Perth bids to be City of Culture 2021

PERTH has officially launched its bid to be UK City of Culture 2021.

Perth is bidding to be City of Culture 2021. Picture: Neil Hanna

The bid is being built around a community-developed programme of arts and culture.

Provost Liz Grant said, “We want to give everybody in Perth and Kinross the chance to take part in culture and creative learning, connecting our rural and urban communities through inspiring arts programmes which bring people and places together.

“We have such a fantastic wealth of culture and heritage here: I can’t wait to showcase it to the world.

“The bid will allow us to cultivate new talent and make the area a place where artists, creative industries and business innovation can flourish.”

Charles Kinnoull, Chair of Culture Perth and Kinross offered his full support for the bid, saying, “This is a great opportunity to showcase and further amplify the unique character and culture of the region to both existing and new audiences.

“Culture Perth and Kinross is delighted to have a key role in helping to support and connect communities, creative practitioners, local businesses and others in backing the bid and securing the success Perth so richly deserves”.

Magnus Linklater, chair of Horsecross Arts, the creative organisation behind Perth Concert Hall and Perth Theatre said: “With two world-class venues in the heart of the city, Horsecross Arts is proud to be a part of Perth and Kinross’s special and distinctive cultural landscape.

“Perth Concert Hall just celebrated its 10th anniversary and Perth Theatre will reopen in 2017 following restoration and redevelopment.

“With our varied entertainment programme and our extensive creative learning work throughout the community, we are well-placed to support Perth’s bid to become City of Culture in 2021, giving voice to the area’s great and sometimes unsung cultural offering.”

Perth is the latest to bid for the 2021 title, with Paisley, Coventry, Sunderland and Stoke-on-Trent already announcing their plans.

Milton Keynes and Cardiff are also said to be interested in bidding.

The first UK City of Culture was Derry-Londonderry in 2013 - an award which reportedly brought one million additional tourism visits.

Hull will be the second city to receive the title, beginning in 2017. Cities are designated as the UK City of Culture for 12 months.

The bidding process for 2021 begins in January, with the winner announced by the end of next year.

The bid is being linked to the themes of:

*A great, green city, celebrating Perth’s place at the heart of a rural community

*Connections, emphasising the city’s role as a meeting place and melting pot, as well as the rivers that link the area together

*A city of light, drawing on the city’s heritage as a catalyst for creativity and ideas

Community involvement will be supported by ambitious new projects:

*The quest to loan the Stone of Scone - the iconic Stone of Destiny - for display in Perth

*The major new commission of a ‘digital tapestry’ interactive visual history display

*A Young Heritage Ambassadors programme

*Projects which celebrate and record the experiences of our rural, dispersed and migrant communities.

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