Chemnitz takes on the title of "European Capital of Culture 2025"
Ceremonial handover in Bad Ischl to Chemnitz and Nova Gorica
This Friday, Chemnitz will officially receive the title of "European Capital of Culture 2025" in a festive ceremony in Bad Ischl, Austria. Together with the Slovenian-Italian city of Nova Gorica/Gorizia, the title will be handed over by the European Capitals of Culture 2024 - Bad Ischl Salzkammergut (Austria), Bodø (Norway) and Tartu (Estonia).
Dagmar Ruscheinsky, Mayor of Chemnitz, and Andrea Pier, Commercial Director of the European Capital of Culture Chemnitz 2025 gGmbH, will take part in the handover ceremony in the historic Lehár Theatre. They will be accompanied by other representatives from politics and culture from the six nations.
Dagmar Ruscheinsky, Mayor of Culture of the City of Chemnitz: "In these days and weeks, we are full of excited anticipation for our time as European Capital of Culture. On the way there, we have learnt to look at our city of Chemnitz from different perspectives. We have brought cultural treasures out of the shadows, found new ways of engaging in dialogue with and about art, rediscovered and revived forgotten places. But we also want to continue with our self-image as European Capital of Culture in the coming years and have developed a strategy that will carry the legacy of Chemnitz 2025 into the future."
Andrea Pier, Commercial Director of the European Capital of Culture Chemnitz 2025 gGmbH: "In 2025, we will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of this unique European project with the European Capitals of Culture Chemnitz and Nova Gorica. Just as we are now taking over from Bad Ischl/Salzkammergut, Tartu and Bodø, countless people have worked together in European Capitals of Culture over the past four decades, networked, learnt from each other and shown how European cooperation works in a very real and low-threshold way. The activities of the European Capitals of Culture are proof that cultural exchange strengthens mutual understanding, builds bridges and creates space for shared visions of the future."
With the official handover of the title, Chemnitz is moving further into the European spotlight. In the coming year, the city will present a variety of projects and events that make European culture visible and connect people across borders. Chemnitz shares the title with Nova Gorica/Gorizia, a city on the border between Slovenia and Italy, which is known for its close cross-border cooperation.
In 2025, the European Capital of Culture project, an initiative of the European Union, will celebrate its 40th anniversary. Since 1985, cities have been selected to build bridges between countries through art and culture and to strengthen the diversity of European cultures. The programme was launched by the then Ministers of Culture Melina Mercouri (Greece) and Jack Lang (France).
Press contact Bad Ischl:
presse(at)salzkammergut-2024.at
Christina Werner | Lisa Holzinger, Press European Capital of Culture Bad Ischl Salzkammergut 2024