The city of Esch-sur-Alzette has been shortlisted for the title of European Capital of Culture in Luxembourg in 2022.
The European Capital of Culture is selected by the European Union to organise various cultural events with a strong European dimension covering a period of one year, and has been shown in the past to act as an impetus in the cultural development and urban regeneration of the selected city. The initiative was first started in 1985 by a Greek and a French government minister and has been managed by the Commission of the EU ever since.
The city of Esch-sur-Alzette has now been preselected for 2022 after a jury of 11 independent experts, appointed by the institutions and organs of the EU, met on Tuesday 14 June 2016 at the Ministry of Culture. Luxembourg's hosting of the European Capital of Culture in 2022 will mark the third time for the country, following Luxembourg City in 1995 and 2007.
Following deliberations, the president of the jury, Sylvia Amann of Austria, announced the findings. The jury recommended that the Ministry of Culture shortlist Esch-sur-Alzette. The candidate city will now have the opportunity to complete and refine its application until September 2017, when the jury will meet again in Luxembourg as part of the final selection process.
This year's cities of Wroclaw (Poland) and Donostia-San Sebastián (Spain) will be followed in 2017 by Aarhus (Denmark) and Paphos (Cyprus), Leeuwarden (Netherlands) and Valletta (Malta) in 2018, and Matera (Italy) and Plovdiv (Bulgaria) in 2019. Ireland and Croatia will together each host a European Capital of Culture in their respective countries in 2020, whilst the 2021 titles will go to Romania, Freece and an EU candidate country.
Top photo by MMFE. Bottom photo by MCULT (L-R): Guy Arendt, Secretary of State for Culture; Sylvia Amman, president of the jury; Guy Berg (European Commission)
