Cardiff – the Creative City you may well not know about. C1808547.

Image: Landscape shot of Cardiff Bay via Creative Boom

If, like me, you have been lucky enough to grow up in Cardiff, then need I explain why it is such a spectacular city? From the city’s vibrant bars and restaurants, to the beautiful Bay with its picturesque views – not forgetting the extraordinary Principality Stadium which sits just upon the River Taff – Cardiff is the place to be!

Image: Principality Stadium Cardiff via Planet Ware

But what many people do not realize is Cardiff’s expansive potential as a Creative City. A Creative City is defined by the remarkable Charles Landry as being a ‘physical setting where a critical mass of entrepreneurs, intellectuals, social activists, artists, administrators, power brokers or students can operate in an open-minded, cosmopolitan context.’ A developing creative cluster of Cardiff which conforms to the notions of Landry is its flourishing media industry.

Image: Inside the new BBC headquarters via WalesOnline

Cardiff is no stranger to the filming of renowned BBC series’ – from Doctor Who to Torchwood, His Dark Materials and Saturday night’s Casualty – it is clear that the BBC favour the Welsh capital when it comes to television, and if I do say so myself – I am not the slightest bit surprised!

Image: Doctor Who filming in Cardiff Bay via Cardiff Local Guide

The doors first opened to the BBC Wales’ Broadcasting House in Cardiff in 1967, located in the beautiful city of Llandaff. The original Cardiff HQ was home to BBC Wales’ Radio, Television and News departments – but this soon changed with its big move to Cardiff’s Central Square – being described as “an historic day in Welsh broadcasting”. The impressive £100m building replaces the former bus station, and will support broadcasting in not only Cardiff, but the whole of Wales.

Video: Llandaff Lookback at the BBC via TV Live

Image: The New BBC Central Square HQ via BBC

Just yesterday I was studying the work of Richard Florida, and I couldn’t help but think of the famous 3 T’s: technology, talent and tolerance when reflecting on the BBC’s new development and extensive opportunities. Florida argues that with the embracement of the big 3, the creative class will come flocking. This most certainly is the case with the brand-new Cardiff HQ!

A whopping £1.1bn to the GVA of the Cardiff city region, equating to an additional 1,900 FTE jobs being undertaken by people in the city throughout a ten-year period will be provided as a result of the new development, with the building providing the most advanced broadcast facilities, whilst being the most open and accessible building clarified by BBC Wales Director Mr Talfan Davies.

Image: New JOMEC HQ in Central Square via Cardiff University

Just next door to the BBC Broadcasting House is the home of Cardiff University’s school of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies, a department I am fortunate enough to call my own! Previously based at the Bute Building in the University’s Cathays Campus, the school proceeded to sign up to the 2 Central Square office scheme, located to the North of Cardiff Central Railway Station. The department has worked closely with the BBC for many years, enabling the opportunities of professional training journalism internships, with many of the school’s alumni heading to the BBC including famous faces such as Jason Mohammad, Alan Johnston, Laura Trevelyan and many, many more! Who knows – maybe I will one day be lucky enough to follow in their footsteps – one can dream!

Video: JOMEC’s new home in Central Square via Journalism, Media and Culture

Now I know I may be a little bias, but I am confident we can all agree that both the BBC and Cardiff University’s impressive JOMEC department conform to the ideas of Terry Flew – with their contributions to the incubation of new ideas, the collective uniting of people from diverse cultures and backgrounds, and the ability to generate new opportunities for entrepreneurial activity, there is truly nothing but exceptional excitement for the future of media in the capital city!

Just one question remains – what will Cardiff offer next?

All images/material used for fair usage and educational purposes.

Aarhus: an emerging creative city?

When you think of Denmark, what comes to mind? The colourful streets of Copenhagen with its roads littered with bicycles and famous writer Hans Christian Anderson?

Photo by Peter Ivey-Hansen on Unsplash

Photo by Diya B on Unsplash

Photo by Nick Karvounis on Unsplash

All these things help make Denmark great but it is its second-biggest city, Aarhus, that deserves more credit. With a modest population of around 300,000, the city boasts some of Denmarks best cultural sites, like Den Gamle By and ARoS Museum‘s famous rainbow walk. It was even named the European Capital of Culture in 2017. This cultural immersion, paired with the citiy’s innovative architecture and blossoming creativity, earns it the label of a creative city.

What is a Creative City?

What makes a creative city goes beyond just how many theatres or art galleries it has. Charles Landry writes in great detail about the concept in his book The Creative City: A Toolkit for Urban Innovators. Whilst the cultural sites across a city are important:

“The creativity of the creative city is about lateral and horizontal thinking, and the capacity to see parts and the whole simultaneously, as well as the woods and the trees at once”

Charles Landry

It is all about imagination, opportunity, community and problem solving; he describes the creative city as having the right conditions to harness this.

Godsbanen

Godsbanen is a hub for creativity; a little microcosm within central Aarhus. Built around an old freight train station, it is an area perfectly designed to breed imagination. The multiple venues across the area host live music events, theatre productions, festivals, markets and so many other events.

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All photos by Godsbanen Aarhus on Flickr

There are office spaces, co-working spaces, project rooms and a fully equipped theatre that can all be rented. Anita Füzi, Nick Clifton and Gareth Loudon discuss the positive effects coworking spaces have on creativity. When reflecting on creative cities, they highlight the importance that interaction with people from diverse backgrounds has for creative thinking. Co-working spaces is a solution to this as it brings together people from all backgrounds, and multiple sectors of the creative and cultural industries. Godsbanen has truly built a community space where creativity can flourish from all areas. 

Aside from all this it simply is a joy to walk through the graffitied paths and look at all the old shipping containers that have been converted into living and working spaces. The imagination used to revamp an old freight train yard into a cultural hub makes it feel like a mini creative city in itself.

Architecture

In an interview, Charles Landry explained that the urban design and atmosphere of a city are important for producing the right setting for creativity to flourish.

Photos by Thomas Peham and Steffan Muldbjerg on Unsplash

One of the things that makes Aarhus unique is its varied architecture. The main streets feature multi-coloured Danish style houses, cafes and bars that spill out on to the cobbled streets and traditional cosy buildings. There is such a feeling of life and vibrancy when walking through the centre.

In contrast, the harbourside hosts innovative and modern buildings, making it a dream for modern architecture lovers. It is this blend of old and new that makes the city both great to walk through and admire, but also to come together and socialise with others.

“Those planning this kind of city will think about how to create a good atmosphere; they will be aware of the negative psychological effect of ugly or soulless buildings and how this reduces people’s capacity to work well.”

Charles Landry

Video by Jonas Høholt

Small but mighty: Aarhus has already made its mark as a cultural capital of Europe. Through its beauty and design it is on its way to becoming a fantastic creative city. 

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1738947 – All images and videos used under fair usage for educational purposes

Varna, Bulgaria: A creative city in disguise? (1713480)

Affectionately named the Sea Capital of Bulgaria, Varna attracts many visitors with its rich cultural heritage and entertains its residents with its vibrant creative life. But how does Varna fit within the academic concept of the ‘creative city’? And does a place really need to earn this label in order to support creativity?

The Creative City: An Idea and Its Criticisms

According to Charles Landry, one of the most influential advocates of this vision, the creative city is a place which inspires and supports the artistic pursuits of creative people. In the introduction to his book on the subject, Landry stresses the role of ‘soft infrastructure’, namely public spaces which enable the interactions between a city’s residents and provoke their imagination, for the successful planning of such a location. In his somewhat utopian notion, the creative city is also characterized by a unique identity, hosts a variety of cultural events, and maintains a high quality of life for its inhabitants. Varna’s potential to fulfil these criteria is implied by Terry Flew’s assertion that ‘smaller cities can concentrate cultural resources more effectively than larger ones’.

Street art by the Varna Lighthouse. Photo by Yoana Stoyanova & Ivailo Ivanov.

Cities strive to be identified as creative in order to attract what Richard Florida terms ‘the creative class’, namely a segment of the population whose professional occupation requires artistic skills or creative problem-solving. According to Florida, the members of the creative class fuel the economy and attract or create jobs in the places they choose to inhabit. For him, the most important qualities of the creative city are the swift integration of new technology, a great number of talented people with undergraduate degrees, and a tolerant and diverse society.

The recently renovated facade of Varna’s Youth Centre. Photo by Daniela Ikonomova.

But this ambitious concept has been criticized by Andy C. Pratt as a branding initiative which benefits only a segment of a city’s population and threatens the indigenous identity of places by promoting international instead of local culture. Further, the adoption of Florida’s vision has contributed to greater inequalities in the world’s largest cities and harmed creative people from poorer backgrounds.

So how does Varna fit into this idealistic but problematic idea?

Varna: A Creative City?

In their attempts to measure the creative potential of places, scholars have designed various point systems which allow them to compare and rank cities according to their fulfilment of a set of criteria. One of these is the European Union’s Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor, which looks at the ‘cultural vibrancy’, ‘creative economy’, and ‘enabling environment’ of cultural hotspots in the continent. Unsurprisingly, Varna scores low among cities with similar population, achieving below average results in each subcategory except ‘tourist overnight stays’ and ‘jobs in new arts, culture and entertainment enterprises’.

The Sea Garden, connected to Varna’s centre, provides opportunities for outdoor socialization. Photo by Yoana Stoyanova & Ivailo Ivanov.

But in order to understand a city’s distinctive cultural and creative atmosphere, we need to look beyond the Western-centric ranking systems which could encourage urban uniformity around the world. The proximity between Varna’s central pedestrian area, recognizable for its early 20^th century art nouveau architecture, and the historical Greek Quarter with its narrow alleyways and boutique art shops allows citizens to easily participate in both the mainstream and underground cultural life of the city. The Sea Garden, believed to be the largest park in the Balkan Peninsula, provides Varna’s residents with the opportunity to socialize in the open, while the city’s network of start-up cafés and live music venues serve as inspiring meeting places for its creative public. The city also supports artists by hosting many national and global cultural events every year, from the Varna Summer festivals of music, theatre, jazz, and folklore to the International Ballet Competition which takes place in the open-air Summer Theatre and the world film festival ‘Love is Folly’ in the Festival and Congress Centre.

The Varna State Opera is one of the city’s iconic buildings. Photo by Daniela Ikonomova.

Although Bulgaria’s Sea Capital might never earn the Western label of ‘creative city’, it is already a locus of culture which inspires daily creativity among its guests and residents.

Would you call Varna a creative city? Let me know in the comments down below!