JYVÄSKYLÄN YLIOPISTO
Contested Identity Politics in the European Capital
Culture Program
Comparison between the EU policy objectives and the reception of
the program in Pécs2010
Tuuli Lähdesmäki
PhD Researcher
Department of Art and Culture Studies
University of Jyväskylä
Finland
JYVÄSKYLÄN YLIOPISTO
Ideological aims in the European Capital of Culture Program
> to produce cultural integration to a European community and strengthen
a common European identity
> a key criteria for the program is “the European Dimension” (Decision
1622/2006/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24
October 2006)
> “candidate cities must present the role they have played in European
culture, their links with Europe, their place in it and their sense of
belonging. They must also demonstrate their current participation in
European artistic and cultural life, alongside their own specific features”
(Guide for cities applying for the title of European Capital of Culture, 2009)
Tuuli Lähdesmäki (2011): Rhetoric of unity and cultural diversity in the making of
European cultural identity. International Journal of Cultural Policy, first published on
7 April 2011 (on iFirst) [DOI: 10.1080/10286632.2011.561335].
JYVÄSKYLÄN YLIOPISTO
Reception of the European Capital of Culture events in Pécs 2010
> Questions on locality, regionality, national culture, and Europeanness
(How are they represented and how should they be represented in the
European Capital of Culture events?)
> Paper questionnaire data (N = 200)
> Online questionnaire data (N = 532)
Tuuli Lähdesmäki (2011): Contested Identity Politics: Analysis of the EU Policy
Objectives and the Local Reception of the European Capital of Culture Program,
Baltic Journal of European Studies 1:2, pp. 134-166.
(http://www.ies.ee/iesp/No10/bjes_no10.pdf).
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represents Europeanness (p)
3.56
represents Europeanness (o)
3.53
represents Hungarian culture (p)
3.68
represents Hungarian culture (o)
3.56
represents regionality (p)
2.49
represents regionality (o)
2.49
represents locality (p)
3.36
represents locality (o)
3.41
should represent Europeanness (p)
3.92
should represent Europeanness (o)
4.07
should represent Hungarian culture (p)
4.1
should represent Hungarian culture (o)
4.52
should represent regionality (p)
2.91
should represent regionality (o)
3.35
should represent locality (p)
3.8
should represent locality (o)
4.2
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
Mean in a scale 1 = not at all, 2 = a little, 3 = to some extent, 4 = a lot, 5 = very much
FIGURE 2. Opinions on how the ECOC events represent or should represent the
concepts of Europeanness, Hungarian culture, regionality of South Transdanubia and
locality of Pécs in the paper (p) data (N = 195–197) and in the online (o) data (N = 532).
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Europeanness was experienced, verbalized, and given meanings to on
three different conceptual levels of space (according to Henry Lefebvre) :
> Perceived Europeanness:
Europeanness was considered as materialized in high quality cultural
infrastructure, renovation of major buildings, modernization of environment,
better living standard and conditions, etc.
> Conceived Europeanness:
Europeanness was perceived through conceptualizations, symbols, and
descriptions, which repeated the promotion rhetoric and policy of the Pécs2010
organization, the city management, and the EU.
> Lived Europeanness:
Europeanness was seen as being manifested in the relations and encountering
of individuals in the city. The subjective experiences and social relations of
people were taken as the base for describing Europeanness.