Its program focused on current music and ecological commitment visibly convinced the European jury. Bourges, located in the heart of France and the heart of Europe, was designated on Wednesday December 13 European Capital of Culture in 2028 alongside Ceské Budejovice in the Czech Republic and Skopje in North Macedonia.
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“ The sleeping beauty is awake ! » welcomed the city of Bourges in a press release. “ The European jury chose a medium-sized city with big ambitions », Reacted Rima Abdul Malak, French Minister of Culture, after the announcement made by Rossella Tarantino, president of the jury made up of twelve European members including two French. Yann Galut, the mayor of Bourges, a town of 64,000 inhabitants and prefecture of the Cher department, spoke of a “ immense honor “.
Three other French cities had applied to win this prestigious title which promises both international notoriety and significant tourist numbers: Rouen, Montpellier and Clermont-Ferrand. “ In this application, we were somehow the little thumb in front of metropolises, we tried to offer another vision and another way of experiencing our European capital of culture », underlined Yann Galut.
Located 240 kilometers south of Paris, until now, this ancient fortified city from the Gallic era is best known for its current music festival, the famous Spring of Bourges. Its 12th century Saint-Étienne Cathedral, located on the pilgrimage route to Compostela, receives 600,000 visitors each year and is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site. Among the historical heritage of Bourges is also the Avaricum which refers to the ancient Gallo-Roman town, but also the Jacques-Cœur palace, a 15th century mansion and emblem of the flamboyant Gothic style. Without forgetting that it was here that André Malraux, famous Minister of Culture, inaugurated the first Maison de la Culture in France in 1963.
An ambitious transformation project
Since the creation of the “European Capital of Culture” label in 1985, only four French cities have managed to win this title: Paris (1989), Avignon (2000), Lille (2004) and Marseille (2013). The latter had truly renewed its image with the inauguration of the Mucem. This great Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations has become a cultural beacon and the new muse of Marseille, attracting a million visitors each year.
For 2028, Bourges has an ambitious transformation project to stimulate cultural tourism and boost its image to revive the economy, but also for an urban, social, economic and well-being transformation. Culture will be considered an important lever against climate change. For the socialist mayor, the challenge of the year 2028 is to replace “ this adjective “average” which sticks to the skin of the city » by “ beautiful, ambitious, charming “. At the same time, Bourges wishes to become the standard bearer of medium-sized towns, because “ towns of less than 100 000 inhabitants represent half of the citizens in France and the European Union “.
Among the strong points of the application is the desire to create a participatory and collaborative project, a translation service in the 24 languages of the European Union at the service of European artistic production, as well as the intention to defend and reinvent the cultural rights in Europe. In addition, ” the Bourges 2028 cultural program is strongly committed to a low carbon impact and follows the 2030 climate and societal objectives of the European Union » For “ reduce carbon dioxide emissions from our events by 50%, supported by the French think tank, the Shift Project “.
Another argument not to be overlooked: Bourges 2028 will be free for young audiences up to the age of 20.