Balance sheet at the end

Capital of Culture: Will there be more than the powder dance?

The congress in Bad Ischl, powder dance, vase by Ai Weiwei and "The Journey of Images"

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Violetta Wakolbinger, Horst Einöser, Wolfgang Spitzbart, Markus Wenzel)

Bad Ischl and the Salzkammergut in the provinces of Upper Austria and Styria have been the first European Capital of Culture in rural areas since January 2024. The annual results are now available. More than 600,000 visitors and an increase in tourism are being celebrated. But is that enough?

It was frosty when the Capital of Culture Bad Ischl - Salzkammergut was opened with the naked powder dance on January 21, 2024. It sparked fierce debates on social media that have not died down to this day. Now almost a year has passed and it's frosty again in Bad Ischl.

People are meeting in the Lehártheater, which is still waiting to be renovated, and taking stock of the mega cultural event, which was supported for a year by 23 municipalities in the Styrian and Upper Austrian Salzkammergut region.

Not everything has been counted yet
To date, 600,000 visitors have been recorded, 200 own projects have been implemented and 100 so-called "associated projects". However, only 58% of the projects have been counted so far. By way of comparison, the Capital of Culture Linz09 recorded a total of around 2.8 million visitors at the time.

"Not to be outweighed with money"
Nevertheless, the organizers are very satisfied. After all, this was the first time that the Capital of Culture was held in a decentralized manner in a rural region. "Our conclusion: art is a formative force, it is not a privilege for elites, it cannot be replaced and cannot be outweighed by money," emphasizes Director Elisabeth Schweeger.

She also rejects the idea that the "resonance" should be reduced solely to "a dance performance" (the powder dance): "What the European Capital of Culture leaves behind in this region are a number of revitalized museums and previously empty spaces that have been revitalized and converted into art venues."

Admittedly, no monumental new buildings, but that was not the plan given the comparatively modest funds.

Intendantin Elisabeth Schweeger:

Frugal in the implementation
The current budget of the Capital of Culture Bad Ischl - Salzkammergut 2024 GmbH is 31 million euros. According to Manuela Reichert, Commercial Director, the Capital of Culture has "made the best possible use of its financial resources". A good half was budgeted and spent on cultural projects. Personnel costs amounted to just under 7 million euros, which is economical when implementing 200 projects.

Artistic Director Elisabeth Schweeger and Commercial Director Manuela Reichert (right)

(Bild: Veronika Scharinger)

Flagship projects in cooperation with Linz museums
One example of successful revitalization through the Capital of Culture is the Sudhaus in Ischl, which was revitalized in cooperation with Salinen Austria for the "Art with Salt & Water" exhibition. This attracted 24,762 visitors.

Leading projects were developed in cooperation with museums in Linz. The Lentos Art Museum Linz contributed three exhibitions to the Capital of Culture year, "The Journey of Images" at the Lentos, as well as exhibitions in Bad Aussee and Lauffen. "The project was an intensive examination of the role of the Salzkammergut in the context of art theft and salvage during the Second World War," says Lentos director Hemma Schmutz. Around 50,000 guests visited the three exhibitions.

Sustainable trailblazers for the next highlights
OÖ Landes-Kultur GmbH (OÖLKG) can also look back on a "successful Capital of Culture year". The Ai Weiwei exhibition "Transcending Borders. Dialogue with Hallstatt Culture" at the Marmorschlössl and the imperial stables in Bad Ischl attracted 58,868 visitors, while the exhibitions at the Academy of Ceramics in Gmunden have so far attracted around 27,000. The OÖLKG plans to present works by Erwin Wurm at both locations next year.

+3

Fotos

Tourism is also satisfied
"Culture is a strong travel motive for Upper Austria," emphasizes Andreas Winkelhofer, Managing Director of Upper Austria Tourism. The Capital of Culture created 200 new jobs in the tourism industry alone, although employment in comparable regions in Upper Austria was declining.

The number of arrivals in the region also increased according to tourism statistics: around 1.56 million overnight guest arrivals were registered in the entire Salzkammergut region (Upper Austria, Salzburg and Styria) from January to October 2024, which is 3.6 percent more than in the previous year. The number of overnight stays increased by 2.2 percent to around 5 million.

A look at social media
The Salzkammergut Culture Guide app, which was launched in April, was downloaded 5,400 times, the website received 191,862 hits across Austria and 51,432 internationally. The Capital of Culture had 15,037 followers on Facebook.

It's not all over yet
On Saturday, November 30, there will be a big closing event: The European Capital of Culture Bad Ischl Salzkammergut and the Upper Austrian KulturEXPO Anton Bruckner will celebrate the super cultural year that is now coming to an end from 11 am to 8 pm at the ALFA Laakirchen-Steyrermühl. The program includes concerts, theater, a children's program, readings, vernissages, a cinema room and culinary delights.

By the way: the next European Capital of Culture is Chemnitz in Germany, which will be hosting around 150 projects and 1000 events next year.