UNESCO CREATIVE CITIES NETWORK

The creative cities network is an initiative launched by UNESCO in 2004 that placed creativity and cultural production in the centre of urban planning. It helped create a network of cities that placed creativity central to planning at the local level integrated into a nexus of international planning.  The UCCN mission statements do not only prioritizes cooperation but also looks at effective means of strengthening cultural hubs to improve participation and access to the cultural fabric of a city. The initiative makes this possible by sharing knowledge among member cities and fostering projects and research raising awareness at the community level.

Jaipur has been a member of the Creative cities network since 2015, being the first city to be nominated as one. Jaipur has had a rich history of performing culture and craft production under the patronage of the Kachwahas. The different phases of historic development in the city have laid their mark and influenced the development of different art forms in the city. Today, Jaipur has 30 different crafts forms, and at least 7 mainstream performing arts. UCCN has given Jaipur the opportunity to highlight this creative diversity on an international scale.

Sawai Jai Singh established Jaipur as a major political and commercial hub; creating a city with a distinct artistic identity. This was the time when 36 craft industries (karkhanas) made home in Jaipur promoting different kinds of crafts from textile production to stonework. This legacy continues with the city’s thriving cultural production centres employing 175,000 people working in around 53,500 workshops. Nineteenth-century saw another push towards recording and promoting cultural practices. A prime example of the same is the Jeypore Exhibition and the making of the Jeypore Portfolio of Architectural Drawings by Sir Samuel Swinton Jacob.

Today many organizations like the Jaipur Virasat Foundation, Gunijankhana, INTACH Jaipur Chapter, Folklore and Crafts, Jaipur Rugs, IHCN, Dronah, IICD are few organisations actively involved in hosting a range of exhibitions, workshops, training programmes, heritage walks, performances, and events to promote local arts and crafts in the city throughout the year. These events help create awareness among local communities while adding to the cities’ expansive cultural calendar.