The urban milieu and the genesis of creativity in cultural activities: an introductory framework for the analysis of urban creative dynamics

Abstract

The increasing interest on the role of cultural activities in territorial development and the related notion of “Creative City” have brought the relation between urban space and creative activities to the centre of academic and policy-making agendas. This paper aims to understand how the urban milieu plays an essential role in the embeddedness of sustainable creative dynamics based on cultural activities. We discuss the notion of creativity, focusing on cultural activities and then we analyse the role of urban milieu in the development of specific creative dynamics which enhance the sustainable production and consumption of cultural activities. Some concluding notes are drawn, in the perspective of assisting policy strategies to encourage sustainable territorial development dynamics based on these activities.