Creating a Local Identity through Experiencing Arts

Abstract

The need to "belong somewhere", to have ties to the surrounding environment, is one of the basic needs of biological organisms. The most important type of attachment to space is feeling at home and the ability to relate to space. It is associated with the creation of emotionally anchored territorial ties to a specific geographical location. Feeling a positive emotional attachment to the place can be reinforced through experiences and encounters with the arts. In the present paper, we map the activities of selected artistic actors who actively participate in the living culture and intentionally focus on local and historical themes overlapping with the global social situation. We emphasize the current view of the works of arts, which – being pluralistic in nature – are beneficial for strengthening the residents’ local identity. The local identity is also composed of the community’s fundamental values, its ethos, which is non-transferable and represents a true legacy that is passed on and preserved by tradition and by recurrent artistic experience.