53
The CCS sector represents to date 6% of companies in Bilbao and grows on a
4% yearly average, demonstrating a good resilience in comparison to more
traditional business and industry. Better connection to the rest of the country
and Europe, thanks to new transport lines, has helped businesses to come and
settle in Bilbao. GDP, employment and revenues have thus increased in the whole
Basque Country and cultural tourism has risen significantly - 734,215 people
visited the city in 2012 and tourism accounts for 5,5% of GDP -, backed by the
museum’s activity as well as the 2,132 cultural public events supported by the
city (Agenda 21 for Culture 2014). Moreover, there has been an induced effect
on other museums in the city and on local cultural professionals such as the
opening of numerous private art galleries as a consequence of the activity
generated by the museum
40
.
Investigation of different experiences in SMSC casts the light on how art can lead
urban regeneration, economic innovation and support to young people. For instance,
the art organisation ‘Metal’ in Southend (UK) has settled in empty buildings, bringing
them back to use as artists’ studios, thus providing better conditions for artists to
work in the city. Another example, Buda Fabriek (BE) is a complex which is built on
the flourishing art scene that lies in the Flemish city of Kortrijk. Following the mayor’s
will to inaugurate a new way of thinking among small cities, connecting the arts,
economy and social development for a sustainable urban development (KEA 2012),
Buda Fabriek is located in an ex-industrial area that now hosts artists and companies
from different fields and allow them to work together
3.2.2 Implementing a favourable creative ecosystem
Arts and culture are of strategic importance for growth and new employment
opportunities in cities and regions. Studies have underlined the positive correlation
between the presence of culture and regional prosperity and pointed out that
Europe’s wealthiest regions host an increasing number of companies in the sector.
Among them are Brighton (Surrey, E andW Sussex) and Oxford (Berks, Bucks and
Oxon) (Power 2011). But economic benefits of culture are not self-fulfilling (KEA
2006). For culture to achieve its economic potential on a local scale, cities need to
implement a favourable creative framework that fosters new economic activities and
emerging industries. The creative and knowledge-based sectors indeed require
informal alliances and networking involving public and private stakeholders. In this
respect, the URBACT Creative Clusters Results points out the importance of setting
up a “space conductive to creation” that includes business incubators as well as artists
residencies and cultural installations
41
. As shown in previous sections
42
, CreArt has
40
In Genoa the CreArt project has even caught the attention of the private art sector, as a gallery showed
interest in artworks (both by Italian and foreign artists) displayed during a CreArt exhibition in the city, inValladolid
a similar effect has been observed as three new art galleries opened since the beginning of the project.
41
42
See “1.4. Internationalisation of the arts” p.11
