Bergamo-Brescia Culture Capital 2023: The Enlightened City is the theme of the dossier

Presented this morning at the Gallerie d’Italia in Milan the dossier of Bergamo-Brescia Italian Capital of Culture 2023. The theme of the dossier, realized thanks to the support of Bocconi University’s ASK - Art, Science and Knowledge Research Center and with the support of the Bergamo Brescia 2023 Committee and Intesa Sanpaolo, is The Enlightened City and is divided into four areas under which events and initiatives will be organized:"Culture as Care" aims to help build a shared memory with a hopeful look toward the future;"The Nature City" will aim to stimulate reflection on the relationship between urban and natural spaces;"The City of Hidden Treasures" to rethink the relationship with the cultural heritages of both territories; and"The City that Invents" with projects featuring businesses and their representative associations.

The whole project is not intended to be a year-long review of events, but to build a vision of the future to be bequeathed to the entire territory. In fact, collaborative paths have been built between two cultural aspects: the one related to humanistic and artistic culture and the scientific/technological one. Over the course of the year, all the necessary structures will be put in place for the realization of the event, starting with an online platform that will show on a fortnightly basis the events taking place in the two cities and territories. It will also be an opportunity for the involvement of schools, primary and secondary, and the creation of a cultural identity card for elementary school.

“Bergamo and Brescia Capital of Culture are like a new Renaissance, they are an award to Lombardy and a recognition of the strong ordeal experienced by these two cities, and their provinces, particularly at the beginning of the pandemic,” commented Lombardy Region President Attilio Fontana, who was at the presentation. “Lombardy Region has allocated 6 million for infrastructure works and provided for investments in derogation of the annual and three-year sector programming. Funds that will be used for the bicycle route (which will unite the two cities), but also for soft and sustainable mobility that respects the environment and nature. To these resources must be added an additional 500,000 euros that we will make available for events.” Bergamo and Brescia were officially named the Italian Capital of Culture 2023 following the Senate’s approval of the conversion into law of the Relaunch Decree in July 2020, with the intention of promoting the socio-economic and cultural revitalization of the two cities, which are among the hardest hit by the Covid-19 emergency in absolute numbers (third Brescia and fourth Bergamo, after Milan and Turin), as well as among the most battered in relation to population.

“The example, motivation and strength that Bergamo and Brescia gave in the terrible days of the pandemic made it clear that the decision to make these cities Capitals of Culture was not only a gesture of solidarity with those populations, who have suffered so much, but it was also the absolute certainty that Bergamo and Brescia would create an innovative and restarting project that we strongly need,” Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said during the presentation. “In this initiative we do not reward the beauty of the city but the project quality that is expressed, that is, the ability to develop a brilliant idea of innovation, involvement and participation around its material and intangible heritage. We will be naming the Capital of Culture for 2024 next March 16 and, as we have seen in recent years, even just getting on the shortlist of the ten finalists generates virtuous mechanisms and I am sure that this project will grow over time [...] I really like the theme of the illuminated city, now we are living a night and this illuminated city will be the light after the night.”

Pictured: view of Bergamo at dawn.

Bergamo-Brescia Culture Capital 2023: The Enlightened City is the theme of the dossier

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