Külli Hansen, from Tartu Centre for Creative Industries
JUNE 2024"The future of creativity industries and the creative sector lies in empowering micro-entrepreneurs, small companies, and individual creatives to effect change."
Külli Hansen, member of Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, emphasizes the importance of fostering connections among them on a global scale. As Tartu gears up to be named European Capital of Culture 2024, Hansen reflects on the city's journey in embracing this challenge. She highlights the city's vibrant cultural scene, the emergence of new festivals, and the creation of cultural hubs and job opportunities.
Reflecting on her experience at the Creativity World Forum 2024, she praises the event's intensity and diversity, noting its potential to foster global connections and inspire innovative solutions. She believes that events like the Creativity World Forum are instrumental in addressing the challenges faced by businesses and markets in the creative industries sector, paving the way for a more sustainable and inclusive future.
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“ It has been a long preparation because we have tried to be the European Capital of Culture already, last time in 2011, so I think that since then we have prepared the city. As I´ve been working in the city in the field of culture I see that many things have changed. We have built up new festivals, the vibrancy of culture is much better, like the city, and there are new environments, like factories, cultural factories, cultural centers, and new jobs. For me that´s the most important thing, that creative people don?t need to leave the city, because, we are not the capital city, we are somewhere at the end of nowhere looking from here, from Bilbao. Graduates or high schools tended to leave Tartu abroad to the capital city and now it has changed. People can create their jobs and they can stay in the city and do what they want, that?s important.
Tartu has been named European Capital of Culture 2024, how is the city facing this challenge?
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How does the centre collaborate with other cultural institutions, local artists and creators to improve the cultural programme during this special year?“ We are working together a lot. And in my centre, the Tartu Centre for Creative Industries, we work together with universities and science pocks. On one hand, we support culture and creative events, and, on the other hand, we support business and the development of startups. One case, for example, which is one of the flagship events of the year in Tartu in 2024, is the Estonian fashion festival. Our organization is organizing it together with two universities, the Art College, and the Real Academy of Tartu University. I think it is a nice presentation of how different organizations can work together and organize an event that is meant to support young emerging fashion designers. I invite everybody, if you are interested in fashion or sustainability in fashion, to come at the beginning of June and just search for the Estonian fashion festival.
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How are creative professionals and the centre itself preparing to manage the increased attention and expectations during this special year?“ To manage or get attention is not easy, because during this special year, there are so many events going on and we compete with each other for their attention. Tartu has an aim to get one million visitors during this year, which is a really big number, as we have one hundred thousand people living in the city. So, marketing and attention are really important, but we still try to cooperate and work together, talking about the fashion festival. We are also searching for new opportunities to get attention, for example, if a National TV channel comes to the city to make a morning program, we dress them, we give them dresses from local designers, and try to be very creative. So, that is the aim of why we do the festival and why we need the attention of the press and media, is the marketing of the designers. We want to introduce young emergent designers both Estonian and abroad, and this is the most important part, to make people more visible and to introduce them to the audiences we are interested in.
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What impact do you expect the title of European Capital of Culture to have on cultural tourism and the international projection of the city?“ The city expects one million visitors to come and Tartu 2024 slogan, is to be the most renowned brand in Estonia in 2024. I don?t know how to develop because I am not in the team organizing the foundation, but I see that they do this marketing that is so hard and try to reach people. I see that for me, identifying my self-coming from the European Capital of Culture has been very valuable because, I have been invited here, and I have made many new contacts like cultural operators from Europe. I?ve been invited to be an expert for some future capitals of Europe, so, I see that in general, it is a very valuable experience. The cities should think rather compete or not because it brings profit, and it brings acknowledgment to all the cultural operators. It makes the city organizations more international.
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The creative ecosystem is variable and unpredictable. What defines a creative ecosystem and what are the keys to creating one?“ It?s a big challenge but I think that the main thing is creative people themselves and working between creativity and business, creativity and education, or creativity and health care. I see that one of the most important things is to speak the language of creative people because they have their language, as in other sectors, but creative people are sensitive. If you talk about business, for example, in their language or not, you understand them or not. That?s why I think that all the media and all the managers, all the people who create this ecosystem can understand the language of creative people and can understand what they need, in which way they need it, and they work hard for it. Then the creative managers are much more intuitive, so if you connect with people, talk to them, then and listen to them, then you know how to create, what Is needed. I think that talking the language and listening to creative people and their needs is key.
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What is your assessment of the Creativity World Forum 2024 so far?“ I like it very much. It has been very intense, with so many meetings, very many different case studies, but also inspiring. The most inspiring presentation has been in connection with new financing models. I have been thinking about these models and in fact, we don?t have such practices in Estonia. It would be so interesting to take some of these practices from other countries and try to somehow use or at least test them in Tartu.
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What specific aspects of the event's programme have caught your attention?“ These events' schedule has been very intense. Yesterday I visited the Basque BioDesign Centre, and it was very interesting. I thought it was something connected to bio-design but I couldn´t imagine that they were making new materials out of ordinary things. Like customs from ink, 3D printing from milk, or chairs from tangerines. I like that they also work very closely with fashion designers, as they make these new materials, they test them, and they try to use them for practical things. For example, at the opening of the conference, the lady who led it had this wonderful costume, I couldn?t see it closely, but I saw it was different. Then I saw it in this Basque BioDesign Centre and It was made of carrots, it was really inspiring. You could see the future, and I liked it very much. “ I think the most valuable thing in this event is the exchange of ideas, exchange of thoughts, and ideas for possible cooperation.
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How does this event contribute to promoting creativity on a global level?“ This event promotes the global cultural sector, I guess and, I think it's important that we can meet people not only from Europe, but also, people from Africa, Mexico and America. Of course, it?s quite intense and we are working and networking and I would like to see more people. Maybe we need more time for networking. The possibility to listen to each other?s cases and case studies and to talk to each other and the presentation of how they have been chosen, makes you think deeper in such an aspect of cultural creativity industries. I think it's well-programmed.
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How does the CWF help to promote the creativity sector?“ What I see is that as we were talking yesterday, in the end, we realized all together around the table, that what we need is events and meetings. When we meet and exchange our thoughts, exchange our experiences, it is promotion. As the organization is growing, I was invited to find an Estonian organization to be part of the organization. Maybe our Minister of Culture could be representative of Estonia, as Estonia is so small that it could be all regions. I think that it's important also for small countries like Estonia to belong to such big networks and to be visible there, so, that we can be part of Europe in creative cultural feels, also to bring more interesting initiatives to Estonia in different ways. I think that this network already is but has great potential to grow to be an ambassador of small regions and countries at a global level.
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How do you think participation in this event could benefit your work or your approach to the creative industries?“ First, I think that I have already met so many people, with whom I have been talking about common project ideas, and maybe we can build up some new project applications for cooperation, which means that we have common problems. We really would like to find solutions together and exchange our knowledge to work out new solutions. On the other hand, if I post my impressions on social media, on Facebook, or LinkedIn, I already see that people are interested and that they react emotionally. I am also an ambassador of the conference in Estonia, so people know more about what is going on at the conference and maybe now they are more interested in following the web page and are more aware of what the conference and the network are doing.
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What challenges do you think businesses and markets in the creative industries sector face today, and how do you hope this day will deal with those challenges?“ I think in general there are two trends, on one hand, we are growing to be more digitalized, we have AI, and all technologies, computers, digitalization, and all this future that we don?t know where it leads us or where it brings us. On the other hand, we are missing this slow lifestyle, sustainable and green. That lifestyle, where we can be somewhere in nature and work there and not see people but at the same time still work to own money. Maybe you can join these two, maybe there are some options, but it?s a big challenge because to develop or to raise creative industries companies as we do, we need to be aware of both trends. Where do they go and how can we support those micro-entrepreneurs who chose either one or the other? In our centre, our task is to give entrepreneurship education and skills. So, yes, it?s a big challenge to know where these futures take us and to be aware of how to support the companies who choose some of these ways, some of these futures.
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You participated in TA3, organised by BDCC, how would you rate the day?“ It has been very interesting; I was trying to see different points of view, as a participant and as an organizer, and what kind of methodologies have been chosen to bring people together, to make them discuss, what is the support like for discussing groups, as a cultural organizer I think most of us do so. What I liked was that I could see the methodologies, steps, and the time that was given for the groups to discuss, it worked. We could talk to each other and listen to each other in small groups, hear interesting experiences, or develop new visions in a very short time. So, I liked everything. I think what I take with me is the methodology about how to lead a small group, do a good job, and find new ideas for problems solutions.
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Were there any particular presentations or workshops that impressed you during the day?“ Yes, I liked the opening speech of thematic topic three by Pascal Cools very much, as it was simple and impressive. I liked the way he started his presentation, he had very impressive numbers about GPT and its impact on the cultural and creative industries. I haven?t been thinking about it this way. He showed us what cultural and creative industries do. They educate us, they entertain us, they dress us, and they make us think and think about social justice or critical topics. The way he just projected out for me was... somehow, it went to my heart, being part of a universe of cultural and creative industries, its value, and the responsibility. I liked how he did it.
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What new ideas or approaches have you gained as a result of your participation in this event?“ I think the most important results for me are connections, of course, this is the aim of this kind of event. However, I gathered many valuable connections from different fields, from research, from science, from event managers and possible project partners, and the people who are also having the same problems and challenges as we are. I think the most valuable thing is the exchange of ideas, exchange of thoughts, and ideas for possible cooperation.
