Beyond Programming Europe
European Capitals of Culture: Rethinking the Role of Culture
Nicole L. Immler & Hans Sakkers
(Accepted by the Journal of European Studies, forthcoming March 2014)
Abstract
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) programme as a success story for the cities and member states involved. the European Commission registered also a 'lack of Europe'in the programme. This may also be seen back in the scolarly literature, which has largely focused on the effects of the title on individual cities, and has hardly examined what idea of 'Europe' is presented in the programmes and what the ECoC's contribute to the debate on Europe. This article situates the history of the event and its idea within the larger context of thoughts on Europe as an 'imagined community' (Benedict Anderson), and investigates, with a qualitative content analyses of recent ECoC programmes and bidbooks (since 2008), how such cultural programmes (could) contribute to a conceptual reflection on (and beyond) Europe. A slight shift in the programme's content, from marketing to values, indicates a rethinking of the role of culture.
