It's an interesting viewpoint on why some regions prosper and some do not. Smugly, the Seattle region is #5 for Large Cities Creativity Rankings.
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The Rise of the Creative Class
Why cities without gays and rock bands are losing the economic development race.
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2001/0205.florida.html

Florida
The distinguishing characteristic of the creative class is that its members engage in work whose function is to "create meaningful new forms." The super- creative core of this new class includes scientists and engineers, university professors, poets and novelists, artists, entertainers, actors, designers, and architects, as well as the "thought leadership" of modern society: nonfiction writers, editors, cultural figures, think-tank researchers, analysts, and other opinion-makers.

Florida
I asked the young man with the spiked hair why he was going to a smaller city in the middle of Texas, a place with a small airport and no professional sports teams, without a major symphony, ballet, opera, or art museum comparable to Pittsburgh's. The company is excellent, he told me. There are also terrific people and the work is challenging. But the clincher, he said, is that, "It's in Austin!" There are lots of young people, he went on to explain, and a tremendous amount to do: a thriving music scene, ethnic and cultural diversity, fabulous outdoor recreation, and great nightlife. Though he had several good job offers from Pittsburgh high-tech firms and knew the city well, he said he felt the city lacked the lifestyle options, cultural diversity, and tolerant attitude that would make it attractive to him. As he summed it up: "How would I fit in here?"

It's a couple of interesting ideas.

Are you an artist-and-something? I'm an artist and web coder and office support. (Not a big stretch, but it's not pure artist)

Do you think there is a creative class?

I stayed in Seattle because it's thriving, creating and diverse. Being gay, that was important to me. Do you live in a creative place?

I don't live in a creative place, and it really does have a huge impact on the quality of living here.
One of my province's biggest problems is young people leaving, because anyone talented who actually wants to make it anywhere gets out of this dead-end city as fast as they can. The city I live in is dying, creatively. Almost all the art stores have gone out of business in recent years, and we haven't produced a half-decent musician in years, despite the supposed "arts and culture" that "thrive" here. Diversity is also not very apparent. Even dressing differently is hard. When the fashions change, you will even have a hard time finding old, cool clothes in the second-hand stores, nevermind regular clothing stores. The province's solution for our problems? A new slogan. And another one.

freefall_drift
The Rise of the Creative Class

Sounds to me like something that's more perceived than actual. Although perception CAN change reality (No, not in a mystic sense), I don't think that's happened here.

Creative, dynamic people are always drawn to vibrant places where they perceive a welcome and an environment to accommodate them. That's always happened and probably always will. traditionally i's been certain large cities that have always been good at drawing those communities- Athens, Rome, and Byzantium in ancient times. London, Paris, and New York from the 18th C to today. Apart from that, coastal cities and towns in general are very well known for this.

Rather than being something that starts with some "creative Class", there has to be something else that draws a lot of people to an area. In coastal towns it was commerce, trade and the infusions of new cultures and immigrants that it brought. In big cities it's the reputation of the big worldly city for being a trade and commerce hub.

These days there's a lot of energy and new tech firms starting in places like Hyderabad in India, Dubai in the U.A.E., and the various tech cities in China. Lots of investment and enthusiasm... It draws creative and motivated people. These people get together and make a cultural life for themselves there and that draws others.

freefall_drift
Do you think there is a creative class?
Do you live in a creative place?

i think every human being has the capacity to create , it's what has brought us this far . most people in modern society have been suppressed in the creative capacity. it's part of our roles as consumers to not create , thereby creating more need to buy manufactured products and entertainment.

i live in Japan , you could say it's creative in some ways , i see a variety of fashions and architecture . it has its' conformist aspects too . but what strikes me is the way the average person is more capable of creative improvisation in daily life. not necessarily artistic, but all added up it makes for a much more interesting and livable ambiance , as opposed to the rigid grid world of big box shopping centers and green lawns that dominates American cities.

I think Ozone's right. It's the city's success that attracts the creative people to it, not the creative people who make the city's success.

Although I suspect that's about to change. The internet is already starting to make where you live irrelevant to creativity. It's still nice to be among other creative people but it's no longer as necessary as it was for the exchange of ideas or for collaboration.

Going forward, when the internet is eventually replaced by an even bigger and more mind-boggling form of communication, the need to be physically part of a creative community may disappear all together.

Here in San Francisco we are thriving. There is always lots to do and lots of place to see and or do it.

Sure some people will tell you it used to be better, but I think there is always a bit of nostalgia. The truth is there is a good support system for the arts here, a real audience for performance and art.

I think it's no surprise that a lot of the Sillicon valley mavericks patronize creativity both in and out of the workplace, hellI have seen many of them participate in creative projects themselves.

My city (Grand Rapids) is accurately ranked as one of the worst places for creative people to be. It's stuffy, completely without culture. All there is around here to do is eat, watch movies, and go to church. (We actually have more churches per capita than any other city in the US.)
What's insane is that we actually have an art school in town. Kendall College of Art and Design. But I think anyone who comes to this place to get an art degree moves away as soon as they graduate.
I'm very lucky to have gotten a job in art here (and without a fancy degree from Kendall, no less!) and I'm lucky to live in a little pocket of liberalism.

I'd say the correlation between gay-friendliness and creativity of a city is at least a little bit true. My comics (I Was Kidnapped By Lesbian Pirates From Outer Space and YU+ME) never get any coverage in our oh-so-conservative newspaper.

Luckily, the internet does make it easier to be creative without having the work you do be in town. All I have to do is email my comics to Platinum and they say "Thank you, here is money and printed copies of your book. It's selling quite well in places that aren't full of assholes."

The area I live in is absolutely devoid of creativity. the only social activity I can get is a marathon of video games or something at someones house, you get jumped if you go outside at night. well, maybe i exaggerate, but it's not a pleasant atmosphere at all. Now, if I was to go about 3 miles down the road to the clitheroe area, the change is so obvious; Clitheroe is full of bands, artists and the like and going out at night is so much better, the town as a whole has a much better feel to it. Even when I go into manchester, there's a divide. the areas in which there are plenty of alternate music shops, odd shops and the independant cinema feel so much better to be in, and everything looks more alive than in the cold industrial areas near council estates. so, in answer:

Are you an artist-and-something?
well, I primarily scult as a hobby, but i've recently been turned onto drawing through webcomics. But for the most part, I study geology, biology, media and film in college.

A creative class? definitely, people who have the motivation to create instead of just exist are definitely in their own class as opposed to those who would do nothing.

and I guess I dont live in a creative place, not at all. I think you need a kind of upbringing to be creative which just isn't encouraged here.

Are you an artist-and-something?

I'm not an artist. I'm just a something.

Do you think there is a creative class?

R.Florida
"the creative class: a fast-growing, highly educated, and well-paid segment of the workforce on whose efforts corporate profits and economic growth increasingly depend...They do not consciously think of themselves as a class. Yet they share a common ethos that values creativity, individuality, difference, and merit."

I like the "well-paid" part. I'd like to be part of that class. It sounds like an elite force.



Do you live in a creative place?

I live in the Philippines. Ours is a quite conservative and traditional country. *sigh*

I think most people will find that art-inclined communities and cities do have a significant gay population; that's not exactly a secret. I won't try to explain the reasoning, as I have no idea why that is. But I live in Austin, Texas, which has a gay population only second to San Francisco and Austin is a highly creative city. I don't know what the aspect ratio between gay and straight creative people in such cities and towns is, and it probably doesn't matter (it doesn't to me), but if I could hazard a guess, I'd say it's probably 50/50.

Hi all,
Didn't mean to side track the thread by the comment about diverse = gay.
The author defines diverse as a community with gay and straight, families with kids, singles, retirees, rich to working class, a multitude of religions, liberal AND conservative thinkers.
The internet allows dispersion of the creative types, but once you got your gig, and you could afford to work from almost anywhere, would you choose to move to Grand Rapids or move to Austin?
Wouldn't have have more opportunities for more creative work, in Austin?

Different regions are developing specialties.
He gave an example of musicians. The three current US hubs for musicians are New York, LA and surprisingly Nashville. If you want a music gig, those are where you are MOST likely to find them. You might fall into a music job in Grand Rapids, but Nashville is more likely.

I'm also reading "The world is Flat 3.0". He defines the creative class are the ones that are left, after the human robot work is automated and the easy work is outsourced to India and Russia.

Well, putting aside my own personal bias towards my hometown, the answer between moving to Grand Rapids and moving to Austin is easy -- you go where the money is! And while I am not dogging Grand Rapids by any means, Austin is the 3rd fastest growing city in the U.S. and has done well financially in the "not recession" we're going through.

freefall_drift
Hi all,
Didn't mean to side track the thread by the comment about diverse = gay.
The author defines diverse as a community with gay and straight, families with kids, singles, retirees, rich to working class, a multitude of religions, liberal AND conservative thinkers.
The internet allows dispersion of the creative types, but once you got your gig, and you could afford to work from almost anywhere, would you choose to move to Grand Rapids or move to Austin?
Wouldn't have have more opportunities for more creative work, in Austin?

Different regions are developing specialties.
He gave an example of musicians. The three current US hubs for musicians are New York, LA and surprisingly Nashville. If you want a music gig, those are where you are MOST likely to find them. You might fall into a music job in Grand Rapids, but Nashville is more likely.

I'm also reading "The world is Flat 3.0". He defines the creative class are the ones that are left, after the human robot work is automated and the easy work is outsourced to India and Russia.

And GR certainly isn't where the money is. Michigan has the worst economy in the US. No money here.

It's a chicken and egg question then.
Did the creative class go to Austin because of the money and jobs, or did the money and jobs go to Austin because the creative class was there?
I see both happening.
Few people, looking for the "best" talent are going to start looking in GR first.

Good question -- and I have the answer!

The creative class have been in Austin since the 1960s but two things changed Austin and drew the attention of Hollywood: Austin City Limits and South by Southwest. Those festivals became famous nationally. Also, Austin launched or became home to some music superstars, like Willie Nelson, Stevie Ray Vaughn, the Thunderbirds and others.

Austin also has a strong theater scene. Many screenwriters, directors and actors have used Austin as a springboard to go famous, like Robert Rodriguez. Funny thing about him: he used to do a comic strip called "Los Hooligans" when we were both going to UT Austin, although I didn't know him personally. His was one of the only consistently funny comic strip in the Daily Texan btw! ;)

Combine that with Austin being the Music Capitol of the World (actual title), Political Capitol of Texas and the "Second Silicon Valley," computer-wise, and then it makes more sense.

freefall_drift
It's a chicken and egg question then.
Did the creative class go to Austin because of the money and jobs, or did the money and jobs go to Austin because the creative class was there?
I see both happening.
Few people, looking for the "best" talent are going to start looking in GR first.

It's an unlikely scenario really... I mean it sounds nice, but things don't tend to happen that way in the world. Seems to me as if you're using this less likely theory about how energy and vitality moves into cities and then thinking of ways to support it. And they do because you believe in the notion of the "creative class" so that makes it work ;)

It's like how people give religious stories logic and credence and make them work because they suspend disbelief and ascribe divine powers to one of the figures (be it Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, Mohamed...).

That's my take on it.
-On a side note. I've known a hell of a lot or creative people and people who work in "creative" industries, and they don't go in search of fabled cites with populations of like minded people. They move for the reasons anyone else does: Family, jobs, visit a place and form an attachment, etc.
WhereEVER they go, they'll find a group of like-minded people, because that's how they are. ;)

As for people that WOULD all get together and move somewhere especially for the "scene"- Those types tend to be the wannabes rather than some nomadic "creative class".

There's an alternative theory for you :)

Darn you and your eminent logic and common sense, OO! lol!

It's true, I'd never move to follow money but I've known some who were willing to. But generally, they are influenced by the things you mentioned (Family, jobs, visit a place and form an attachment, etc.) and yes, wherever they go, people find likeminded people.

Kind of like us artists/writers coming here. B)

ozoneocean
It's an unlikely scenario really... I mean it sounds nice, but things don't tend to happen that way in the world. Seems to me as if you're using this less likely theory about how energy and vitality moves into cities and then thinking of ways to support it. And they do because you believe in the notion of the "creative class" so that makes it work ;)

It's like how people give religious stories logic and credence and make them work because they suspend disbelief and ascribe divine powers to one of the figures (be it Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, Mohamed...).

That's my take on it.
-On a side note. I've known a hell of a lot or creative people and people who work in "creative" industries, and they don't go in search of fabled cites with populations of like minded people. They move for the reasons anyone else does: Family, jobs, visit a place and form an attachment, etc.
WhereEVER they go, they'll find a group of like-minded people, because that's how they are. ;)

As for people that WOULD all get together and move somewhere especially for the "scene"- Those types tend to be the wannabes rather than some nomadic "creative class".

There's an alternative theory for you :)

Nice off you to say man :)

I could be wrong though... I admit that. And even if I am right about the general lay of things there are bound to be More than a few exceptions. ^_^