Transcript Introduction to events policy in a global marketplace

Events and cultural capital
MLLSM01
EVENTS POLICY
LECTURE 4
Theorising Cultural Capital
 The term made famous by the French sociologist/philosopher, Pierre
Bourdieu (1984)
 He believed people acquire cultural capital through exposure to the
educational system, which has the capacity to:
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confer capital, particularly cultural capital, upon its participants…certain forms of knowledge, such
as those associated with formal learning, are conferred with much more cultural capital than those
forms of learning associated with practical activities…because the cultural capital of knowledge is
inequitably distributed, tending to favour those who occupy positions and dispositions that provide
access to these socially legitimated and valued ways of knowing, knowledge becomes a marker of
distinction and social privilege (Webb et al, 2001: 109)
 Bourdieu (1984) argued that the accumulation of cultural capital helps
to differentiate particular social groups
 Various cultural ‘fields’ (e.g. art, television, sport & events?) provide a
rich tapestry from which to explore the consumption patterns of
various class groupings (Lee, 1993)
 Individuals possess cultural capital but this is always produced
alongside durable structuring processes (e.g. habitus)
Cultural capital and cultural economy
 Bourdieu’s conceptualisation helps us think about how events and festivals
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might work to reproduce social inequalities by including only certain groups:
Culture-led regeneration (Bianchini, 1991; Myerscough, 1990; McGuigan,
2007; Crespi-Vallbona & Richards, 2007) many cities have invested in the
arts and, more recently, events and festivals as a means of revitalising and
regenerating their economies
Governments have established strategic events agencies (public-private
collaborations) to maximise exposure to their other cultural offerings and to
exploit culture economically
There is a possibility that the forms of cultural expression chosen to lead this
regeneration do not reflect the cultural experiences of the host audience and
are overly instrumentalist (and economic) in intention
The way cities are marketed and promoted ‘operates as a form of
socialisation which is intended to convince local people that the
commodification of the city is entirely positive’ (Miles & Miles, 2004) –
pacifying the population
Cultural festivals and events
 These events have taken a greater economic, social and political importance
in recent years – some view this as part of the ‘cultural turn’
 In policy terms, the public sector (often in partnership with private equity)
has invested heavily in cultural regeneration strategies to deal with a
declining manufacturing base (e.g. Bilbao, Glasgow, Manchester). Culture:
 “is central to promoting the continued renaissance of the city…culture
creates jobs, attracts investment and enriches the lives of people who live
and work in and visit the city” (Ali-Knight and Robertson, 2004: 6)
 Crespi-Vallbona & Richards (2007) argue that cultural festivals are
ubiquitous, working to sustain cultural groups, assuring the acceptance of a
cultural discourse and as a means of “generating local pride, identity and
income” (p103):
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Producing a halo effect (Hall, 1992) or a feel-good effect (Allen et al 2002)
 It is the economic discourse that is now synonymous with events-led cultural
policy in the developed (and increasingly the developing) world (McGuigan,
2007)
Events and festival tourism
 Culture is now increasingly viewed as a product open to commercial
exploitation (commodification) rather than as a process or way of life:
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Place promotion, image enhancement, economic salvation (De Bres and Davies,
2004)
 Growth of cultural tourism (or festival and event tourism) and the
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investment of the public sector in facilities, institutions and projects related
to the production of an events and festival calendar (Foley and McPherson,
2007)
Attempt by policy makers to reduce the reliance on high season visits by
‘manufacturing’ new festivals and events and conferring them with some
historical or ‘local’ significance - authenticity and uniqueness
Danger associated with manufactured events is a perceived lack of
authenticity – producing alienating effects and outcomes (Crespi-Vallbona &
Richards, 2007)
Hallmark cultural projects are promoted and resourced, to the detriment of
the grassroots of cultural production (Garcia, 2004)
A problem is that only those products that can be manufactured to perform
at such events receive recognition and local cultural forms lose out.
Cultural Events and public culture
 Zukin (1995) is concerned at the loss of public space and public culture
(Roche, 2000) which has affected US and European cities in recent decades
 Alongside the proponents of the culture economy thesis (Du Gay & Pryke,
2000), it is suggested that culture is itself increasingly the “business of
cities”, fuelling the symbolic economy (of images, signs and spaces):
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Relates to emergence of symbolic (Zukin, 1995) and experience economy (Pine and Gilmore, 1999)
 Whilst events and festivals do permit the creation of collective identity forms
– these are mediated by the relationship between cultural symbols and
entrepreneurial capital
 Culture colonises, marks spaces and defines who belongs – as private capital
is accepted (and welcomed) by civic authorities so the cultures of cities are
contested and become sites of conflict
 Whilst ‘public’ cultural events exist, often these are under ‘private control’
and are in tension with public accountability: who is targeted, how they are
financed (or not) and who is disbarred (culturally and socially, if not
economically)
Visual and vibrant
 Zukin (1995) argues that “visual display matters in American and European
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cities today, because the identities of places are established by sites of
delectation” (p9). Culture attracts attention – a valued commodity
The proliferation of cultural festivity can be associated with similar trends
towards a ‘cosmopolitan ethic’ which defines a neighbourhood or city as
vibrant. In ‘created’ or ‘manufactured’ events, the cultural message is
carefully choreographed.
Festivals and events are the vehicle with which to animate static cultural
forms and promote them to new markets through the pervasive mediatourism complex (Nauright, 2004): they spectacularise fixed structures
(Richards & Wilson, 2004)
Festivals and events provide civic governments with a relatively inexpensive
means of securing a plethora of suitable vibrant, colourful and multicultural
images to circulate around the globe:
 Sydney Mardi Gras, Rio Carnival and London Notting Hill Carnival
The process often involves recreating a historical narrative, one that the
governing agencies can swallow and which is exploitable as a tourism
resource and is easier than hosting large scale sporting events.
Contested cultural space
 Critics argue that cultural events and festivities often colonise civic
space and then proceed to make this space like a gated community:
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Barriers are erected, security guards are employed and CCTV cameras are ubiquitous.
 Regulatory control over licenses, traffic management, environmental
pollution,ensure that the civic authorities manage the cultural
offering. It leaves the impression of a public culture controlled and
contained – not spontaneous and negotiated, but managed and
directed
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Edinburgh’s hogmanay rather than Barcelona’s La Merca Festival
 Flexible, interactive and creative cultural forms can give life to fixed
capital, however, these cultural strategies are aimed at the educated
middle classes (the new service classes), those with knowledge and
understanding of different forms of cultural expression. This has led
to claims of rather exclusionary forms of gentrification
References
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Bourdieu, P (1984)Distinction: a social critique of the judgement of taste
Crespi-Vallbona, M & Richards, G (2007) ‘The meaning of cultural festivals,
International Journal of Cultural Policy, 13 (1): 103-122
Evans, G. (2001) Cultural Planning: An Urban Renaissance. London: Routledge.
Chapter 8.
De Bres, K and Davis, J (2001) Celebrating group and place identity: a case study of a
new regional festival Tourism Geographies 3 (3)
Du Gay & Pryke, (2000) Cultural Economy: Cultural Analysis and Commercial Life
Sage London
Foley, M and McPherson, G (2007) Glasgow’s Winter Festival: can cultural leadership
serve the common good Managing Leisure 22(2)
Garcia, B (2004) ‘Urban Regeneration, Arts Programming and Major Events,
International Journal of Cultural Policy, 10 (1): 103-118
Gray, C (2007) ‘Commodification and Instrumentality in Cultural Policy’, International
Journal of Cultural Policy, 13 (2): 203-215
Lee (1993) Consumer Culture Reborn: The Cultural Politics of Consumption
Routledge, London and New York
McGuigan, J (2005) ‘Neo-liberalism, culture and policy, International Journal of
Cultural Policy, 11 (3): 229-241
Refs. continued
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Nauright, J. (2004) 'Global games: Culture, political economy and sport in the globalised
world of the 21st century', Third World Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 7, pp. 1325–1336.
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Quinn, B (2005) Arts Festivals and the City, Urban Studies, 42 (5/6): 927-943
Richards, G & Wilson, J (2004) The Impact of Cultural Events on City Image: Rotterdam,
Cultural Capital of Europe 2001, Urban Studies, 41 (10): 1931-1951
Roche, M (2000) Mega events and Modernity: Olympics and Expos in the Growth of
Global Culture Routledge
Waterman, S. (1998) Carnivals for Elites? The Cultural Politics of Arts
Festivals. Progress in Human Geography, Vol 22 (1), pp 54-74.
Webb et al, (2001) Understanding Bourdieu,
Zukin, S (1995) The Cultures of Cities, Blackwell