Simulated Cities

Contemporary regeneration policy is often concerned with the re-branding of the city, for residents, tourists and investors. Recently in the UK, an increasing focus has been placed on the role of culture in regeneration, but this has mainly been framed in the context of social and economic renewal. The absence of cultural theory from regeneration debates mirrors its lack of engagement with the political process in the UK and this theory-gap has important implications for the effects of regeneration strategies on communities. The work of city-branding in regeneration is primarily concerned with representation and imagination. The work of Derrida and Baudrillard is used in this book to critique the re-imagining of the city in cultural regeneration strategies. The conclusions of this body of post-structuralist thought cast doubt on the whole process of city- branding, but developments in the field of Cultural Planning provide a unique opportunity to join theory and praxis by viewing culture as a resource in the regeneration process and by engaging communities through their cultural practices.