Cultural Policies in Cities. International Conference

02.04.2014 - 02.04.2014

Heiligenkreuzer Hof, Wien / Österreich

One of the key findings of last year's symposium "Reinventing Cultural Policy" was the identification of the increasing cultural-political significance of cities. Although this development results to some degree from targeted measures like regionalization and decentralization, its causes are to be found first and foremost in the intensification of global economic competition.


More and more people live in cities. Simultaneously, the diversity of local populations is increasing. This gives rise to new lines of conflict and alters the cultural consciousness of city dwellers.... Artists react to these developments. They see urban space as a crucial site of artistic intervention, and they seek to influence political, social and cultural development in the city. In the process they demonstrate that they themselves are cultural-political agents within the field of tension between political and civil activism.


What influence do politicians, citizens and artists have on the formation of urban cultural policy? Can differences in their approach be identified in a comparison of specific cities internationally? And how can one interpret the continuing development of the city as a cultural-political laboratory, in particular with regard to Vienna, a cultural center rich in tradition? With these and many other questions, the conference addresses persons involved in cultural-political practice and research, both students and participants in artistic and cultural scenes, but also business interests and activists in civil society.

[Quelle: www.dieangewandte.at]