2025 – THE YEAR OF GROWTH

The year 2025 is a year of growth and the sprouting of new projects!

The candidacy of České Budějovice for the title of European Capital of Culture 2028 has taken root, allowing us to gradually cultivate a (PERMA)cultural environment that supports the development of unique cultural initiatives and brings new energy and creative impulses to the city.

KUL.TURISTA
The Kul.tourist is back and heading beyond the city's borders! As part of our 28 Houses platform, which brings together cultural centers (and one garden) across the region, we have fantastic partners who will be hosting the Kul.tourist in their towns as part of the first joint project.
CITY DIARY
The project serves as a chronicle of the city, written by its own residents. Every month, two writers share their experiences of life in the city. It is up to the writer to choose the topic, whether to focus on a specific location or take a more global approach to their notes. The strength of writing lies in diversity, making it exciting to discover new paths and perspectives. Each month, two illustrations are created to accompany the notes. The writings primarily aim for a conscious reflection on the surroundings—writers are encouraged to document what changes in the city, what remains the same, their memories, or their wishes for the future.
CREATIVE MINDS

The Creative Minds Project is a key initiative of České Budějovice – European Capital of Culture 2028 (ECoC 2028), aiming to unlock the creative potential within each of us.

We believe that creativity is not a gift reserved for a select few, but a vital competence of the 21st century — a spark that lies dormant in every person. Our mission is to create the right environment and conditions for that spark to ignite.

ARS BIOLOGICA
Ars Biologica is a living laboratory of the future – an experimental platform where art and science meet to explore new ways of caring for the world we live in.
WOMENPEDIA
The Womenpedia/Women's Work project brings a female perspective into the cultural atmosphere of the region. It is dedicated primarily to women—artists, creators, cultural actors, and movers of cultural and social life in Budějovice and South Bohemia. Gradually, we aim to expand it to a broader national and international context.
SKLIZEŇ KOMAŘICE

Sklizeň (The Harvest) is a festival of contemporary movement art that grows out of the South Bohemian landscape — both literally and metaphorically. It emerged from the desire to share what has sprouted within the REZI.DANCE residency space in Komařice between 2022 and 2025. The place itself — its history, atmosphere, and surrounding nature — forms an integral part of each festival work.

SKATEHOLDERS
Urban outdoor sports, especially skateboarding, are among the activities that naturally connect public space, sports, and youth. The most prominent local skateboarding and cultural collective is Světadíl. Světadíl aims to improve conditions for skateboarding and independent culture in the South Bohemian metropolis and its surroundings. Each year, they organize a skate event as part of the Budějovický Majáles, highlighting the potential of public spaces in the city. It is Světadíl, representing the local skate scene, that was at the forefront of the Skateholders project.
THE LANDSCAPE OF STORIES
The Landscape of Stories is a long-term artistic project by Divadlo Continuo, created as part of the European Capital of Culture České Budějovice 2028 programme. Its goal is to capture and interpret the stories of South Bohemia — from the well-known and historically significant to the personal, forgotten, fictional, or seemingly ordinary — and transform them into original site-specific projects.
BRIDGES
BRIDGES is a long-term project connecting social circus and movement art. Its aim is to create spaces where different generations and communities can meet through contemporary circus — an art form that fosters physical development, creativity, self-confidence, and teamwork.
THE CIRCULAR HOUSE CB
The Circular House CB is a project that is changing the way we think about consumption and waste. Instead of the traditional linear model of “make – use – dispose,” it focuses on sustainability, reuse, and recycling.
YOUNG CREATORS
Young Creators is a development program and networking platform for young people aged 15–30 who want to create, organize, and transform the cultural environment around them.
CROSSING BORDERS IN MUSIC

CROSSING BORDERS IN MUSIC is an initiative of České Budějovice 2028, aiming to connect independent music scenes from neighboring countries (Austria, Germany, Slovakia) through open calls, performances, and a database of festivals, clubs, and artists. The project also includes the publication of a guide for musicians and music professionals in these regions, as well as a multilingual newsletter for music professionals from four countries, helping South Bohemian artists and others easily connect and engage.

PILGERLAND
Pilgerland is a project with the power to cultivate and promote a gentle approach to nature conservation, connected to the spiritual experience of the landscape. The Novohradské Mountains pilgrimage landscape is intended to become a widely understood concept that will outlast the Pilgerland project itself. Pilgerland serves as an incubation hub for the pilgrimage landscape, using art as a tool to spark and spread its ideas.
28 HOUSES
The 28 Houses Platform brings together cultural organizations from the South Bohemian Region that have their own spaces open to the public and actively contribute to the development of cultural life in their communities. Members of the platform share values of care, connection, and creativity, and together strive to create an open, inclusive, and sustainable cultural environment in the region.