- Reflection on the disposition of creative milieu and its implications for cultural clustering strategies   76 kb by    Pumhiran, Nolapot | nana_mantana@hotmail.com    Short Outline The paper discusses the concept of creative milieu and its implications for the formulation of cultural clustering strategies. Abstract Proclaimed as part of larger strategy for social and economic development, cultural industries clusters have been used as a tool for the regeneration of declining city areas. Other than providing a seedbed for cultural activities to flourish and adding values to particular urban places, they also embrace artistic/alternative lifestyles, generate new forms of sociability and re-create place identities. Nonetheless, these clusters have often been subject to threats from urbanisation processes such as high rent and gentrification and the homogenisation effect caused by overriding commercial developments. If not sensitively formulated, cultural clustering strategies may eventually work against their own objectives. To encourage robust cultural industries, attract new creative talents and investments and ensure overall socio-economic benefits for localities, suitable provision of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ infrastructures and ongoing supports are indispensable. This paper argues that, through a better understanding of creative milieu, we will be able to identify the right mix of these provisions, helping local governments and planning bodies attain more strategic clarity. Defined as a place in which its preconditions allow face-to-face contacts, social network and flows of ideas, ’creative milieu’ can be seen either as product or raw ingredient of cultural clustering strategies. Whereas creative milieux maybe developed through clustering, they may also serve as a platform or a factor that draws in more cultural activities to localities. Towards the end, the paper suggests that local government should not just develop strategies to stimulate clustering at particular sites but rather create favourable conditions for creative milieux to take shape and become embedded in place. Also, in order to sustain the creative milieux of cultural industries clusters and accommodate new developments associated with urban creative economy in the future, there is a need for alternative planning methods or approaches to deal with this challenge. Keywords creative milieu, cultural industries, cultural cluster, cultural quarter Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2005: Making Spaces for the Creative Economy   Click to open the full paper as pdf document   Click to send an email to the author(s) of this paper