At the premises of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, Košice invited Slovakia to the European Capital of Culture 2013

In a few weeks’ time, Košice, together with the French city of Marseille, will officially become the European Capitals of Culture 2013. The upcoming start to the New Year is the reason why the Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic (NR SR), Pavol Paška, together with the Minister of Culture of the Slovak Republic, Marek Maďarič, Košice Mayor, Richard Raši and the team from the non-profit making organisation Košice – European Capital of Culture 2013 (ECOC) today offered a small cultural invitation to Košice. An artistic programme will be provided by musicians from the Cluster ensemble (Ivan Šiller, František Király, Zuzana Biščáková, Dalibor Kocián and Lenka Novosedlíková) with guests Jozef Lupták and Braňo Dugovič and dancers Michaela Nezvalová, Soňa Ferienčíková and Vladislav Šoltýs, joined under the guidance of Ivan Šiller. As leader of the World New Music Days Festival, the ISCM is preparing the 90th anniversary of this most renowned worldwide presentation of contemporary classical music for the end of next year in Košice.

“Thanks to the project, Košice has become the most dynamically developing city in Slovakia. We are building a modern European metropolis where it is not only worth living, working and creating, but it is also a place for tourists to visit. Košice was ranked among the top destinations for 2013 not only by the world renowned guidebooks, Lonely Planet, but also the American travel portal, Budgettravel.com. I believe that as Košice is being discovered by the whole world, the rest of Slovakia will also find a way to Košice next year,” said Mayor Richard Raši. As he added, next year will be an ideal opportunity to join exploring the city and region with an interesting and unique cultural experience.

According to the Speaker of the Parliament, Pavol Paška, 2013 is also an ideal opportunity to visit Eastern Slovakia. Today’s event, joint with meeting journalists, took place under his auspices. “I’m proud that my home city will become the European Capital of Culture. We, Košice people are local patriots, but we are aware that the significance of the project goes beyond the borders of our city and not only have a multi-regional but also a nationwide impact. Therefore I’m glad, here in Parliament, that I’m able to give at least a short artistic ‘taster’ invitation to the east of our country to not only elected representatives but, via the media, also to citizens from all corners of Slovakia,” said the Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, Pavol Paška.

According to the Minister of Culture of the Slovak Republic, Marek Maďarič, the ECOC Košice 2013 project in our conditions may be important proof that if we invest more in culture, then culture, together with the cultural and creative industry, will also have a significant economic and innovative impact upon the region.

The Ministry of Culture is the sponsor for the implementation of national projects of an investment nature within the ECOC Košice 2013 project and acts in the position of a mediation body under the Managing Authority for Regional Operational Programme 2007 – 2013, priority axis 7. In March 2012, the Slovak Government approved means from European Union structural funds for the Košice – ECOC 2013 national project in the amount of €60million. These funds are designated for renovation, reconstruction, extension and modernisation of buildings and for reinforcing public areas.

The Director of the non-profit making organisation, Košice – European Capital of Culture (ECOC) 2013, Ján Sudzina, emphasised the fact that the project is not only about the cultural programme but also about the overall transformation of the city and region. “More than twenty investment projects will bring a positive change in opportunities to implement cultural events in Košice. Three new types of institutions so far unseen in the city or region will be created based on these projects. We hope that their significance will rank them among similar modern European institutions and in Eastern Slovakia they will become a cradle of current contemporary art,” stated Sudzina. As he stressed, these should be the Barracks/Culture Park as a place for creative industry and new trends in arts, the Kunsthalle as exhibition space for a new generation and the SPOTs Exchanger Station Project as places for developing community life and social arts.

In relation to elements of transformation, the Košice 2013 n.o. team is also preparing a new cultural strategy. “We have prepared an outline plan for a creative industry looking towards 2020, into which we want to involve the city, region and important players in the whole region, starting with the private sector and concluding with universities,” said Sudzina. According to him, also thanks to the ECOC project, the vision of transforming Košice from an industrial to a creative city has a great chance of bringing everybody together.

According to the Artistic Director of Košice 2013 n.o., Vladimír Beskid, the cultural and arts programme for 2013 will be a strong impetus for Košice and the region. It will not only stimulate them but it will also lead to the creation of a communications network at least of a Central European dimension. A package of almost 300 events from key, through significant to a large number of accompanying events, will form a wide ranging programme. Apart from their international and development level with a European dimension, they will also have a national and local context. “We have built the programme architecture on five priority lines, four personalities and also in cooperation with our partner, Marseille – Provence. Our efforts focused on constructing a balanced programme. Not only between all types of art, traditional and innovative events, but also in terms of the wide age composition of audiences. However, we are concentrating upon contemporary art and are paying great attention to presenting Slovak arts abroad,” said Beskid. He said that extra events will mainly include a programme concentrated in the new pilot institutions, the Barracks/Culture Park and the Kunsthalle. He considers the pilot project of an international presentation of contemporary dance, New Dance Day and the ISCM World New Music Days to be such events which will take place in Slovakia for the first time in its 90 year history, as well as triennial of contemporary images, the creation of new productions or a performance by the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra.

The Artistic Director also emphasised that the concept of the programme structure is not built only on one-off cultural events in 2013. Its main aim is to start a process of long term development and stimulating conditions for cultural operators in the entire region, to support international partnerships and creative, prospective initiatives. The ECOC 2013 Opening Ceremony will hold this spirit, and its dramaturgy is designed as a turning point. It will take place during the weekend of 19 and 20 January and will be conceived as a unique, two-day inspirational event which will enliven the whole city. The programme will be spread between several places and scenes, from the State Theatre, via the Steel Arena, the podium on Hlavna Street to many clubs and restaurants, so there will be something to suit everybody. “We see the Ceremony as a starting platform which will not only open the large parade of the cultural and artistic programme for 2013, but will also symbolically pass the message that we are looking into the future, that we have a vision of a modern creative city and that we believe that thanks to the project, we will succeed in oxygenising and stimulating the domestic cultural scene,” added the Artistic Director of Košice 2013 n.o., Vladimír Beskid.