Finland nominates Turku for European Capital of Culture

Good application, international character, and clear plans decisive factors

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Minister of Culture Tanja Saarela decided on Monday that Finland’s nominee for the European Capital of Culture for 2011 would be Turku. The nomination means that Turku is certain to be granted the status by the Council of Europe.
      The aim of Turku’s application is to direct attention to the Baltic Sea region. The application also pointed to Turku’s historical transport connections with Europe, and the utilisation of the cultural area defined by the sea. Other strong points include existing cultural events and buildings, a pleasant milieu, and the utilisation of the Internet in the planning of the cultural capital year.
     
Other Finnish applicants included the cities of Jyväskylä, Lahti, Mänttä, Oulu, Rovaniemi, and Tampere. The panel narrowed the field down to Turku and Rovaniemi. Rovaniemi’s advantages included the northern dimension, and its natural surroundings. Turku’s strong points were its history, good planning, and the city’s maritime character.
      Culture Minister Saarela was not present at the press conference where her decision was announced, but the panel of experts appeared satisfied. "If we could have named just one candidate, it would have been Turku", noted the panel’s chairman Pekka Kärki.
     
The decision was not lamented much in Rovaniemi, where Mayor Mauri Gardin and the city’s Cultural Director Marja Widenius congratulated Turku. "Now we must think how to utilise our application in the future", Widenius said.
      Although Turku’s application included international projects, more efforts need to be made to promote internationalism.
      Turku’s international partners - its numerous "cities of friendship", have already been recruited to support the project. Formal offers of support have come from previous cultural capitals, such as Bergen, Florence, Stockholm, and St. Petersburg.
     
The choice was celebrated in Turku on Monday.
      Along with the Estonian capital Tallinn, which will share the status of Capital of Culture with Turku in 2011, Turku plans to emphasise that the Baltic Sea is a "European sea of culture". Turku also wants to be the cultural capital for all of Finland, and is inviting cultural figures from around the country to participate.
      There have been fears that Turku might be overshadowed by Tallinn, but there were no such worries seen Turku on Monday, or at the press conference at the Ministry of Education.
     
Planning for 2011 is moving forward with increasing speed in Turku. Many people were involved already in the preparatory phase.
      The chair of the Turku 2011 team, Deputy Mayor Kaija Hartiala, says that she is immediately ready to take action. She wants to set up a broad-based Turku 2011 Foundation for the implementation of the cultural capital project.
      "It is not just about 2011. Turku plans to emphasise creative economic growth, well-being, and internationalism in the future as well", Hartiala says.
     
Turku’s application was criticised for the large budget that it calls for, with an estimated EUR 55 million ear-marked for running costs for 2008-2012.
      The planned funding is divided into three parts - financing will come from the City of Turku and the surrounding region, the state, and other sources. Last year the City of Turku spent EUR 30.2 million on cultural pursuits, which amounts to EUR 171 per inhabitant.
      According to initial estimates, the European Capital of Culture project involves various building projects worth a combined EUR 145 million.
      Turku’s new main library will be ready in 2007, and in the following year the present main library will undergo a full refurbishment.
      Also being planned is a new congress and music centre, and the banks of the Aura River are to be developed.


Links:
  Turku 2011 website

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