European inventory of
societal values of culture

Pereira, Chymisz & Brumen – Les Machines de l’Île de Nantes. From the workshop of the craftsman and the artist to the event in the city

Pereira, L.P.,  Chymisz, M. & P. Brumen (2023). Les Machines de l’Île de Nantes. From the workshop of the craftsman and the artist to the event in the city

Since 2007, the Machines de l'Île company has established itself as the main attraction of the new ‘creativity district’ of the city of Nantes, revitalising the space of the former naval workshops, closed in 1987. The result of a cultural, economic, and tourist policy initially based on the Bilbao model, the aim was to institutionalise a tradition of street theatre that had existed for nearly 40 years and to make Nantes an event city, with its productions on display for all to see. This dazzling success, which radically transformed the city's image on a local, national, and even international scale, was, however, part of a complex set of organisations, leading to a lack of transparency in financing and a lock-up of the various positions held within the company.