Bricolage in the urban cultural sector: the case of Bradford City of Film

Abstract

This article discusses bricolage in the context of a social enterprise for urban development. It focuses on the case of BDK Limited, and discusses how this organisation contributes to the economic and social development of the British city of Bradford by promoting city-wide film-based cultural consumption and cultural pride. This research used semi-structured interviews, participant observation and documentary analysis to examine this organisation’s different modes of material and ideational bricolage. The entrepreneurs serve as material bricoleurs as they transform the residuals of the city’s industrial past from materials of no use and reminders of backwardness to sites for cultural consumption. This paper also identifies patterns of ideational bricolage. In Bradford, ethnic diversity has long been discursively associated with conflicts and backwardness by local businesses, potential investors, the media and even urban social entrepreneurs themselves. However, in this case study, diversity is re-perceived as a cultural asset for urban tourism and related industries.