Palermo is reborn this year as Italy's 2018 capital of culture and will host Manifesta 12, the contemporary art biennial. Now is the time to go and immerse yourself in the events programme.
After Mantova in 2016 and Pistoia in 2017, the year just begun will see Palermo among Italy's leading cities, chosen as Italy's 2018 capital of culture. A full year to discover the Sicilian capital through the many events being organised for the occasion. A city that is working ever harder to gain international recognition and to redeem a past marked by light and, above all, shadow – a story not unlike that of Matera, named European capital of culture for 2019.
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Being named Italy's capital of culture is not the only major event and accolade the city has received: in 2017, which has just drawn to a close, Palermo was Italy's capital of youth, but above all it is here in 2018 that Manifesta 12 will be held – the twelfth edition of the nomadic European biennial of contemporary art, born in the early 1990s, which for enthusiasts and professionals alike represents a significant moment in terms of visibility and prestige.
Both the designation as capital of culture and the hosting of Manifesta underscore the city's Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dimension and identity. "Palermo has brought Manifesta to the Mediterranean and the Mediterranean to Europe. Manifesta 12 is an opportunity to celebrate Palermo in its essence: a laboratory for art and culture. The city is capable of renewing itself and building its own future," said Leoluca Orlando, mayor of Palermo. "Being capital of culture confirms the extraordinary moment of rebirth our city is experiencing and the way it has become a place of dialogue and enrichment between cultures, which is the foundation of a culture that looks to the future," he added.
What this amounts to is that Palermo is changing, and it is increasingly common for the city to be talked about in connection with artistic and cultural events rather than, as was once the case, crime news and the failings that used to characterise it. The challenges facing a major southern city remain, but so too do the initiatives that are making it an appealing destination from a tourism perspective.
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Palermo made it to the final round and went on to claim the title of Italy's 2018 capital of culture, alongside the cities of Alghero, Aquileia, Comacchio, Ercolano, Montebelluna, Recanati, Settimo Torinese, Trento and the Unione dei Comuni Elimo Ericini. The choice was made by assessing the feasibility and proposals of the project submitted by each candidate, rather than by considering which city was the most beautiful or historically rich.
The Sicilian capital did, however, start with an advantage, given its strategic position and its long history, by virtue of which it has for centuries been one of the "capitals" of the Mediterranean: a mosaic city, an expression of European cultures in dialogue with the Arab world.
But let us turn to the winning dossier submitted by Palermo 2018 and some of the planned actions: among the most important is the creation of a digital platform for "culture and leisure", with the aim of building a local area portal encompassing artistic and natural heritage, traditions, food and wine products, accommodation and dining facilities, and events; of bringing together cultural resources covering opening hours and access arrangements for theatres, monuments, sports facilities and libraries; of sharing access to the book collections of the entire metropolitan area through a single booking and consultation portal; and of creating a tourism services booking system capable not only of offering traditional solutions (transport, board, lodging and itinerary) but also of showcasing local products, becoming a fully fledged territorial marketing portal. An important first step towards placing Palermo on a genuinely equal footing with many other European cities, at least from a tourism standpoint. So that, as visitors, we no longer find ourselves faced with inefficient tools and scarce information. This, then, is where it is necessary to begin: with a solid support network for those who want to get to know and explore the city.
At present there is not yet a definitive events calendar available for tourists visiting the city, but it is known that among the many venues set to host events and activities as part of Palermo 2018 will be the Cantieri culturali della Zisa, the Teatro Massimo, Palazzo Sant'Elia, the Loggiato San Bartolomeo, the Complesso dello Spasimo, Palazzo Branciforte, the Complesso di Sant'Anna alla Misericordia and the Museo civico di Castelbuono.
The presentation dossier for Palermo Italian capital of culture 2018 can be downloaded and consulted in pdf format; while to stay up to date on the forthcoming events programme, the reference website is Palermo 2018.