everybody, even i you do not

speak the language. In addition to music, theatre and danceevents as well as cinema have also been popular.

Any regrets?

It has been such a long time ago that I only remember the

positive things.

What is the legacy o Athens 1985?

In the 25th year o the European Capitals o Culture, this is

probably the most well-known and the most popular among

all European programmes, across Europe. The European

Capitals o Culture even help people to learn about Europe-

an geography by getting to know the dierent cities.

What advice would you give to thosepreparing to host a European Capitalo Culture?

I dont like big administrative councils and committees.

Foremost, you need a vision and love. Only aterwards

comes knowledge. Otherwise things are done or their own

sake and not or the good o the people.

Interview with Mary Michailidou,

rom Athens 1985

Melina & Spyros Mercouris at the press conerence o the opening

Inauguration o the event at Acropolis

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Florence 1986What was the impact o the event on the cityduring the year?

We actually launched the event in July 1986. Despite such

initial diculties as delays in unding decisions and alloca-

tions, everyone reacted with growing enthusiasm.


The entire cultural sector o Florences Municipality (executives,administrators, technicians and workers o all levels and rank, as

well as nancial and accounting ocers) was geared up or the

implementation o the events, which were many and varied.

My worst memory, so to speak, was working on the und-

ing o the various projects: the indecision, the delays at

local and ministerial levels, securing contributions rom

public bodies (region, province) and the private sector. Inthe end, however, all this work enabled the programme to

be ully inanced.


I cant just list one or two events. There were ambitious exhibi-

tions, conerences, theatre, music and dance, and our open-ing event on July 1 with a perormance o Verdis Requiem

ZubinMehtaConcertphotoTorrin

iFotogiornalismo


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conducted by Zubin Mehta in Piazza della Signoria. We also

had a large number o theatrical events and concerts, including

Oreo conducted by Luciano Berio, homages to Dallapiccola,

Cherubini and Lulli, as well as a estival o American pop music.


All the exhibitions whether organised by Florences Exhibition

Centre (Centro Mostre di Firenze), the Municipal Cultural

Oce, the State Oce o National Monuments or by the

cities twinned with Florence.

Any regrets?

I dont think we can talk in terms o regrets. All the projectschosen out o the more than 200 submitted prompted their

own reaction.

What is the legacy o Florence 1986?

In the context o regular reductions in nancing since the

event itsel, a trend that looks set to continue, various au-

tonomous oundations have been created that operateboth with public and private support. There is the Florence

Centre or Exhibitions (Centro Mostre Firenze) in Palazzo Strozzi,

or instance, the Museo Marino Marini, and more recently

Museo Bardini, with its neighbouring garden created with

unding rom the year as European Capital o Culture.

Moreover, we set up three-year (renewable) conventions,

including the Istituto Casa Buonarotti and the Citt dieri

per lUomo di Domani (City o Yesterday or the Man o

Tomorrow), inspired by the ideas o Giorgio La Pira. We alsoestablished youth centres or the production o visual arts, as

theatrical and other experiments the theatre o Virgilio Sieni

and Giancarlo Cauteruccio, the experimental lms o NICE,

the gurative arts o Quarter in the city neighbourhood o

Gavinana. The youth centres also led to such experimental

initiatives as exhibitions on IT and related technologies, as

well as the use o new tools and technologies in the eld o

cultural production, distribution and consumption.

What advice would you give to those preparingto host a European Capital o Culture?

Start organising events and activities in plenty o time and

put together a programme that takes into account the citys

characteristics and peculiarities. The programme should in-

clude mainstream cultural events as well as more innovativeones. These cultural events should have a long-term impact

on the citys cultural, economic and social development,

while at the same time encouraging citizen participation.

Questions answered by the ormer Florences Councillor or

Cultural Aairs Mr. Giorgio Morales at the time o Florences

Year as European Culture Capital 1986 and

Mrs. Ada Tardelli, Giorgio Morales ormer Secretary and

member o the Organising Secretary Oce orFlorences Year as European Culture Capital 1986.

PalazzoV

ecchiophotoTorriniFotogiornalismo


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What was the impact o the event on the cityduring the year?

Glasgow 1990 was only one component o a signicant pro-

cess o city development and transormation. Ater 20 years,

Im araid I have lost many o the anecdotal memories, and

besides they do not always refect the more objective ind-

ings o independent research. There have been many

studies o Glasgow 1990, and they all conclude that the

impact was dramatic in terms o building city conidence,

o developing a strong strategic and practical base or

urther development, and o setting uture agendas orcity change. The year drew importance to the value o a

European outlook, and about how to act internationally.

Glasgow 1990 substantially changed peoples vision o

Glasgow in the UK and beyond.

Best and worst memories about the

organisation o the year?European Capitals o Culture are not an event or a series o

events. Maybe this ocus on events is one o the reasons why

cities have run into problems. Glasgow 1990 was part o a

longer-term process o urban change with an emphasis on

taking courageous decisions and oering vent to peoples

imaginations. The organisation o such a process is very

complex and this inevitably brings its own diculties. Each

challenge that emerged during the year had to be resolved,whether it was about managing nance, communicating


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powerully, mobilis-

ing a larger public, or

persuading politicians

about what to support

and not to support. We

had to learn skills o

civic and cultural go-

vernance with all the

mistakes and successesthat go with that.


The impact o a European perspective lies in a European ap-

proach that reinorces key European themes and that os-

ters long-term partnerships with other European cities andorganisations. The idea in Glasgow was to connect the city

with the rest o Europe in terms o a broader understand-

ing o European cultures and history. As or specic activi-

ties, there were many that dealt with introducing additional

European components to the repertoire o opera, ballet and

theatre, major exhibitions with European themes, and mas-

sive public events connecting local people to their European

roots. But it is not really the individual events but the impact

o the collective experience that broadened the connection

between Glasgow and Europe. For the rst time, Glasgow

believed it was a truly European city.


The approach to an eective cultural programme o a Euro-pean Capital o Culture is to create a cohesive whole; there is

a need to develop a programme ecology with interrelation-

ships and connections between elements o the programme.

I dont know i by successul we mean the best attended

events, or the ones that were the most engaging and pro-

vocative, or those that balanced their budgets, or the most

enduring? Evaluation and assessment o each component

is an essential task in a city that recognises the value o pro-

cess, and views the year in which it has been designated the

title as a phase in its development.

Any regrets?

At the time, now over 20 years ago, I remember having had

huge problems with certain activities, only to learn later that

some o those had the greatest positive impact. Overall, I re-

gret that there had not been a clear longer-term plan and

nancing in place to ensure a ollow-up ater the culturalyear had nished. Viewed over time, the immediate sense

o rustration experienced during the year that ollowed the

cultural year was put in a longer-term perspective, because

Glasgow recognised that it had to continue to build on the

years achievements, and this has continued until today. The

process o managing a European Capital o Culture is tricky;

it has its highs and lows. I am pleased that because o the

impact o Glasgow 1990, Glasgow has continued to be a city

that believes in a strategy o staging large events and cele-

brations over the years: it won the title o UK City o Architec-

ture and Design in 1999, and recently won the bid to stage

the Commonwealth Games in 2016.

What is the legacy o Glasgow 1990?

The legacies include the continuation o enhanced cultural andartistic programmes that greatly increased the

Photos provided by the Glasgow City Council


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condence o artists and cultural organisations in the city.

The positive image transormation o the city has also been

very careully monitored, and that was dramatic ollowing the

European Capital o Culture year. Glasgow used to be per-

ceived as a violent post-industrial city and now it is cel-

ebrated as a creative and cultural centre o European

importance. Legacies also include obvious inrastructural im-

provements, such as the establishment o new cultural venues

and an overall improvement to the quality o public space. Suchlegacies have been linked to the sustained economic

development that contributed to increasing Glasgows success

as a business centre. The city also saw a huge development in

tourism, particularly business tourism with the attraction o

major conventions and conerences. People have also

remarked that Glasgow 1990 helped to kick-start an ongoing

process o social and community development, with increased

access and participation in the arts among traditionally de-

prived communities.

What advice would you give to thesepreparing to host a European Capitalo Culture?

I believe you must start with a vision and a proound belie

in the value o the process o becoming a European Capital

o Culture. The cultural dimension must be the uniying con-

cept and it mustnt be overshadowed by issues connected topolitical ambition. A longer-term perspective is essential. A

European Capital o Culture can never and never has been

a quick x to repairing a broken political mechanism, or a

tarnished city image, or a city that is divided culturally or eth-

nically, or that has a ailing economy. A European Capital o

Culture can be one part o a process that may lead to solu-

tions to some o these problems, but it cannot in itsel be the

solution. Another point is to ensure ownership o the event

by local residents. The ideas behind the European Capitalso Culture have to inspire the people o the city, as well as

its leaders and decision-makers. In very practical terms, the

programme should emphasise quality over quantity; the

budget needs to be agreed and xed at a reasonable level

in advance. These are only a ew ingredients I have disco-

vered. There are many more. Preparing a European Capital

o Culture is a monster and epic task, lled with headaches

and delights, and or uture cities, I can only say it is not at all

easy, so think twice beore you say yes!

Robert Palmer,

Director, Glasgow 1990 European Capital o Culture

Photos provided by the Glasgow City Council

Photosprov


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The impact was huge. People talk about a beore and ater

Antwerp 93. It was a dicult project to set up because in the

1990 local elections while we were preparing the year - the

racist Vlaams Blok political party won more than 25 percent o

the votes. The question was whether we should carry on with

the project or abandon it. It didnt seem right to ask people

to come to Antwerp right then. We held debates with artistsrom Belgium and abroad, and they insisted that we go on,

particularly now that the city was in danger o extremist poli-

tics. So we decided to go ahead in the spirit o what Melina

Mercouri was advocating, and make it a homage to art and

artists in Europe and around the world, and not about city

marketing and tourism.


We created an independent oundation, Antwerp 93, that al-

lowed us to work independently rom the city authorities. Its

dicult in our country or art and artists to be independent

o political decisions, but we managed it. Id say our worst

experience was that ater the year as European Capital o

Culture the city attempted to regain the power it had lost.Fortunately, the elections o 1994 brought a new party

videdbytheCityoAntwerp


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20

into local power - Antwerp 94 - and the city council created

Antwerp Open as a continuation o Antwerp 93. Its still go-

ing strong and holds big events in the city.

A couple o events with a specifcally Europeanslant?

We deliberately chose not to ocus on Europe. We were in-

tent on having an international ocus. Our projects were all

international. Among many examples is the boat called the

Ark that we built and used as a theatre platorm, inviting

cities like Los Angeles and Saint Petersburg to show what

their young artists were doing. We chose to invite cities rom

around the world and not just European cities.


The summer programme was our most successul. In a city like

Antwerp many institutions close down in the summer, but we

had wonderul projects that year, rom an opera by Zingaro to

a perormance by Royal De Luxe. Antwerp ell so in love with

the project that we now have Antwerp Open that programmessummer events in the city. These are a huge success.

Any regrets?

The daytime opening ceremony was great with hal a mil-

lion people turning up or a street invasion by music en-

sembles. For the evening wed programmed a reworks

display but they were ar too horizontal over the River

Schelde, and with hal a million people in the city, only a

ew people actually got to see them. To this day when I gointo an Antwerp pub, Ill hear someone exclaim ironically,

There goes the reworks man.

PhotosprovidedbytheCityoAntwerp


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21

What is the legacy o Antwerp 93?

It changed the city completely. Antwerp was becoming

more and more provincial with ugly slogans like Our own

people rst. With our international projects, we changed

the image o the city both internally and in relation to the

outside world. Antwerp today is seen as a daring city that

is not araid to be international. Even citizens who did not

participate in the events were aware o how beautiul the

city looked at the time. People were proud o the city all over

again, and that was very important. Among other things, it

means that we can nd money or artistic projects.

What advice would you give to these preparingto host a European Capital o Culture?

The most important thing is to have a clear policy. There is

no blueprint or a European Capital o Culture but you have

to know what you want to do, whether you want it to be a

marketing or a touristic project, or whether you want it to be

about art. Try to create structures that are independent o

the political scene so that you can work with total indepen-

dence. And dont overspend. I you have a little less money,

you have to make choices and when you make choices you

know where your priorities lie.

Eric Antonis,Director o Antwerp 93

Photos provided by the City o Antwerp


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22


There were both high expectations rom the public and a great

deal o reservation rom the media. But thats the way it goes

in our country. The programmes quality and diversity, and the

involvement and participation o people both rom the inner

city and its periphery, together with some major investmentsin heritage conservation, silenced even the most critical voices.

The Coliseu dos Recreios, or instance, had been a much liked

but run-down concert hall and perormance space, and its

renovation had a positive impact on the whole street; several

museums were given new or renovated exhibition spaces and

leisure areas; and Stima Colina is an urban renovation pro-

gramme that was launched then. The public became progres-

sively involved over the year. They were particularly attracted

by the public art projects in the main squares a rst or Lis-bon - as well as Encenar a Cidade (city on stage), or which

young contemporary artists did works in the underground.

People liked the citys new, estive atmosphere.

Best and worst memories about the organisationo the year?

The best: the queues in ront o the Museu Nacional de Arte

Antiga (the Fine Arts Museum) or the opening o the exhibi-

tions As Tentaes de Bosch (Boschs Temptations) and Eterno

Retorno (Eternal Return), despite pouring rain on that day in May.

The worst: the problems created by the works in the under-

ground in the central areas o the city. But the disruption

was more than made up or by the project itsel, Encenar a

Cidade, reerred to above.

hat wuring t

ere wer

ea o r

our c

vo ve

ity a

T

i

i

ci

T

on 1994

ConcertTogether-

BMLphotoPavelKaucky


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23

A couple o events witha specifcallyEuropean slant?

We were constantly aware o

the need to hold European

events. Among other events,

I can mention the exhibitions As Tentaes de Bosch (Bo-schs Temptations) at the Fine Arts Museum and Depois de

Amanh (Ater tomorrow) at the Belm cultural centre. The

Spanish company Furia dels Baus was invited to perorm in

Lisboa 94, and the German choreographer Pina Bausch pre-

sented ve o her works.

Which part o the programme do you consider

to have been the most successul?

I success is to be measured in terms o audiences, I would

say the exhibitions. But success was well balanced in terms

o events and visitors preerences, since we opted or a di-

versied programme o quality. My own preerences were

or the innovatory works because audiences in Lisbon hadnt

yet had access to this kind o thing the big exhibitions o

international contemporary art, the exhibitions o public art,

the renovations in our main museums, the presentation o

new collections, the identication o new city itineraries, like

the zona ribeirinha (little bank) and the Frente Tejo (the zone

in ront o the Tagus river).

Any regrets?

The attempt to centralise and digitise box oces.

What is the legacy o Lisbon 1994?

New habits in cultural consumption and a new demand

rom the public; larger audiences or culture; improved

cultural marketing; new spaces or culture and renovated

or transormed spaces; collaboration between cultural

operators (like the Great Orchestra cycle or a simultane-

ous art gallery opening); the creation o security measures

in the main national museums, thus allowing them toborrow rom oreign museums and engage in interesting

exchanges; the identiication o new cultural itineraries

through city; the renovation o private housing and com-

mercial spaces in historical areas with involvement at eco-

nomic, social and cultural levels.

What advice would you give to those preparing

to host a European Capital o Culture?

I would say that they should take advantage o this unique

opportunity to invest in their citys cultural sustainability,

in the creation o new dynamics and new cultural habits, in

the creation o new audiences, in the development o the

citys heritage, in helping young creators, in the involvement

and participation o citizens in the event itsel and in their

cultural uture, in the promotion o European networks or

culture, in the mobility o artists, in the internal and inter-

national promotion o a cultural agenda that makes people

want to visit the city.

Simonetta Luz Aonso, member o the Board o

Lisboa 94 in charge o exhibitions.

photoBaroniEnnio


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24

What was the impact o the event on your cityduring the year?

1997 was a unique year or our historical city o Thessalo-

niki, which rom its oundation until today has been a cul-

tural crossroads and a bridge between Europe and the East.

The Capital o Macedonia, the city o Alexander the Great

and Saint Demetrius displayed its dynamism and vision via

a huge range o celebrations during that year as European

Capital o Culture. The citizens o Thessaloniki were deeplyinvolved and all the events were a huge success.

Best and worst memories about the organisationo the year?

All my recollections are positive. We met with some dicul-

ties but these were resolved and the memories o pleasant

moments and important artistic events remain.


The event in honour o Melina Mercouri, who launched the

idea o European Capitals o Culture; the exhibition about No-

bel Prize Winning Greek poet Odysseus Elytis; and the extraor-dinary exhibition o treasure rom Mount Athos (Agion Oros).


Everything related to the evocation o city lie and to the very

designation o Thessaloniki as a bridge between East and

West. However, I consider that many other events let a strong

trace, like the exhibition about the Jewish presence in Thessa-loniki and another exhibition about its tradition o welcoming

emigrants.

Any regrets?

There werent any major ailures. Each event let a special trace.

What is the years legacy?

An enormous cultural inrastructure, a unique experience

and the certainty that Thessaloniki has the strength and dy-

namism to respond successully to all sorts o challenges.


Prepare things as thoroughly as you can, think up rst-rate

ideas and work with passion in order to achieve them. But

mainly enjoy, with open mind and heart, this event that links

up the citizens o Europe and helps us better understand our

history and separate cultures and traditions.

Vassilios Papageorgopoulos,Mayor o Thessaloniki, European Capital o Culture 1997

24

Thessaloniki 1997

ConcertTogether

photoPavelKaucky


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2525

What was the impact o Stockholm 1998on the city?

An increased ocus on culture in the media and across so-

ciety, people realised that the cultural sector is large and

complex. International visitors discovered that Stockholm is

a cultural city. New gures emerged on the cultural scene

and we saw an increase in interdisciplinary cooperation.

Best and worst memory about the

organisation o the year?

Some things went wrong that nonetheless generated a lot

o public interest. For example, there were some polemics

around certain projects such as the Ecco Homo photo exhibi-

tion, the grati art exhibition The Arrow and the cross-stitch

embroidery o a naked man in The Art Vending Machine.


Many o the exhibitions and events included European artists.

Landscape X, a theatre production involving actors rom all Europe,

is one example o artistic cooperation. There were also a number o

seminars on European themes, including: Management o cultural

pluralism in Europe; Strategies or a changing Europe theatre in

a multicultural context; Forms ollows everything architecture,politics and power and the conerence City and Culture.

Which part o the programme do you consider

to have been the most successul?I can mention a stage or international writers with open

readings and debates, the project Arranger 2000 later de-

veloped into the childrens culture support system Culture

or the young ones And also Walk on Strindberg a one-ki-

lometre line o Strindberg quotes in the asphalt o the busy

Drottninggatan and Stallet (the horse stable).

Any regrets?

The year wasnt good enough at producing sustainable

events and cultural arenas.

What is the legacy o Stockholm 1998?

A ew institutions were launched in 1998 that are still around to-day. In addition, I would claim that 1998 was the starting point or

a new and more vibrant cultural atmosphere in Stockholm marked

by new contacts and cooperations made during the year.

What advice would you give to thosepreparing to host a Capital o Culture?

scene.

the year.

to make the best use o the administration.

Mats Sylwan,culture strategist or the City o Stockholm

Stockholm 1998

photoDanorTerlevic


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What was the general impact o the event on

your city during the year?

For a long time Weimar was hidden rom the world behind

the Iron Curtain. Ater German reunication, Weimar began

the process o reclaiming its position in German culture.

Weimar has a dicult Janus-aced history: on the one hand,

Weimar is the heart and soul o the German Classical Peri-

odhome to Goethe, Schiller, and a plethora o other writ-

ers, musicians, artists, and architecture. On the other hand,Weimar represents the lowest o low points o German

history and the assault on civilization by the Nazis.

This particular moment in time, ten years ater the end o

the Cold War, was the moment where Weimar could show

how, ater a century o extremes, it symbolized the changes

in what was once East Germany.

photo

MaikSchuck


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What is your best and worst memory about the

organisation o the event?

My avourite memory was the sunny day in March when

the second accurate copy o the Goethe Garden House

was revealed to the public. Thousands o people were in

the park to see it, and the instant it was revealed, all the

previous doubts about this project vanished. People were

wowed. I still ponder the questions it raised to this day:

since the second copy the Goethe Garden House was a

copy o a copy (the original destroyed during World War II),it raises the question: what is the real value o an original in

an era where technically accurate reproduction o all things

is readily achievable?

My worst memory: unortunately Thringen state elections

were held during 1999, and the campaigning ultimately

aected aspects o the cultural program.

Please mention one or two event(s) o theprogram o the city as Capital which wasEuropean (themes, organisation).

1. The Zeitschneise program was a path between the

Ettersburg Castle and the Buchenwald Concentration

Camp. The path connected Weimars rst attempt at a pan-

European centre or cultural exchange with a place where56,000 people died in cruel conditions.

2. The Moving Points international dance estival brought

30 companies rom across Europe together in Weimar.

photoHubertAmt

photoMaikSchuck


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Which part o the program was the mostsuccessul one in your view?

We couldnt have predicted it in 1999, but the ounding o the

West-Eastern Divan Workshop and Orchestra with Daniel

Barenboim, Yo-Yo Ma, and Edward Said has had a lasting impact.

Today it is a worldwide symbol or peace and communication in

the Middle East. It also stands or the new and expanded Europe.

Any regrets?

Friction between bureaucracies at the national, state, regional,

and city level was rustrating.

What legacy has the event let?

Weimar has beneted greatly rom being the European

Capital o Culture: its given us an ability to place our present

within our past, thus giving us perspective on the uture. We

know that the uture is impossible to understand without

historic perspective. Weimar can think about its uture within

the ramework o its past.

What advice would you give to otherscurrently preparing to host a EuropeanCapital o Culture?

Its important to strike a balance in how the program is direct-

ed. Once a theme is picked and committees are established,

the leadership must avoid stifing the creativity. Its all too easy

to cross the line and inadvertently discourage new ideas by,or example, requiring too much paperwork too oten.

Bernd Kaumann,

President o Weimar 1999 - Kulturstadt Europas GmbH

(Weimar 1999 - Cultural Capital o Europe Ltd.)

photoMaikSchuck

photo Maik Schuck


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What was the general impact o the eventon your city during the year?

O course the image o our city is related to Europe and its

institutions. Brussels 2000 was the occasion to show anotheraspect o our millenium capital.

The European Capital o Culture project was a great support

or local organisations. It also provided a link between vari-

ous cultural activities and it denitely brought coherence

and visibility vis--vis the public.

What is your best and worst memory aboutthe organisation o the event?

My best personal memory is the Zinneke Parade, a large

parade through the city and showed our cultural diversity

and creativity.

I have no worst memory but due to the success o the event

we werent able to include all the projects.

Please mention one or two event(s) o theprogramme o the city as Capital which wasEuropean (themes, organisation).

I would like to mention Trans Danse Europe 2000, obviously

a great opportunity to do some common work, to travel and

meet other dancers with dierent experiences.

In this matter, travelling and meeting people with dierent

experiences is undamental and Brussels 2000 was an impor-

tant ramework or this.

Which part o the programme was themost successul one in your view?

The one that still remains today : the Zinneke Parade!

Any regrets?

Brussels 2000 helped a lot o projects but unortunately

many o them have now disappeared.


Once again, I have to mention the Zinneke Parade. This event

totally matches Brussels spirit and it keeps a whole team o

enthusiasts busy. In other respects Brussels 2000 allowed

some important restoration projects to be undertaken, such

as the Hall o Justice and many amous buildings around the

Royal Museum o Fine Arts.

What advice would you give to others currentlypreparing to host a European Capital o Culture?

Being European Capital o Culture is a great opportunity to

promote your city throughout Europe and also to promote

Europe within your city; dont waste the opportunity !

Mr Thielemans,

Mayor o Brussels

Brussels 2000


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We saw signicant changes in citizen attitude and involve-

ment. People suddenly realised the importance o culture,

and they became active audiences as well as participants

and creative partners.


Among the best memories, I would like to mention eectivestrategy, strong leadership, a good organisational structure,

the intention to produce a signicant project, as well as an

overall ability to activate and motivate people rom very

dierent horizons.

Concerning the worst memories, I cannot orget the organi-

sational pressures during the six months beore the launch,

a lack o mandate and/or no acting organisation to create a

long-term strategy or the years atermath.

photoKimmoSyvri


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The Kide (Crystal) light sculpture, which was Helsinkis

greeting to the years eight other European Capitals o Cul-

ture and that were seen around the city over the year, and

the Communication exhibition about the eects o mobile

phones and the internet on our daily lives which toured thatyears other European Capitals o Culture.


It is dicult to single out one part o the programme. Success

was oten due to the overall presence o activities across the

city, although several unexpected and unorthodox openingswere big hits too.

Any regrets?

Five-hundred projects were simply too many. Concentrating our

resources on ewer projects would have been more eective.


Culture in Helsinki is now seen as a key element or quality

o lie and competitiveness. People understand the notion

o culture in much broader terms than they did beore. Hel-

sinki is a much more vibrant cultural city than beore the year

2000.

What advice would you give to those preparing

to host a European Capital o Culture?

Have a good strategy with a long-lasting eect. Dont simply

create a estival or a one-year event. Concentrate on key

issues and projects. And network as much as possible.

Georg Dolivo, director, and

Jorma Bergholm, director o nance and communication,

Helsinki, European Capital o Culture 2000

photoArnodelaCha

pelle

photoNextGenerationOy


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The turn o the century was a rather dicult period in Po-

land. The initial momentum o the changes that took placein the country, and the joy o abolishing communism and

regaining independence had, in act, worn out by then. The

economic situation was not encouraging, and there was a

eeling o being kept waiting in the vestibules o the EU. The

positive eects o the accession to the Union were only ex-

perienced here a ew years later. In this rather grim reality,

the estival was like a spark o bright light. It gave the resi-

dents o Krakow and the rest o Poland a chance to eel a bit

special, and with it, it brought a much needed atmosphereo estivity. In spite o various nancial problems, Krakow

2000 was the largest cultural event ever organised in Poland,

and I think it remains so. Over 650 events o various kinds

took place throughout the year, mostly arranged especially

or the estival. It is true that no serious inrastructure invest-

ments were made in the city in relation to the estival but,

even so, it has certainly aected the cultural atmosphere in

Krakow, and attracted more tourists, which is described in

more detail in section 6.

photoBogdanKrel

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My best memories are to do with the huge satisaction I eel

with having been able to realize the largest cultural event

in Poland at the time, and until today, I suppose. Although

what I really enjoy is to think again o all the places that were

ull o people who came to see the events, regardless owhether it was a small hall or an audience o 200 or a huge

outdoor event or over 100,000.

My worst memories are o the very beginnings o working

on the programme. The year started o as a ve-year project

that had been involved with various events since 1996. Un-

ortunately, the ormula o running the Festival Oce ailed

to work in the rst year, and an atmosphere o mistrust sur-

rounded the estival, which we had to ght against or quitesome time. The complicated structure o programming and

project management also caused a lot o problems. There

were too many parties involved, and the actual areas o

responsibilities were not properly dened, which caused

considerable riction. Not to mention nancial diculties

and the act that the Polish legal system was not adapted

or these kinds o large projects realized over a ew years. As

a consequence, nancing decisions were being made only

about 2 or 3 months ater the estival had begun.


Within the Krakow 2000 event, I would like to pick out the

series o events presenting our common heritage and the

beginnings o European culture, mainly rom the musicalperspective. I am thinking about the reconstruction, by an

ensemble o international singers, o mediaeval liturgy rom

the manuscript Codex Calixtinus, which was presented in

concert in the nine European Cities o Culture 2000. The sec-

ond project o this type was the series called Seven Tradi-

tions, presenting the oldest traditions o religious singing

rom all over Europe.

photoMariuszMakowski

photoRadekRymut

33

KrzysztoPendereck


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On the other hand, there were also estivals celebrating the

achievement o Polish artists, such as Tadeusz Kantor (direc

tor and the creator o his own experimental theatre) and

Stanisaw Wyspiaski (painter and playwright). Both artists

were very much attached to their birthplaces and recalled

them throughout the entire periods o their creativity, al-

though their work is also ull o universal themes, operating

at the level o the consciousness o every European.


There are many ways o measuring success but I mostly

think about it in terms o participation and attendance. Ini-

tially, the estival was designed as a rather elitist event with

a clear dominance o high culture, but thanks to the deci-sions undertaken by the Oce that I managed at the time,

we introduced popular events into the programme, and

this is how various outdoor spectacles that gathered over

100,000 people came to be organised. But the measure o

success is also in such events as The Poets Meeting, which

one would expect to be addressed to a very selected audi-

ence, yet each o the meetings was attended by ve or six

hundred people, and the queues or autographs meandered

halway across the market square.

Our ambition to increase the participation o the generalpublic in the estival events had also another aspect: many

o the events which took place in small premises, such as or

example concerts o classical music, were broadcast on large

screens positioned outdoors. This is how we encouraged

Krakowians and tourists to participate in the events other-

wise perhaps thought o as elitist.

Any regrets?

The weakest part o the programme was a series o projects

under the name Opocza. The city authorities made some

money available, immediately beore the estival began,

or the projects prepared by local artists. The result was

a arrago o events o extremely varying artistic value and

radically dissimilar themes.


When summarizing the achievements o Krakow 2000 one

should ask two questions: did the year realize its principal

goals, and has it let anything o permanent value behind? It

is true to say that practically no inrastructure changes were

made in the city in connection with the estival. This is mostly

due to the low budget and lack o vision on the part o Krakowsauthorities, while state authorities treated the estival as a

local event. So the only thing that survived until today was the

estival oce created rom scratch, which still manages most

o the largest and signicant events in Krakow, even i the

people who ounded the oce are no longer there. The group

o managers rom the original sta are still in charge o other

cultural projects and are in the vanguard o management in

this eld. The Cultural Inormation Centre, which provided

inormation about the estival, grew into the City Inormation

kiFestivalphotoMart

aWolska-Smoczyska


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Network, today established in 7 locations in the city.As ar as the years goals are concerned, its initiators

thought in terms o two basic priorities: making Krakows

artistic lie more dynamic and revitalizing the existing

cultural institutions and modernising Krakow tourist

attractions to promote the city in the international arena.

Well, Krakows cultural lie is certainly much livelier

nowadays, and the city has certainly been made into a

very popular tourist destination. Krakow 2000 certainly

gave grounds to these changes, and the brand o European

City o Culture has obviously helped in the international

promotion o the city.

Krakow 2000 was to ensure the continuity and consis-

tency o activities required or the proper organisation

and promotion o the Festival. During the year 2000

several dozen estival events took place reinorcing the

position o the Oce as an important organiser o cul-tural events in Krakow, in the ollowing years. Its suc-

cessor organiser, Krakow Festival Oce, continues to

organise the most prestigious musical estivals in Poland

such as: Sacrum Proanum Festival, dedicated to contem-

porary music, the Misteria Paschalia Festival, closely linked

to Holy Week and Easter, considered as the most signicant

estival in Poland devoted to Early Music. Besides, the O-

ce manages acclaimed events such as: Film Music Festival,

International Festival o Independent Cinema O Camera,Joseph Conrad International Literary Festival, Selector Festi-

val, and huge, open air events gathering thousands o peo-

ple such as: Wianki (Floating o the Wreaths) and the New

Years Eve Party in the Main Square, which are among the

largest events o this kind in Poland and in Europe.


and decision-making structure possible

avoid a situation o unclear areas o responsibility

to select one moti to connect your projects

but be critical o their ideas; preerably evaluate them in a

competition

participating in the competition but create your own new

projects rom the very beginning

Bogusaw Sonik Member o the European Parliament,in 1997-2003 Director o the oce responsible or the

implementation o the project Krakow 2000

European City o Culture.

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What was the general impact o the event onyour city during the year?

The event in our city, in general terms, meant an increase

in visitor numbers to Santiago de Compostela, estimated at

15% more than other years. The cultural programme orga-

nized or the event gave an image o quality in Europe o our

city.

What is your best and worst memory about theorganisation o the event?

My best memory o the event is the success achieved by

the activities: the quality and numbers o the participants.

The worst as ar as I remember was the poor impact that the

whole event had at national level in the media.


The general theme o Santiago de Compostelas programme

was Europe and the World. This project tried to connect the

reality o European cultures with the rest o the world through

refection, exhibitions, publications, and also through a large

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variety o cultural activities. In this ramework we can high-

light the ollowing events: The Millenium Festival and the

exhibition The aces o God. This exhibition was showed in

a church, one o the main temples in our city, and the main

topic was the dierent appearances under which the gure

o the Creator has been represented through the ages, coun-

tries and dierent religions.

Which part o the programme was the mostsuccessul one in your view?

The most successul part o the programme was The Milleni-

um Festival. This Festival started in 1998, but was consolidat-

ed in 2000. Dierent activities were organized as part o the

Festival, ocused in eight sections: cultural dialogue, theatre,world cultures, opera, classical music, dance, jazz and exhibi-

tions. One o the most important was the Latin Jazz Festival.

This meant the premiere in our city o the lm Calle 54, Fer-

nando Trueba, Spanish lm director who received an Oscar

in 1994. Also, the presence o the North American director

Robert Wilson with the showing o his spectacles: The days

beore. Death, destruction and Detroit III and Persephone.

And the British Composer, Michael Nyman, who perormed

or the rst time the opera Facing Goya.

Any regrets?

Probably, the main regret was sharing the title with eight

other cities in the same year, which diminished its visibility.


We have consolidated an orchestra in the city, the Royal

Philharmonic o Galicia that oers a stable programme o

classical music with well-known interpreters playing in the

city; and, the school o High Level Music Studies linked to

the orchestra, which provides musical training or young

people. It also reinorced the Eugenio Granell Foundation.

This Foundation, during the year, in addition to exhibitions,

oers chamber music, theatre, workshops or students and

groups, guided visits to the exhibitions and a variety o

publications and catalogues.

What advice would you give to otherscurrently preparing to host a EuropeanCapital o Culture?

The cities currently preparing to host a European Capital o

Culture should take special care to propose initiatives thatcan be consolidated ater the event.

Text provided by Beln Mendoza,

Cabinet o the Mayor o Santiago de Compostela,

International Relations, Cooperation and Development.

Santiago Capital o Culture 2000

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What was the impact o the event onyour city during the year?

The impact was on many levels, but one remarkable thing

is how well the cultural sectors o the city and region

worked together. Although it took a while, once the year

was launched, the public realised that it was important or

a city like Bruges to be a European Capital o Culture. Bruges

has always had a lot o tourism, but that year we really had

an enormous amount o visitors, mostly or the three bigexhibitions Jan Van Eyck, the Hanseatic harbours show and

Cloistered Worlds, Open Books about Medieval manuscripts.


There were a lot o best memories, but I was particularly

happy that we were able to ll the city all year long. The newconcert hall by Belgian architects Paul Robbrecht and Hilde

Daem was a wonderul experience. One journalist in the in-

ternational press spoke o the three miracles o Bruges: the

concert hall and our two other architectural contributions

Toyo Itos pavilion the ootbridge by Swiss architect Jrg

Conzett. My worst memory is that we didnt do enough or

the younger generation; we didnt succeed in integrating

them into local lie.

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sprovidedbytheCityoBrugge

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We showed the European dimension o Bruges in the three

exhibitions, with the Flemish Primitives evoking the south

o Europe, the Hanseatic ports evoking links with northern

Europe and the Medieval manuscripts evoking European

thought. You have to remember that Bruges in the Middles

Ages was the Manhattan o Europe, a place where north

and south met, visited by all the great artists because their

wealthy customers were here.

Which part o the programme do you judge tohave been the most successul?

The two big public successes were the Van Eyck exhibition

with some 350,000 visitors and the concert hall that was im-mediately ully booked. At a city level, the architectural pro-

jects stretched peoples minds. Bruges is a very conservative

city, but now people now have a much more open attitude

to contemporary architecture. Theyre not quite as obsessed

with keeping things just as they are.

Any regrets?

Inevitably, there are things you eel could have been done

better or dierently, but I cant think o any total ailure. Al-

though there are a lot o collectors o contemporary art in

this city I visited many private homes with wonderul col-

lections the general public isnt at all open to installations

and contemporary works. We had a wonderul exhibition o

video art in the Memling Museum, with several participating

artists, and hardly anyone turned up.

What is the legacy o Bruges02?

At one level, we managed to keep the organisation team o

Bruges year by transorming it into Brugge Plus that now

organises cultural events every two years. They put on the

excellent Corpus exhibition in 2005, and theyre preparing

a show organised by the amous painter Luc Tuymans or

2010. The exhibitions always stimulate other cultural activi-

ties around them. The very eective collaboration between

various cultural partners has let traces, with three theatres

now collaborating very tightly on the Winter Dance estival.

What advice would you give those preparingto host a European Capital o Culture?

The rst thing Id say is that you need to be aware that its

the city itsel that chose to be a cultural capital, and so youwant to collaborate well with the city board. Secondly, the

European Capital o Culture project shouldnt see itsel as

a cultural initiative that stands apart, but it must enter the

existing situation and work with it. Thirdly, you have to

structure the programme throughout the year. Ive been to

many European Capitals o Culture or a couple o days and

ound that nothing is happening. You have to remember that

people are visiting the place because its a European Capital

o Culture so you have tomake sure theres something

happening every day.

Hugo De Gree,

General manager,

Bruges 2002

bytheCityoBrugge

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What was the general impact o the event onyour city during the year?

Salamanca experienced the year 2002 like a great estival.

More than three million people came to our city and

participated in cultural activities.

What is your best and worst memory about theorganisation o the event?

My best memory about the organisation is the antasy o theevent, the involvement and excited participation o citizens.

It was wonderul. My worst memory is the rush, o course,

always the rush (budget, new buildings, programme).

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Most o the programme was inspired or dedicated to Europe.

However, I mention two particular elements: the cycle aboutthe main European dramatists in the twentieth century (Daro

Fo, Bernard Marie Kolts, Bertold Brecht, Ramn Mara del

Valle-Incln, Harold Pinter) and the cycle o Baroque Opera.

Which part o the programme was the mostsuccessul one in your view?

It is very dicult indeed to answer this question. Perhaps theexhibitions (

European Capitals of Culture. the Road to Success. From 1985 to 2010

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