Latvia | Liepāja to be European Capital of Culture 2027

The Latvian city of Liepāja has been recommended as one of the European Capitals of Culture 2027.

A panel of independent experts assessing applications from the three short-listed Latvian cities of Daugavpils, Liepāja and Valmiera recommended Liepāja on 10 May 2022 following a two-day meeting. After Riga in 2014, Liepāja will be the second city in Latvia to host the European Capital of Culture title. 

The programme proposed by Liepāja includes five elements that fall under the theme (un)rest, providing landmarks and beacons in the ever-changing world of rest and unrest. Each of the five lines of the programme – “European‌ ‌Dream”, “‌New‌ ‌Eyes”, “Port‌ ‌Paradox”, “Deliberate‌ ‌Modesty” and “Creative‌ ‌Foresight‌” – reveals a story closely linked to Liepāja and its roots to Europe.

With the extensive and diverse cultural programme, Liepāja is eager to create a plan that would help to better understand both each other and the world in which we live, promoting public activities and the growth of a healthy dose of rest and unrest.

There will be two European Capitals of Culture in 2027, one in Latvia and one in Portugal. The city in Portugal has yet to be decided from the shortlist of Aveiro, Braga, Evora and Ponta Delgada.

Image: © iStock, European Union, 2022