Published at 08:59, Saturday, 06 March 2010

Carlisle is, in many ways, a beautiful, fascinating place. But calling it the UK’s City of Culture implies you’ve never been anywhere else.

Sure, there are people with an interest in art who enjoy a good book or a play. There are people who can paint, or write a piano concerto, direct a West End musical or dance the lead in a ballet.

Talent and intelligence are no less apparent than those in any other city. What we lack is support.

The money that was wasted on this bid could have bought us a lot of support. In fact, that was probably the idea – to challenge the perception that we don’t have much culture in our lives, by buying us a big, fat, official label.

It’s a modern solution to the problem. Change the way you market yourselves, to attract the right kind of ‘cultural’ customers. Tourists. Musicians. Exhibitions.

But true creativity develops at street level. The cash could have gone towards a purpose-built theatre, a music venue, a gallery. It could have given the culturally-ambitious a reason to stay in the city.

The real hope for culture in Carlisle lies with the artists, musicians, designers and promoters who are doing their best to liven things up.

Unless we pay attention to what they really want, they’ll carry on aspiring to better things, in bigger places.

Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk