Days after the launch of the Paris 2024 Cultural Olympiad, I have been listening to podcasts on Seoul as a new global art centre and been reminded of the arts offer at the #PyeongChang2018 Winter Olympic Games. This South Korean #CulturalOlympiad was surprising in its diversity, creativity and high quality, ranging from K-Pop concerts to…
Article written for the Arts and Humanities Research Council After a year of on-and-off global lockdowns the need to gather and experience collective joy feels more urgent and pressing than ever. Festivals and outdoor cultural experiences offer us the chance to connect and feel part of a community in positive and inspiring ways. In this…
Final report of the Salzburg Global Seminar I co-curated in 2020, asking the question ‘What future for Festivals?’ The seminar involved weeks of intense discussion with festivals leaders and scholars from around the world. It was an intense and tough process as this event was supposed to take place in Salzburg in March of 2020,…
I acted as Expert curator for this important discussion back in 2019, part of Voices of Culture, the Structured Dialogue between the European Commission and the Culture Sector. We involved a wide range of participants, representing 36 organisations across the EU. Why is gender balance important? Several gender gaps exist in nearly all cultural fields…
Una reflexión poética de expatriada y turista en casa, sobre la necesidad de hacer y reinventar nuestras ciudades durante este 2020 pandémico Cómo empezar de nuevo cuando lo único que puedes hacer es continuar… En tiempos de pandemia, querer recuperar como propia una ciudad en la que te has vuelto turista a medias, es un…
Reflections from a non-stop travellerrediscovering life in her city while isolating at home Here you have a collection of diary entries about what inspires or puzzles me every day, while watching out of my apartment window. For a professional who makes a living out of international travel, spending weeks on end alone at home has…
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games have been postponed. It is only the fourth time this happens in 125 years, the only three previous occasions being due to World War I and World War II. The time it has taken for the International Olympic Committee to make such decision is indicative of the weight…
Pleased to have been appointed Advisory Board member for the EU-H2020 Social Platform for Heritage Impact Assessment (SoPHIA) @sophia_heritage I’ll be advising on the development of a holistic framework for the capture of the symbolic, cultural, physical, social, and economic value of Heritage interventions across Europe. I will make special emphasis on the importance of…
In Paris responding to a day workshop on the Paris 2024 Cultural Olympiad. I will be talking to key local stakeholders across la Ville de Paris and the rapidly developing and newly redefined boroughs (établissements public territoriales) surrounding the Olympic Park site in Seine Saint Denis. Plenty to discuss as France gets ready for the…
I am pleased to have featured in #France24 Culture / @encoref24 programme dedicated to discussing the impact of Brexit on the UK’s arts world. I spoke of the value for the UK of hosting the UE European Capital of Culture twice and of the legacies #Glasgow1990 and #Liverpool2008 generated not just for their cities and…
On the 4th December 2019 I was in Brussels presenting at the European Parliament. It was a public hearing to the Culture and Education Committee on the legacies and challenges of the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) Programme. I shared with MEPs the wealth of evidence that exists about what works (or not) for ECoCs…
So pleased to feature in the latest issue of #TheSecularHeretic with an article on ‘Art and Decadence’ discussing cycles of #cityRenaissance, #regeneration & #gentrification with an emphasis on the often ungenerous impact of such processes on artists
As the first appointed Culture Advisor to the International Olympic Committee, I am delighted to have started work with the Tokyo 2020 team on their Olympic and Paralympic cultural programme developments. I spent some days in Tokyo assessing progress and observing the wealth of cultural activities taking place and being planned in the lead to…
Some pictures from the third UCLG #cultureSummit , hosted in Buenos Aires. The summit has become the largest global gathering of cities and local governments for the purpose of discussing culture as a motor for #sustainabledevelopment. I led a discussion on definitions of data and research frameworks in order to capture meaningful evidence in cities. I referred to…
Tokyo’s Cultural Olympiad: youth, heritage, empowerment and nationwide celebration Article published by Net TAM (Toyota Art Management) In English | In Japanese The Cultural Olympiad has been an essential component of every edition of the Olympic Games since 1912. Despite its long history, the Olympic cultural programme is one of the least well known dimensions…
Find below highlights from our 10 year anniversary symposium, launching Impacts 08 ~ 18 | #Impacts18, the major research programme I have directed since 2006 on the impacts and long term legacy of hosting a European Capital of Culture. The Symposium opened a global conversation about the value of being a ‘‘#cityofculture’ after 30 years of…
When it comes to culture-led regeneration, there are no one-size-fits-all models of success Today, culture-led regeneration is either an aspiration or established achievement of countless cities worldwide. From Glasgow to Liverpool, from Barcelona to Bilbao, from Lille to Marseilles, and from Baltimore to Detroit, cities are looking for – and finding – ways to transform…
Culture Liverpool and the Institute of Cultural Capital have partnered with the British Council, and the CreArt European Network to host #Impacts18, a two-day International Symposium which will take place 18-19 October. This global conversation will see cultural heavyweights from across the world join in Liverpool to discuss culture as a catalyst for urban change.…
Commissioned by the British Council, this project explores the relationship between the British Council and the UK City of Culture (UKCC) programme, focusing on interrogating the added value provided by the British Council, as event partner focused on building international cultural relations for the UK. Drawing on a review of policy and strategy documents, as well as interviews with…
Two days into the Winter Olympic Games, my Cultural Olympiad hightlights are as follows: Dual cultural programming: Cultural Olympiad / Culture 2018 Plus Dedicated transport: Cultural Olympiad Shuttle Dedicated colours: Hot pink branding for culture Korean fun: K-Pop Festa Art + Sport links at Games info points Cultural Olympiad / Culture 2018 Plus Cultural…