Authenticity-in-Context: Embedding the Arts and Culture in Branding Berlin and Singapore

This paper compares the branding strategies of Berlin and Singapore. The respective authorities in these cities are actively marketing, branding and transforming their cities, so that these locations will be perceived as culturally vibrant, technologically advanced and attractive for investors, tourists and creative workers. While Berlin and Singapore share the same goals, they also share similar problems – how can they convince a world that is critical and cynical about the commercial images presented through their place brands? How can they convince the world that their cities are really exciting and truly creative? The arts and culture – both popular and high – are used in place branding to address some of these challenges. This paper also concludes that place branding and its authenticity must be understood in context. The emerging reality of the place means that the brand should also reflect the local entangled social, economic and political issues; the brand, in order to be authentic, should also communicate the commercial and the vision of the place.