February 16, 2010

Santander 2016 looks to Europe in an ambitious cultural program

· The competition EuroDemo will invite artists from the 27 European countries to present their entries through Myspace.com
· The European Light Festival of Santander will, in October, become the first competition of its kind to be held in Spain.
· Two famous European photographers, Jordi Bernadó and Bernard Plossu, will offer their expert vision of Europe through both books and exhibitions.
· With Discover Santander and through various artistic projects they will try to be seen as city icons with a new look.
· The Plan of Sustainability will start a program of environmental public awareness that will value the rich natural heritage of Cantabria.

Each area of the city transformed into one of the 27 European countries, an ambitious competition of music with the participating artists from all of the European Union, the first festival of light in Spain, theatre, magic and cinema, exhibitions and book editions of the great maestros of photography are just some of the activities that the Santander Foundation 2016 has included in this intense cultural program this year.
All of these have been designed according to the fixed objectives from the program of the European Capital of Culture: to obtain the support and participation of the citizens, promoting the knowledge of the wealth and diversity of the culture from the countries of the European Union; to favour the co-operation between European artists, agents and cultural managers, bringing transnational mobility; as to improve local networks, giving international renown to the city with sustainable programs that take root in the city for long term development.
From the second of January, Santander has adopted the name SANTANDEUROPA. The city has been divided into 27 districts, ‘converting’ each district to become one of the countries of the European Union. The flags of each country already fly in the corresponding district and in the coming months they will develop activities in collaboration with neighbourhood associations, colleges, retailers and restaurateurs in order to bring together the European reality and the citizens of Santander. The objective is that the 184.000 citizens of Santander simulate a new identity, sharing the culture of another country to the fullest extent.

press_release_progr2010.pdf