Festivals - Fondazione Fitzcarraldo

The Mantova Festival of Literature, held in Northern Italy represents a very good example
of an event that in a very short time - it was established in 1997 - was able to
build a system of diversified relationships that include all the stakeholders and particularly
the private sector to an unusual extent. It has a real grass root origin since it
was initiated by a local bookseller and some friends with the twofold aim of providing
a meeting place for writers and readers as well as contributing to the promotion of the
beautiful capital of the Gonzaga dynasty, one of the most striking centres of the Italian
Renaissance.
The festival has become one of the most important annual gatherings for thousands of
readers coming from far and near to meet writers and poets from all over the world.
The whole city is taken over for a week by readings, performances, concerts, seminars
in cafes, theatres, bookshops, gardens, squares, palaces. The whole community is involved
in the event which is supported by the local public authorities but above all by
over a hundred (!) partners, ranging from neighbourhood shopkeepers to some large
companies based in Mantova, professional bodies and NGOs. The various forms of
support that include patronage, sponsorship in cash and in kind as well as the commitment
of three hundred volunteers that ensure the organizational backup, cover a
large share of the budget and provide the visitors the unforgettable experience of a
community opening the doors of their city in the name of arts and culture.
2. 6. 6. · The foundations
Across Europe foundations are playing a small but rising role. They may support – and
in some cases they already do - festivals in developing innovative and challenging
initiatives that step into contentious territories where public authorities do not like to
venture.
It is important to understand that foundations cannot replace the decline of public
spending for arts and culture not only because they do not have the financial means
to cope with this ambitious goal, but above all because they want to pursue their own
agenda with their own priorities that may include geographical scope, fields of intervention
and other.
Many foundations are increasingly willing to support artistic and cultural projects
when they have some social impact that means addressing the main social and political
challenges of the contemporary European society. As it was previously stressed,
because of their more flexible nature, festivals can react more promptly than most
cultural institutions to the opportunities and demands of the civil society, without
compromising their mission and artistic vision.
50