OECD Culture and Local Development.pdf - PACA

Chapter 3
Promoting local development
by creating cultural products
The link between culture and tourism is a basis for development in certain
territories. The link between culture and creativity also holds prospects for local
development. This contribution of culture to development (for which design activities
offer a good example) does not always receive the same attention as tourism spinoffs,
however, perhaps because it takes longer to make itself felt. Moreover, it is less
visible, for the goods are not consumed on the spot but rather beyond the producing
territory, and only part of the value created returns to the territory, after deducting
the shares of intermediaries and retailers.
Why should we pay more attention to the local production of cultural products
than of other goods? These goods are highly sensitive to the nature of the territory
where they are produced. They are idiosyncratic in the sense that their production
relates to specific places, and they would not appear or be produced in the same
way in other places. Moreover, an analysis of these production sites shows a great
deal of formal or informal trading in tangible elements (materials, equipment) or
intangible elements (knowledge and know-how), hence the notion of a cultural cluster
or district. In effect, this output of cultural goods is constantly renewing itself, and this
forces businesses to change the component elements of their production function.
They can do so better if they can establish relationships within their immediate
vicinity that allow for such adaptation.
Today there are many examples of these cultural clusters. We shall go into their
typology later, but we may start with three examples that illustrate some of the
potential facets of cultural clusters and of creativity: Florence, Limoges and California.
- Florence is the capital of Tuscany, and performs many economic functions. A
true “city of art”, its artistic heritage is recognised as one of the most important
anywhere, and every year it attracts millions of tourists - the Uffizi Gallery
receives a million and a half visitors alone (Lazzaretti, 2004). The city’s cluster
of museums in fact accounts for nearly 11% of all the museums in Italy 71 . The
drawing power of these museums is mutually reinforcing, and they have pooled
many of their services, such as communications. Linked to this heritage of
CULTURE AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT - ISBN 92-64-00990-6 - © OECD 2005 95