Creative city

Why we’re doing this

When we developed Sustainable Sydney 2030–2050 Continuing the Vision, we asked our communities to tell us what they value most in our city. They were clear about how vital it is to maintain a thriving cultural life in Sydney. To make this happen, we need the people who shape our culture and the places that support them.

We’re proud of our city and we ensure everyone can participate, contribute and benefit from its cultural life.

Culture underpins all that is meaningful in our lives and our communities – it’s what makes a city more than the sum of its parts. It gives Sydney its character and a sense of belonging for all of us who love this place. Without our culture, there’s nothing to define us and bind us.

Programs and projects

We invest at least $34 million in Sydney’s cultural life each year. This includes producing our free major public events Sydney New Year's Eve, Sydney Christmas, Sydney Lunar Festival, Sydney Streets and Art & About Sydney. We sponsor major festivals including Sydney Festival, the Biennale of Sydney and Sydney Fringe Festival. We also provide creative participation opportunities through our cultural programs such as Pine Street Creative Arts Centre and in our libraries. This includes practical support through our creative space programs and funding for our diverse creative communities.

We care for the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples through the Barani website. We’re custodians of the city’s culture and creativity through our history work, and our civic collection and library collections. 

We’re committed to supporting culture and creativity not just in buildings, but in the everyday, unexpected ways artists bring life to our city.

We enliven the city's streets and provide opportunities for artists through our Sydney Lunar Festival banner gallery and creative hoardings program that wraps construction sites in original artworks.

We also support artists and organisations with affordable space through our creative live work program and our accommodation grants. And we offer sector development programs like the creative impact webinar series.

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Learn more about the work we’re doing by reading our:

• cultural strategy

• public art strategy and policy