Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City BID Book 1. naziv cijeline 1 Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City Port of Diversity Nešto → 2 ⁄ Bid Book Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City 0. Introduction— General considerations p. 6 1. Contribution to long-term strategy p. 17 2. European dimension p. 27 3. Cultural & artistic content p. 32 4. Capacity to deliver p. 42 5. Outreach p. 52 6. Management p. 58 a— Finance p. 58 b— Organisational structure p. 62 c— Contingency planning p. 65 d— Marketing & communication p. 66 7. Additional information p. 73 ← Courtesy of: Benčić Youth Council, 2013 → A barren, uninhabited island that was the site of a political prison in the former Yugoslavia Photographs from the archives of the City of Rijeka, 2013 → ⁄ Port of Diversity Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City BID Book ⁄ 3 Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City Port of Diversity ⁄ → 4 ⁄ Bid Book Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City DEAR JURY, DEAR READER The City of Rijeka announces its candidacy for the Euro- The Primorje and Gorski Kotar County, the City of Opatija pean Capital of Culture 2020 at the time when the City, and the University of Rijeka, as political, strategic and op- region and Europe are faced with numerous crises: eco- erational project partners, give mandate to Rijeka's can- nomic, political, social and moral. This is as well the mo- didacy for the title. By jointly executing the agreement, ment when distinctive voices can be heard emphasizing we mutually agreed to undertake the responsibility of the critical role of culture for sustainable community conducting and developing concrete cultural activities in growth, its cohesion and economic development, but line with the vision and programme of Rijeka ECoC 2020 also warning of perils of instrumentalisation of culture with municipalities and cities on the County's territory. and the vulnerability of social, cultural and humanistic val- With the University of Rijeka, as a hub for new knowledge ues of openness and pluralism as values we hold to be and creativity exchange, a particularly valuable partner understood per se. We are announcing our candidacy well for new developmental projects, we especially count on aware of the challenges lying ahead of us with a project of strengthening capacities of cultural and creative sectors this magnitude. However, we firmly believe that culture is for long-term sustainable development of the region. at the core of our societies and that it can open spaces in This Agreement also attests to the intention of ful- which people use creativity to shape their future. filling joint strategic objectives presented in the candi- The City of Rijeka, together with the Primorje and dacy, regardless of the results of the competition for the Gorski Kotar County, are known for the abundant natural European Capital of Culture 2020. beauty. Also known as Kvarner, our region is the intersec- We would like to thank all of those who helped pre- tion of different heritage, intriguing history and a wealth of pare the candidacy with their contribution, work, volun- untapped potential. However, this region currently faces teering, cheering. This is precisely what encourages us in numerous difficulties such as demographic ageing, unem- our optimistic intention to use this project as leverage ployment, emigration of youth, as challenges of transition for true cultural changes in our city the County. that have not been given a sufficiently strong response. We cordially invite you to discover our region and to We believe that becoming a European Capital of Cul- explore the pool of ideas and joint reflections that could ture is an important chance that could open new oppor- certainly contribute to the future of Europe. tunities, detect capacities and abilities and encourage suppressed creativity. We are also certain that our joint approach to this initiative offers a possibility of empha- sizing common advantages, finding solutions to com- mon problems and connecting individual resources to achieve results that will be helpful to everybody. We are convinced that this is the opportunity we must not miss, and which can be realized only with mutual strengths. Vojko Obersnel Zlatko Komadina Ivo Dujmić Pero Lučin City of Rijeka Primorje and Gorski City of Opatija Rector of the Mayor Kotar County Prefect Mayor University of Rijeka → ⁄ Port of Diversity Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City Rijeka 2020 ECOC Candidate City BID Book ⁄ 5 A CITY DOES NOT HAVE BORDERS A city does not have borders—they only appear that tural transverse, connecting the Orthodox cultural circle way. Rijeka does not end with that house at the end of with the Catholic, or in other words—connecting the the street. The streets continue to stretch and become East with the West. This is further supported by Rijeka's roads—literal ones, and more importantly, metaphori- architectural heritage, filled with works of Italian, Croa- cal roads—leading to the outskirts, taking the city into tian, Austrian and Hungarian architects. The same goes its surroundings and bringing the surroundings into the for testimonies of Rijeka's industrial and technical entre- city. In many ways, Rijeka is the Primorje and Gorski Ko- preneurship: the Croato–British invention—the torpe- tar County, in whose geographic and symbolic centre do, the Dutch sugar refinery, Austro–French oil refining the city found its place, becoming the County's heart in plant, Austro–Hungarian chocolate factory and many a way, part of a shared organism that is the engine of more. The same interpretation is offered in the literary equally shared energy. This additionally multiplies and work of Rijeka's author Janko Polić Kamov ( whose destiny dynamizes Rijeka, broadening the spectrum of its dif- connected Croatian and Spanish cultures ), writer Ödön ferences and making it a city of possibilities. von Horváth ( born in Rijeka, defined himself as a “typical The same goes for Rijeka's connection with the Eu- Austro–Hungarian mix: Hungarian, Croatian, German and ropean environment, which is essential for understand- Czech” ) or Rijeka's Italian authors Enrico Morovich, Marisa ing Rijeka. The city is defined by it in every possible way, Madieri and Osvaldo Ramous. Painter and sculptor from a fact best reflected in Rijeka's traditional culture of Rijeka Romolo Venucci too—a key figure of city's visual openness, culture of understanding other and different, arts scene of the 20th century, whose family origins, life a culture of dialogue. Or as one of Rijeka's philosophers destiny and artistic poetics are in fact a mix of Czech, Hun- put it—with a far better choice of words and not even garian, Italian and Croatian ancestors. Lovro Matačić and remotely by accident—a culture of polilogues. There is his baton have connected Croatian culture with cultures hardly a more natural situation for a city with a port in of Germany, Austria and many other countries. its very centre, despite the name with an unexpected Borders excite. They should be drawn just to be continental feel to it ( Rijeka = River )—yet another signal erased and in that way we can take the best of both of the city's detachment from one-dimensional. worlds—enjoy in the uniqueness of our and other cul- So you think this is just wordplay? Not at all. It was tures to the full, recognizing at the same time individual precisely these features that made Rijeka attract the at- particularities and common values. The process, of course, tention of many. To some extent, it has got to do with does not tolerate temporal borders as well, and such Ri- the fact that Rijeka developed on a geographical site of jeka is an empirical starting point for developing dialogue constantly changing and swaying formal borders, which of European cultures. Rijeka has solid foundations that caused many neuralgic situations in its past, but above all such dialogue can be built on. A significant role here is affected Rijeka in the most positive way possible. If any- played by new channels of collectiveness, one such ex- one knows it, it is Rijeka's citizens who lived in incredible ample is the ECoC 2020 candidacy. We wish to make room nine states in the 20th century. When someone wants to for meeting other cultures that make up the European see another country, they go there. Here, countries come kaleidoscope, to solidify understanding among Europe- to Rijeka's citizens. With a pinch of imagination, it is easy an citizens by cultural action, to weave our own cultural to picture a scene in which elderly citizens take a look at thread into everything that brings Europe together. the city tower first thing in the morning, just to check If anyone notices that this is a two-way road, they which flag is flying over their heads that day. The flags are right. With the bid for the ECoC 2020, Rijeka wishes served almost as a daily weather forecast. Situations such to breathe new life into its European self—the one that as these have formed Rijeka's state of mind with values has shaped the City's profile long before Croatia became that are very much European: multilingualism, tolerance, a member of the European Union. Let the pillars of such differences seen as the common good, focus on what Rijeka be the starting point of a new relationship with the connects us, collaborative relationship. city and its surroundings, the first step in creating a for- The experiences gained can only be what they are. Ri- mula for a new Rijeka, the one valid for the 21st century. jeka today is predetermined by an ancient script that sees The ECoC 2020 candidacy is the trigger for such an inter- its area as a cultural melting pot: Illyric, Hellenic, Roman, vention in the overall city structure, a driving force speed- Slavic, German, Hungarian … all these cultures showcased ing up processes that are already underway.