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Indeed, businesses are more likely to be willing to settle in a city that has plenty of
cultural activities to offer for the wellbeing of its own employees as for new local
markets of consumption.
3.3.2 Culture to go international
Big metropolises have successfully invested in the arts to raise their profile and appear
as “cultural” or creative. One of the most outstanding examples of how culture can
be a tool of urban regeneration and attraction for cultural tourists as well as creative
people is Berlin that used its “poor but sexy” image
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to become a reference in terms
of artistic offer and urban artistic vitality. Regeneration of Potsdamer Platz including
new cultural venues, the renewal of Museumsinsel (museum island) and of the
Reichstag, taste of authenticity (small cafés, seedy bars, graffiti art, squats), facilitation
of staying conditions for foreign artists, application for the UNESCO’s Creative Cities
Network, a new city slogan (“Be Berlin”) and the state support for starts-ups and
creative clusters were as many elements that entered into the creation of the image
of an alternative and creative city (Seldin 2014).There is no doubt that the capital
status and the history of Berlin make it easier for the city to brand itself, nevertheless
the potential of culture to change cities’ image can be achieved in SMSC as well.
An example of SMSC branding through the arts is the Slovakian town of
Medzilaborce. Facing high unemployment rates, the 6,600 inhabitant city decided
to focus its local development policy on culture to accelerate tourism and
contribute to local job growth. New local development plan was based on art as
a driving element and the municipality undertook an international marketing
strategy using the city’s link with Andy Warhol as a cultural amenity (KEA 2009).
This led to renovation works in the heritage sector as well as building infrastructure
and renewing street signs.The initiative to revive the city’s link to the famous artist
was welcomed by the population. Citizens considered that it helped to change the
image of the town, improving local government, increasing tourism figures and
encouraging new private initiatives (in tourism services in particular) (EP and the
Council 2006).
Amongst the CreArt cities,Valladolid for instance sees its rich heritage as a means
to convey an image of an open, plural and tolerant city.Alongside, the “Plan for cultural
internationalisation” embraces major events and cultural programmes (festivals,
networks such as the CreArt network) to make them known through media
coverage and support to export so that the city can be better known at the national
and international level. Still in the CreArt network, the municipality of Aveiro is aware
of what makes the city different and has built on its local assets and differentiator
elements — ceramics (both heritage and contemporary creation), Art Nouveau
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In Mayor KlausWowereit’s own words. During the 2000s, while the city was facing serious financial issues,
he undertook urban and cultural policies to emphasize Berlin’s role as a creative city in the wake of Florida’s
concept of “creative class”. It was not the wealth of the city that would attract cultural tourists and skilled
professionals but the “coolness” of a place where alternative culture was flourishing.
